VIDEO: Former Ringling Big-Cat Trainer Found Abusing Tigers in German Circus
In 2023, six years after Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus shut down its animal acts, Alexander Lacey said his career of dominating big cats and forcing them to do tricks for human entertainment was over.
Then he moved to Bavaria in Germany and started abusing big cats in a circus there.
Alexander Lacey Joins the Krone Cabal
Circus Krone is the largest circus with animal acts in Germany, and the Lacey family pulls all the strings. It’s run by Alexander’s brother, Martin Lacey Jr., and Martin’s wife, Jana Mandana Lacey-Krone.
The Lacey family also operates Krone Farm, which it call a “retirement home” for animals used in their circus—but unlike any retirement home we know of, it forces its residents into barren cages and compels them to perform for profit.
Blowing the Whistle: Abuse Is Rampant at Krone Farm
PETA Germany has obtained bombshell whistleblower footage of Alexander Lacey’s most recent animal abuse at Krone Farm, including whipping a tiger and forcing others to perform uncomfortable tricks under threat of punishment.
When Krone Farm isn’t forcing animals to perform, it leaves them to languish in tiny, barren enclosures. The footage shows at least one female lion displaying stress-induced, repetitive, stereotypic behavior.
PETA Germany Files Criminal Complaint
PETA Germany has filed a criminal complaint against Alexander Lacey and Jana Mandana Lacey-Krone in response to this footage. It’s not the first time the Lacey family has been flagged for cruelty to animals: Martin Lacey Jr. was most recently reported after he was filmed beating two female lions and a tiger with a whip and stick in 2019.
Along with bringing the Laceys to account for their crimes at Circus Krone and Krone Farm, PETA Germany is also calling on the German government to finally adopt a comprehensive ban on using wild animals in circuses the current revision of its Animal Welfare Act.
Germany is the only EU country that has not yet passed a legal resolution banning or restricting the use of wild animals in circuses.
Catching and Reporting Abusers Gets Results
PETA’s earthshaking investigations into the circus industry have caused major U.S. circuses to drop their animal acts.The public’s demand for accountability is decimating this industry in the U.S. along with circus career opportunities for animal abusers.
Loomis Bros. Circus is a holdout. It has a history of contracting with exhibitors—such as Tarzan Zerbini, Brian Franzen, and Brunon Blaszak—known for abusing animals and violating animal welfare laws.
Please politely urge Loomis Bros. to join the many modern, humane circuses that use only willing human performers by ending its cruel animal acts:
