Circus Animals

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I'm writing a story using an allegory of circus animals to portray humans. Can I please get some trivia and shit so that the story'd look halfway true to those that actually know about stuff like this?

I imagine the story takes place maybe in the 1940s or 50s or something.

I'll give some questions to give a direction to the thread, but really feel free to just post anything; any stories or factoids or whatever. Maybe even videos and documentaries.

>were the animals kept in cages during offtime?
>what kinds of animals have been used in circuses?
>how big have been the biggest circuses?
>what are the stuff animals have performed over time?
>were they bred in captivity or were some straight from nature and trained?
>how often did accidents involving mauling or whatever happen?
>have there been any famous accidents in circuses?
>how did the circus animals differ from their wild counterparts? like did they suffer from some specific diseases, conditions and such? stereotypy is one I'll definitely make use of

etc

thanks