The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus elephants are making their final appearance Sunday.
The performance will stream live on Ringling Bros Facebook page and website.
Feld Entertainment, the company that owns the Ringling Bros., decided to phase the elephants out after accusations the methods used to train the elephants were cruel. Some places have also enacted laws banning the bullhook, the controversial device used to train the elephants.
The company originally announced they would retire the elephants by 2018, but it moved up that timetable earlier this year.
The 11 elephants still in the circus will join 29 others at the Ringling Bros. Center for Elephant Conservation in Florida. They are joining the largest herd of Asian elephants in the Western Hemisphere.
The 200-acre plot of land is more than just an elephant retirement center. Elephants rarely develop cancer, so researchers are studying them in hopes of finding a cure or treatment for pediatric cancer in humans.
Ringling Bros. will live stream the elephants' last show on Sunday evening on its website and Facebook page.
This video includes clips from Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus and Getty Images.
Trending on ActionNewsJax.com:
- Woman chases convicted video voyeur out of Yulee Target
- Community supports Fleming Island High School senior in music video
- A family of bald eagles ate a cat for dinner on a live webcam
- Police say boyfriend killed woman from Jacksonville who drowned in bathtub in Tennessee
- Jacksonville police officer fired, accused of hitting handcuffed woman
Cox Media Group