When I first started traveling with the circus I never imagined the amount of care the animals received on a daily basis. While tigers and lions were fed 20-25 lbs of meat per day. The elephants required care 24/7 Animal handlers in the circus provided fresh hay, grain, fresh. loaves of bread, fruits and vegetables and much more. I found it interesting to watch an elephant eat a watermellon and not leave a single piece behind. While the juice dripped out of the mouth of the elephant, she used her trunk to carefully push the large pieces in her mouth. Her foot delicately broke the watermellon on the ground and with each piece she picked up, with her trunk, you could see how much she savored the taste.
I studied elephants in the United States, Canada and Europe and while I was never an elephant trainer or handler I believe the education I received studying the behaviors and personalities while traveling to each location gave me the experience of understanding these large wonderful animals.
I hope that what I can share with others will help educate people about the care and treatment of exotic animals in the world. I will continue this blog so that others may share the knowledge I have gained while traveling to locations across the world.
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
Why I decided to create a Blog
Guess what world I am not hiding any more. While I went through some troubling times in the past few years in dealing with lawsuits for the work I did on behalf of Ringling Bros. Circus. I am still alive and many people will be happy to know I have gained some valuable experiences from what I have gone through. I have gone to hell and back at least three times in the past few years.
Believe me it is not fun to be involved in litigation especially between PeTA and Feld Entertainment ( Ringling Bros.) It is one thing to get stuck representing yourself, it is another thing to receive threats from a law firm who was supposedly on your side.
I am not bitter, but will use the knowledge I have gained to expose facts of what I went through and expose what happened to me and hopefully wake up a few politicians in Washington, D.C.
Valerie Plame Wilson, I support you and I am not far behind you.
Believe me it is not fun to be involved in litigation especially between PeTA and Feld Entertainment ( Ringling Bros.) It is one thing to get stuck representing yourself, it is another thing to receive threats from a law firm who was supposedly on your side.
I am not bitter, but will use the knowledge I have gained to expose facts of what I went through and expose what happened to me and hopefully wake up a few politicians in Washington, D.C.
Valerie Plame Wilson, I support you and I am not far behind you.
The use of an ankus or bullhook
Many people over the years have been misguided as to the use of the bull hook. Through my work with Ringling Bros. Circus I have been able to educate the media, parents, teachers and students as to the purpose of the ankus.
The ankus is used as an extention of the animal handler's arm and is used to guide an elephant as a female elephant would guide her baby elephant in the wild. There are many sizes of ankuses and when it is used properly, it inflicts no pain or creates no harm on the elephant. There are pressure points on an elephant as there are on human beings. These pressure points can be just as sensitive using an index finger upon our skin. The ankus should never be sharpened as to inflict pain upon the animal and there should never be blood drawn. An elephant if given an ankus sometimes would use it's trunk to pick up an ankus to scratch it's back. I saw this many times when Carole, an elephant with the Hanneford Family Circus in Florida would do this on her own. When she was done she would hand the ankus back her caretakers, Catherine Hanneford or her brother George Hanneford. If the elephant was abused in any way, she would not have reacted in this manner.
I have been asked many times over the years by the media and animal activists if I ever saw an elephant being abused or ankus being misused would I say something to the individual or say something to the USDA. Unfortunately, I have had to speak with individuals in the past and the problems were taken care immediately.
It is important to know that any one that uses the ankus or bull hook understands it's purpose and uses it in the proper way. Furthermore it is important to explain to the public and others simply how it is used.
The ankus is used as an extention of the animal handler's arm and is used to guide an elephant as a female elephant would guide her baby elephant in the wild. There are many sizes of ankuses and when it is used properly, it inflicts no pain or creates no harm on the elephant. There are pressure points on an elephant as there are on human beings. These pressure points can be just as sensitive using an index finger upon our skin. The ankus should never be sharpened as to inflict pain upon the animal and there should never be blood drawn. An elephant if given an ankus sometimes would use it's trunk to pick up an ankus to scratch it's back. I saw this many times when Carole, an elephant with the Hanneford Family Circus in Florida would do this on her own. When she was done she would hand the ankus back her caretakers, Catherine Hanneford or her brother George Hanneford. If the elephant was abused in any way, she would not have reacted in this manner.
I have been asked many times over the years by the media and animal activists if I ever saw an elephant being abused or ankus being misused would I say something to the individual or say something to the USDA. Unfortunately, I have had to speak with individuals in the past and the problems were taken care immediately.
It is important to know that any one that uses the ankus or bull hook understands it's purpose and uses it in the proper way. Furthermore it is important to explain to the public and others simply how it is used.
Saturday, October 6, 2007
Lawsuit against Kenneth Feld and Steven Kendall
By now many Circus Fans, animal care handlers, performers, and the general public are aware I was involved in a trial last year with Kenneth Feld. I worked for many years for Ringling Bros Circus ( 1990-1998) and unfortunately was dragged into a lawsuit involving PeTA and Feld Entertainment. I went from a non-party witness to a defendant in the case and I was promised reimbursement for my legal fees, costs and expenses I absorbed on behalf the corporation. After the trial concluded, Mr. Feld was found not guilty as well as myself and a judgment by PeTA against me was dismissed.
I turned over my expenses, legal costs and fees to Feld Entertainment and their legal counsel, Fulbright and Jaworski which had made an agreement with my previous counsel, Sharp & Associates to pay all of my expenses and costs associated with the work I did for the firm. My former boss, Mr Richard Froemming who passed away in July 2003, a former Ringling Bros Corporate Vice President assured me everything would be paid. The lead counsel for Fulbright & Jaworski did a 360 degree reverse and indicated they decided after the fact, not to pay any of my fees, costs and expenses. It is my belief they participated in various criminal activities involving this case as well .
They have been uncooperative and unprofessional throughout this case and it is my belief their reputation will be tarnished when the facts come out in the near future.
Unfortunately, I must sell some items to recover some of my expenses and fees at this time. I have absorbed an incredible amount of legal fees while working on behalf of Feld Entertainment ( Ringling Bros.)
Gunther Gebel Williams gave me a bullhook (ankus) he personally owned and he used on the Red Unit of RBBC. He personally signed it for me and dated it in 1998 when Frank Robie,a Past President of the Circus Fans Association and I spent time with Gunther in Washington, D.C. I used this bullhook of Gunther's to go into schools and YMCA's across the country to educate children and teachers on the proper use of the bullhook and afterwards they would come out to see the animal walks when possible. I also used it for the media as well across the country and it appeared on many news broadcasts. Unfortunately, I must sell it now and I am offering it first for sale, to any circus fan that is a serious circus memorabalia collector, before listing it for sale on E-bay where the general public can make bids on it. I would feel better knowing the bullhook was purchased by someone who truthfully enjoys the circus as much as I have for so many years.
I am asking $10,000 which is far below the value of the bullhook considering Gunther was one of the greatest animal handlers of all time. At each animal walk I attended across the country Gunther would come over to me and shake my hand and hug me.
Please e-mail me if you are seriously interested in purchasing it before I put it on E-bay this coming week.
Regards,
Steven P. Kendall
AHSSteve21@yahoo.com
I turned over my expenses, legal costs and fees to Feld Entertainment and their legal counsel, Fulbright and Jaworski which had made an agreement with my previous counsel, Sharp & Associates to pay all of my expenses and costs associated with the work I did for the firm. My former boss, Mr Richard Froemming who passed away in July 2003, a former Ringling Bros Corporate Vice President assured me everything would be paid. The lead counsel for Fulbright & Jaworski did a 360 degree reverse and indicated they decided after the fact, not to pay any of my fees, costs and expenses. It is my belief they participated in various criminal activities involving this case as well .
They have been uncooperative and unprofessional throughout this case and it is my belief their reputation will be tarnished when the facts come out in the near future.
Unfortunately, I must sell some items to recover some of my expenses and fees at this time. I have absorbed an incredible amount of legal fees while working on behalf of Feld Entertainment ( Ringling Bros.)
Gunther Gebel Williams gave me a bullhook (ankus) he personally owned and he used on the Red Unit of RBBC. He personally signed it for me and dated it in 1998 when Frank Robie,a Past President of the Circus Fans Association and I spent time with Gunther in Washington, D.C. I used this bullhook of Gunther's to go into schools and YMCA's across the country to educate children and teachers on the proper use of the bullhook and afterwards they would come out to see the animal walks when possible. I also used it for the media as well across the country and it appeared on many news broadcasts. Unfortunately, I must sell it now and I am offering it first for sale, to any circus fan that is a serious circus memorabalia collector, before listing it for sale on E-bay where the general public can make bids on it. I would feel better knowing the bullhook was purchased by someone who truthfully enjoys the circus as much as I have for so many years.
I am asking $10,000 which is far below the value of the bullhook considering Gunther was one of the greatest animal handlers of all time. At each animal walk I attended across the country Gunther would come over to me and shake my hand and hug me.
Please e-mail me if you are seriously interested in purchasing it before I put it on E-bay this coming week.
Regards,
Steven P. Kendall
AHSSteve21@yahoo.com
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