Ringling Circus Elephant Collapses

A Ringling Brothers elephant collapsed as she was being loaded onto a circus train, triggering cries of abuse. The spectacle in Anaheim was captured on film by animal rights activists who were keeping an eye on circus activities. Circus spokesmen claimed that 54-year-old Asian elephant Sarah merely tripped and was uninjured, reports the Huffington Post. But Sarah is suffering from a difficult-to-treat-infection, according to circus records, and she is seriously ill, said a spokesman for Animal Defender International.

"This elephant needs to be taken off the road immediately so she can be properly evaluated and treated by a veterinarian," he said. The circus was cited this year by the USDA for failure to treat Sarah's infection and for having dangerous wires that could hurt its elephants in the rail cars, notes the San Diego Union Tribune. (More Ringling Brothers stories.)