Many countries have implemented nationwide bans on using some if not all animals in circuses. Other countries have locally restricted or banned the use of animals in entertainment. In response to a growing popular concern about the use of animals in entertainment, animal-free circuses are becoming more common around the world.
Despite the contemporary circus's shift toward more theatrical techniques and its emphasis on human rather than animal performance, traditional circus companies still exist alongside the new movement. Many continue to maintain animal performers, such as the Big Apple Circus from the United States, Circus Krone from Munich, Circus Royale and Lennon Bros Circus from Australia, Vazquez Hermanos Circus, Circo Atayde Hermanos, and Hermanos Mayaror Circus from Mexico, and Moira Orfei Circus from Italy.
Background
On behalf of the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality of the Netherlands, Wageningen University conducted an investigation into the welfare of circus animals in 2008. The following issues, among others, were found:
71% of the observed animals had medical problems. 33% of tigers and lions did not have access to an outdoor enclosure. Lions spend on average 98% of their time indoors. An average enclosure for tigers is only 5 m2. Elephants are shackled in chains for 17 hours a day on average. Elephants spend on average 10 hours a day showing stereotypic behaviour. Tigers are terrified of fire but are still forced to jump through fire rings. Since 1990 there have been over 123 cases of lion attacks at circuses. Animals are trained through discipline.
Based on these findings, the researchers called for more stringent regulation regarding the welfare of circus animals.
A 2009 survey confirmed that on average, wild animals spend around 99 to 91 percent of their time in cages, wagons, or enclosure due to transportation. This causes a huge amount of distress to animals and leads to excessive amounts of drooling.
On 6 June 2015, the Federation of Veterinarians of Europe adopted a position paper in which it recommends the prohibition of the use of wild animals in travelling circuses.
Animal rights groups have documented many cases of animal cruelty in the training of performing circus animals. The animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) contends that animals in circuses are frequently beaten into submission and that physical abuse has always been the method for training circus animals. PETA also alleges that the animals are kept in cages that are too small and are given very little opportunity to walk around outside of their enclosure, thereby violating their right to freedom. Animal trainers have argued that some criticism is not based on fact, including beliefs that shouting makes the animals believe the trainer is going to hurt them, that caging is cruel and common, and that the use of whips, chains or training harms animals.
Asia
India The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 is the basis of all modern animal welfare and rights in India. Section 22 of the Act prohibits the exhibition or training of any performing animal by any person, unless the person is properly registered and the Central Government has specifically excluded the animal in question from the prohibition in the The Gazette of India. This was strengthened by the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, which theoretically prohibited the acquisition of wild animals for the purpose of entertainment. The Supreme Court of India confirmed in Centre for Environment Law, WWF-I v. Union of India (2013) that the 1972 Act meant that no state organisation or person can claim ownership or possession over wild animals in the forest; rather, animals in the wild are "properties of the nation", which the state is required to protect. The Performing Animals Rules, 1973 regulate the training and exhibition of performing animals in India, and required that businesses seeking to perform with animals complied to the general rules set out in the 1960 Act. In 1991, the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) issued a notification which banned the training and exhibition of "bears, monkeys, tigers, panthers and dogs" per Section 22 of the 1960 Act. After several challenges and clarifications in 1991–2001, dogs were excluded from the ban, but lions were added to it.
Turkey In July 2021, Turkey banned the opening of circuses which use animals. Existing facilities will cease operations in ten years.
Europe
As of 2026, the use of animals in circuses has been partially or entirely banned in all member states of the European Union, except for Germany, where only local bans exist. Most restrictions involve wild animals or wild mammals, but leave open any other species.
Austria, Croatia and the European Union When Austria adopted a nationalwide total ban on the keeping of wild animals in circuses, effective 1 January 2005, a circus association lodged a complaint at the European Commission, citing the "free movement of services". After seeking clarification with the Austrian authorities, the Commission decided not to launch an infraction procedure against Austria. This prompted the circus association to lodge a complaint at the European Ombudsman, who reasoned that the Commission had inadequately motivated its decision, as the proportionality of Austria's measure in restricting the free movement of services was not tested. By July 2007, Croatia had also adopted nationalwide bans on certain circus animals, and the national government of the Netherlands was considering it after the Dutch municipality of Winschoten lost a court case over its competence to locally ban non-domesticated animals from circuses. Dutch Agriculture Minister Gerda Verburg rejected the idea of a national ban (following Austria and Croatia's example), but offered to explore the option of an EU-wide ban instead. In a letter dated 18 September 2009 to the European Ombudsman, the European Commission clarified its position by saying Austria could restrict the free movement of services, because the protection of animal welfare could constitute an "overriding reason of general interest" (an acceptable exception to Article 56 TFEU established by CFEU case law). For reasons having to do with the complicated historical-cultural development of views on animal welfare across various societies, the Commission found that it was within the purview of the member states to decide how animal welfare should be best protected, and that the Commission was not required to pass judgement on the proportionality of measures taken by member states in this regard. In November 2007, Verburg responded by repeating her earlier objections to a national ban in the Netherlands.
Greece Greece became the first European country to ban any animal from performing in any circus in its territory in February 2012, following a campaign by Animal Defenders International and the Greek Animal Welfare Fund (GAWF).Greece bans animal circuses, Animal Defenders International
Germany In 2018 in Germany, an accident with an elephant during a circus performance prompted calls to ban animal performances in circuses. PETA called the German politicians to outlaw the keeping of animals for circuses.
As of 2019, Germany was the only EU member state which had not imposed a national ban or restriction on the use of (wild) animals in circuses. The Bundestag voted against such a ban on 24 October 2019. In August 2020, Federal Minister of Agriculture Julia Klöckner announced she was working on a bill to ban certain species (such as giraffes, hippos, and rhinoceroses) from circuses. This fell far short of the demands formulated by most welfarist groups, who alleged that 82% of German citizens and the Agriculture Ministers of all 16 states of Germany were in favour of a broad national ban, while more than 100 cities and municipal councils had reportedly already enacted local bans on wild animals in circuses.
In the 2020s, there has been growing political debate in Germany about the introduction of a nation-wide ban on the use of wild animals in circuses, and a 2021 survey conducted by the Eurogroup for Animals estimates that over 150 wild animals in around 75 circuses were performing throughout Germany.
France On 29 September 2020, the Environment Minister of France, Barbara Pompili, announced a ban on wild animals in circuses.
Netherlands In late 2012, the Dutch government announced a ban on the use of wild circus animals. On 15 September 2015, the Government of the Netherlands banned the use of wild mammals in circuses, such as lions, tigers and elephants. This also meant that transporting wild mammals for this purpose was henceforth prohibited. The Decision on the List of Circus Animals (Besluit Circusdierenlijst, effective 1 July 2024; last amended 21 June 2025) clarified which non-wild mammals that may still be used as circus animals, including donkeys, horses, dogs, domestic cats, llamas, alpacas and camels. However, the city of Almere in 2025 decided to prohibit any and all circuses featuring animals, citing both arguments for animal welfare and human public health. Other major cities such as Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague, Utrecht, and Groningen have a strict policy of discouraging circuses with animal shows holding events within their territory. They give preferential treatment to animal-free circuses, and impose strict requirements for circuses which do want to perform animal shows; but unlike Almere, these cities have not enacted a complete prohibition.
United Kingdom In 1998 in the United Kingdom, a parliamentary working group chaired by MP Roger Gale studied living conditions and treatment of animals in UK circuses. All members of this group agreed that a change in the law was needed to protect circus animals. Gale told the BBC, "It's undignified and the conditions under which they are kept are woefully inadequate—the cages are too small, the environments they live in are not suitable and many of us believe the time has come for that practice to end." The group reported concerns about boredom and stress, and noted that an independent study by a member of the Wildlife Conservation Research Unit at Oxford University "found no evidence that circuses contribute to education or conservation".
In 2007, a different working group under the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs reached a different conclusion after reviewing information from experts representing both the circus industry and animal welfare. That group found an absence of "scientific evidence sufficient to demonstrate that travelling circuses are not compatible with meeting the welfare needs of any type of non-domesticated animal presently being used in the United Kingdom". According to a report they published in October 2007, "there appears to be little evidence to demonstrate that the welfare of animals kept in travelling circuses is any better or any worse than that of animals kept in other captive environments"."Wild Animals in Travelling Circuses: The Report of the Chairman of the Circus Working Group". UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. October 2007. Retrieved 24 February 2010.
A ban prohibiting the use of wild animals in circuses in England was due to be passed in 2015, but Conservative MP Christopher Chope repeatedly blocked the bill under the reasoning that "The EU Membership Costs and Benefits bill should have been called by the clerk before the circuses bill, so I raised a point of order". He explained that the circus bill was "at the bottom of the list" for discussion. The Animal Defenders International non-profit group dubbed this "a huge embarrassment for Britain that 30 other nations have taken action before us on this simple and popular measure".