<P> Daredevil stunt acts and sideshow acts are also parts of some circus acts, these activities may include human cannonball, chapeaugraphy, fire eating, breathing, and dancing, knife throwing, magic shows, sword swallowing, or strongman . Famous sideshow performers include Zip the Pinhead and The Doll Family . A popular sideshow attraction from the early 19th century was the flea circus, where fleas were attached to props and viewed through a Fresnel lens . </P> <P> A variety of animals have historically been used in acts . While the types of animals used vary from circus to circus, big cats, elephants, horses, birds, sea lions, bears, and domestic animals such as cats and dogs are the most common . </P> <P> The earliest involvement of animals in circus was just the display of exotic creatures in a menagerie . Going as far back as the early eighteenth century, exotic animals were transported to North America for display, and menageries were a popular form of entertainment . The first true animals acts in the circus were equestrian acts . Soon elephants and big cats were displayed as well . Isaac A. Van Amburgh entered a cage with several big cats in 1833, and is generally considered to be the first wild animal trainer in American circus history . Mabel Stark was a famous female tiger - tamer . </P> <P> Animal welfare groups have documented many cases of animal cruelty in the training of performing circus animals . The animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) contends that animals in circuses are frequently beaten into submission and that physical abuse has always been the method for training circus animals . According to PETA, although the US Animal Welfare Act does not permit the use of electric shock prods, whips, hooks, or similar instruments by trainers, these are still used today . According to PETA, during an undercover investigation of Carson & Barnes Circus, video footage was captured showing animal care director Tim Frisco training endangered Asian elephants with electrical shock prods and instructing other trainers to "beat the elephants with a bullhook as hard as they could and to sink the sharp metal bullhook into the animals' flesh and twist it until they screamed in pain ." </P>

When were elephants first used in the circus