ARAN has applauded Waterford City Council for progressing a motion to ban animal-act circuses through to the next legal
stage. The motion which was introduced by Councillor Sean Reinhardt and seconded by Councillor John Hearne at the request of an ARAN lobbying campaign, aims to ban wild animals in any circuses visiting Waterford City. As the motion was put forward to the next legal stage media outlets in Waterford started picking up on the story including WLR FM, Waterford Today and The Munster Express detailing the motion and progressive action by the Councillors. Over the coming months ARAN will work to ensure this legislation becomes an actual bylaw by the end of the year. We're also focussing on ensuring the motions which were passed in Fingal and Cork City Councils become bylaws too. In Waterford recently ARAN's local support group took to various festivals to help increase awareness of our campaigns and gathered petitions from the public to push for Waterford City Council to make the animal-act motion, a reality.

In response to the Waterford motion, Councillors in Kilkenny, and Galway have also expressed similar interest to introduce similar motions in their respective towns and boroughs, and the Mayor of Drogheda Kevin Callan, also responded to an ARAN campaign by pledging to introduce a motion to ban animal-act circuses arriving into the borough of Drogheda. His actions were met by fantastic media coverage in The Drogheda Independent and LMFM radio and was supported by a lively demonstration of local supporters outside the Courtney Brothers Circus. The protest went off a smashing success with more peaceful protesters there than actual people attending the circus on the night. There is no mistaking the fact that our campaign to 'Stop Circus Suffering in Ireland' is having a huge, positive effect. People across the nation are turning their backs on animal-act circuses, and for good reason. ARAN has offered Irish animal-act circuses our help and expertese with Animal Defenders International to relocate all animals currently in Irish circuses to caring, reputable animal sanctuaries. This is a perfect chance for Irish circuses to reinvigarate what is clearly a dying industry.

In other news ARAN has offered a reward to nab the person (s) responsible for the decapitation of two seals at the Dingle Seal and Wildlife Sanctuary recently. ARAN is working with the sanctuary to ensure those who are responsible are apprehended as a matter of urgency. Our reward helped garner national press exposoure on Irish Examiner, Herald, The Sun, The Irish Independent, Irish Star, The Irish News, Irish Daily Mirror, Metro Herald, Belfast Telegraph, Evening Echo, Bray People, Longford Leader, Donegal Democrat, Kilkenny People, Limerick Leader, Leitrim Observer, Dundalk Democrat, Offaly Express, Leinster Express, Tipperary Star, Fingal Independent, Drogheda Independent, Kerryman, Wexford People, Enniscorthy Guardian, Wicklow People, Gorey Guardian, Newross Standard, Bray People, Utv news and as far a field as The North Korea Times! Radio stations such as WLRFM, Limerick’s 95FM, 4FM, Radio Kerry, Kildare FM, Near FM and Cork’s 96FM also covered the story of the reward. Dozens of internet news websites helped increase public awareness including Eircom.net, breakingnews.ie, crime.ie, Digitaljournal.com, Krank.ie, Agrus.ie and many more. Our friends at Sea Shepherd Conservation Society also stepped in with ARAN and offered a further reward. Please contact the sanctuary directly with any information. We were also interviewed on Ocean FM, Shannonside Radio and 4FM about animal-act circuses in Ireland, and that Leitrim is to become the latest Council to introduce a motion to ban animal-act circuses.

A great article in The Veterinary Ireland Journal spoke about our campaign to ban fur farming in Ireland. This journal reaches huge numbers of Irish vet's and respected players in the field of animal protection. 

If you'd like to support ARAN's voluntary efforts to help expose animal abuse with a much needed donation, please do so by sending it via paypal which is on our front page. You can also become more active for the animals in your own free time by joining ARAN's 'Activist Network'. Click on our 'Join Our Activist Network' section and we'll be sure to keep you posted on ways you can take action to help animals in your area - we'll even help hook you up with other activists.