Sea lion dies in sweltering heat after cruel bosses deny him water on journey
CRUEL circus owners are being investigated by police after they left a sea lion to die in sweltering heat.
The eight-year-old animal was being transported between two shows in a dry tank alongside its nine-year-old brother, Dina.
The lorry containing the pair was stopped by police as it travelled to Karvina, in the south of the Czech Republic, from another town around 40 miles away.
The animals should have had water in their tank but circus bosses were accused of leaving the tank dry so it would weigh less and they could drive faster.
Central Europe has been hit by an ongoing heatwave, with temperatures soaring past 30C over the past few days.
Fire brigade spokesman Petr Kudela said: "We received a call from police that had stopped the truck saying that a sea lion was not well.
"Both were being moved in an empty water tank on the back of a trailer.
"The driver said that he wasn't allowed to transport water by the circus management. They wanted the animals delivered quickly and had insisted the tank remain empty.
"We filled the tank with gallons of water but it was too late for one of them.
"Luckily, the other survived."
Police spokesman Zlatuse Viackova said: "We have launched criminal proceedings for neglect of an animal.
"According to law, neglecting the necessary care of an animal may be punished by imprisonment of up to six months."
A spokesperson for animal rights organisation People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) said: "Sea lions belong in the sea, not in tanks or tents.
"Transporting a sea lion 70 kilometres in a dry tank during a record-breaking heat wave, causing him to die, shows exactly how little circuses understand or care about the needs of wild animals.
"To them, these complex and sensitive marine mammals are mere props to be carted around, abused and displayed for a dwindling number of circus-goers.
"The uncaring individuals responsible for the death of this poor soul must never be allowed to 'care' for animals again, and we strongly urge the Czech authorities to deal with them in the strongest possible manner."
