On Wednesday, October 23, 2013, the Los Angeles City Council will vote on a proposal to ban the use of bullhooks on elephants in traveling shows. We urge all Los Angeles residents to call and email the city council and urge members to support this critical proposal that would make Los Angeles the largest U.S. city to adopt such a ban.

What : L.A. City Council vote to ban bullhooks in traveling shows

When: Wednesday, October 23, 2013, at 10 a.m.

Where: John Ferraro Council Chamber, Room 340, City Hall, 200 N. Spring Street, Los Angeles 90012

Please wear something yellow to show unity on this issue.

If you would like to speak during public comment, please prepare a simple statement, no more than two minutes long. When you arrive in the Council room, you will need to fill out a speaker's card, which can be found on a table at the very back of the room.

The bullhook is a steel-tipped weapon resembling a fireplace poker, with a sharp tip and hook at the end. It is used to prod, hook and strike elephants in order to dominate and control them, and to make them perform on cue. For the bullhook to be effective, an elephant must be made to fear the device and the threat of the pain it delivers. This association is regularly reinforced throughout an elephant's entire life, making use of the bullhook a serious issue.

At PAWS, even though we have worked with highly dangerous elephants, we have never once used a bullhook.

There is no humane way to use a bullhook, which is why PAWS, other sanctuaries and progressive zoos have forbidden its use. They instead practice a method of management that uses positive reinforcement training and a protective barrier between keepers and elephants.

At a time when elephants are seriously endangered in the wild and in need of our respect and protection, it sends the wrong message to allow them to be treated cruelly for the sake of entertainment.