News for Florida animal advocates

Cora is an Asian elephant owned by Bill Morris of Gibsonton, Florida. Each year, Mr. Morris travels with Circus Hollywood, which performs as the “Shrine Circus” for several Shrine temples in Florida.

ARFF has added a short video to our YouTube page that shows Morris cruelly using a bullhook on Cora when she doesn’t cooperate as he tries to put anklets around her legs before a show.

According to Bill Morris, Cora is 51 years old, which would make her one of the oldest performing elephants in the United States. But ARFF believes Cora is actually much older, perhaps over 60. She may be the oldest elephant still traveling and performing with a circus in the country.

Cora was born in the wild in Asia and sold into the circus, so it may be impossible to determine exactly how old she is, but in past newspaper interviews Bill Morris has described growing up with the elephant. On his website, there’s a photo (here) of Bill as a young boy standing next to Cora when she was a baby. Morris is 65 years old, so the photo was taken in the early 1950s, which would make Cora at least 60 years old.

Cora has spent more than five decades in traveling circuses. She deserves a peaceful retirement. Please contact Bill Morris and ask him, as a humane gesture, to take Cora off the road and allow her to spend her remaining years free from the stresses of traveling and performing. Encourage him to consider retiring Cora to a sanctuary. Send a copy of your email to the owner of Circus Hollywood.

Bill Morris
E-mail: elephantencounter@yahoo.com

Serge Coronas, Owner
Circus Hollywood
E-mail: sergecoronas@aol.com

Please share with ARFF any responses that you receive.

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