ANIMAL rights campaigners last night staged a protest over the appearance of an elderly elephant in a touring circus. But owners of the Bobby Roberts Super Circus being staged in Colwyn Bay this week claimed the protest was misleading and unnecessary because the elephant, Ann, will not be appearing throughout the week. The reason is that Conwy County Borough Council, owner of Eirias Park where the circus is sited, has a policy prohibiting the use of live animals in shows. Members of the Captive Animals' Protection Society regularly stage protests on the opening night of Bobby Roberts' performances.. Last night, they urged people to boycott the show, believed to be the only touring circus in Britain still having a live animal. Ann usually appears for just a few minutes in the interval for members of the audience to be photographed with her. But a society spokesman said: "Ele-phants are very social and intelligent animals who can suffer from a range of physical and mental problems in captivity, and the world's leading elephant experts condemn their use in circuses. We believe performing animals have no place in 21st century Britain and we would much rather see one of the many all-human circuses visiting the town than an outdated act relying on animals," he said.. Bobby Roberts' wife, Moira, said: "Welsh people don't think circuses are real circuses unless there are animals involved. "We knew when we came to Colwyn Bay that we would not be able to take Ann into the ring." | 
