For a time ARAN turned it's campaigning towards other areas that needed immediate attention and urgent action, however, we are now re-focussing our efforts to spotlight animal suffering in the circus with our long running 'Stop Circus Suffering in Ireland' campaign with our colleagues at Animal Defenders International (ADI). Click here to read ADI & ARAN's report into the Irish circus investigation. Click here to read ADI & ARAN's Irish circus investigation report.

This week Duffy's Circus rolled into Limerick City after been absent reportedly for three years, prior to the circus setting up shop, our campaigners staged a press photo-call with our "elephant" 'Nellie', in which she repeatedly crossed over the road on Limerick's O'Connell Street during green lights, hundreds of leaflets were distributed to members of the public, parents and teenagers. The good news is that many people stopped to say they have given up supporting animal-act circuses and are now looking for a circus which is animal-act free. 

On the opening night of Duffy's Circus, some local members of ARAN gathered to hold a peaceful protest and distributed tons of educational leaflets to circus-goers and members of the public. ARAN are encouraging the Irish circus industry to go animal-act free and retire the animals they have into accredited sanctuaries where the animals can live out the rest of their lives in peace. ARAN are offering to assist in the animals' relocation and have encouraged the industry to revive a dieing business and to start a modern, all-human performing circus that's in with the times. In the UK we are supporting initiatives to ensure the UK animal-act circus ban becomes a reality in 2012, please contact us if you would like to do more.