Page 18 - All About History 48 - 2017 UK

DAREDEVILS

Day in the life

CIRCUSLIONTAMER

TRAINING BIG CATS TO DO INCREDIBLE

STUNTS, WORLDWIDE, 1920s-50s

When the circus rolled into town, the main attraction typically
wasn’t the juggling clown or the acrobatic tightrope walker. Instead,
the crowds flocked to the tent to see the exotic big cats, as well as
the brave trainers who handled them. There’s no doubt that the
job of a lion tamer was fraught with danger, but many enjoyed
long careers in the ring. It was around the 1920s that techniques
for training big cats began to change, with positive reinforcement
starting to be favoured over scare and punishment tactics. The
animals used in circus acts were usually born in captivity
and worked with from a young age, enabling their trainers
to slowly gain their trust in order to teach them the
impressive tricks that wowed the crowds.

TRAINING TECHNIQUES

Circuses often travelled around the country, only
staying in one place for a few days at a time. After
arriving at the circus tent, or while the tent was
being set up, the lion tamer would practise their
act with the big cats. Prior to the 1920s, beating the
animals into submission was often the preferred
training method, but it was soon discovered that
rewarding them with food was a much more
effective, and more humane, way to train them.
FEEDING TIME

It was very important that the big cats were well
fed and rested before a performance, otherwise
they were more likely to disobey orders and
become violent when they were hungry
and agitated. American tiger trainer
Mabel Stark learned this the hard way
when she ran out of time to feed her
felines before the show and was later
mauled in the ring.
BUILD THE CAGE

While the lion tamers were getting
changed into their dazzling costumes,
Irina Bugrimova feeds her lions with
netting or a metal cage was erected her bare hands while the animal is
around the ring to protect the audience caged between performances
from the big cats, or at least help them to
feel at ease in the presence of the animals. After
the performance, it would then have to be taken
down before the next act, so as to not obstruct the Clyde Beatty pioneered the chair
crowd’s view. technique for training lions
18