The Training of Wild Animals

In Short

This foundational 1903 handbook reveals how traveling shows domesticate the most dangerous carnivora through patience, quiet repetition, and a strict understanding of animal nature. Written by legendary showman Frank Charles Bostock, the book traces the history of menageries, details the daily care and feeding of wild beasts, and breaks down the exact physical and mental techniques used to teach performance tricks. It survives as a classic because it strip-mines the bravado from wild animal performance, replacing theatrical mythology with clear-eyed observations on animal psychology, practical safety, and the fragile boundary between human discipline and raw instinct.

The Story

The book opens with Bostock’s trial by fire as a young showman when a full-grown African lion escapes into the subterranean sewer system of Birmingham, terrorizing the city with reverberating roars until it is finally cornered and captured. From this dramatic entry into the trade, the text moves into a comprehensive examination of how wild-animal exhibition evolved from simple menageries into complex arena performances. Bostock outlines the history of his own family’s show business origins, tracing back to his ancestor George Wombwell, who realized that nursing sick lion cubs built an affection and familiarity that could be turned to commercial account.

From historical foundations, the book shifts to the rigorous, unglamorous daily routine required to keep large carnivores, elephants, and reptiles healthy in captivity. Bostock details the distinct personality traits of various species, arguing that success depends entirely on studying the individual beast rather than making blanket assumptions about a species. He demystifies the actual process of training, explaining how wild-caught or show-bred animals are gradually acclimated to human presence through small cages, shifting bars, and the gentle use of a long stick before any performance trick is attempted.

The middle chapters lay bare the extreme hazards of the profession. Bostock describes the night-time rehearsal sessions where animals are brought into empty arenas after the crowds leave, resulting in a wall of deafening, defensive roars from every cage in the building. He systematically addresses the phenomenon of animals "going bad"—sudden, unpredictable returns to wild ferocity brought on by illness, environment, or subtle changes in a trainer's demeanor.

In its final arc, the narrative examines the physical toll on the human performers and the absolute necessity of absolute sobriety and self-control. Bostock catalogues famous attacks, from his own near-fatal maulings to terrifying incidents involving his star trainers. He concludes by arguing that animal training is not a magical trick or a display of brute force, but a reasoned, highly disciplined profession no more inherently reckless than mining, building, or military service.

How It Unfolds

The voyage begins A young Bostock faces public panic when an escaped lion flees into the sewer network of Birmingham, roaring up through the manholes. The event illustrates the immense personal liability and immediate physical danger inherent in running a wild animal show.

The shift to captivity Early showmen discover that nursing sick animals creates a bond of familiarity, transforming wild carnivores into manageable charges. This commercial realization lays the foundation for modern training techniques based on daily contact and careful feeding.

The mechanics of the cage Trainers slowly acclimate a new lion to human touch by moving cage partitions inch by inch and introducing a wooden stick to stroke the animal's back. When the lion eventually springs, the trainer defends himself with a four-legged wooden chair and a quick tap to the animal's sensitive nose.

The midnight rehearsals Once the evening public leaves, the venue transforms as animals are driven into the main arena for practice under dim lights. The arena fills with an intense, chaotic chorus of roaring lions, coughing leopards, and howling wolves reacting to the presence of strangers.

The price of error A single misplaced tap of a whip or a momentary lapse in concentration triggers sudden, violent attacks from beasts like Young Wallace or Goldie. Trainers must rely on force of habit, blank-cartridge gunshots, or the quick intervention of colleagues to survive.

The People

• Frank Charles Bostock: The author and master showman who views animal training as a disciplined science requiring total self-control, absolute sobriety, and an affection for his dangerous charges.
• Captain Jack Bonavita: A renowned trainer who manages twenty-seven lions simultaneously in a single runway and repeatedly survives severe, blood-soaked maulings to return to the arena.
• Madame Louise Morelli: A frail French trainer who commands treacherous leopards, panthers, and jaguars in their own language, allowing them to place their jaws directly over her face.
• Herman Weedon: A resolute performer who maintains a mixed group of bears, boars, and felines, refusing to remove his fiercest tigress, Goldie, despite her repeated attempts to tear him apart.
• George Wombwell: Bostock’s ancestor and 1805 show founder who first recognized that personal, hand-fed nursing of sick lion cubs could open up the commercial potential of trained wild beast shows.

In Its Own Voice

"He drops on his haunches and claws at the barrier; perhaps he has plumped into it and has felt the blows from its dull prongs."

When a lion makes its first sudden leap at a human inside a cage, the trainer's primary defensive weapon is a sturdy wooden chair shoved directly into the animal's path.

"There is a peculiar fascination about the life which keeps him at it; and although I have often warned men, they have rarely been induced to give it up until some severe accident has happened."

Bostock reflects on the addictive nature of the profession, noting that trainers almost never leave the arena voluntarily until a catastrophic injury forces them out.

"A lion's paw is no plaything... Imagine a cat's paw enlarged twenty times, propelled with a proportionate increase of muscular energy, and with the same lightning-like rapidity."

The text reminds the reader that even an innocent, playful swipe from a performing lion can sink curved claws deep into human bone and muscle.

What It's Really About

Beneath the theatrical spectacle of the circus arena, the book is a study in the psychological battle between human willpower and primal animal instinct. Bostock argues that dominance over wild beasts is never achieved through brute force or cruelty, but through superior nerve, patience, and a complete mastery of habit. The narrative continuously probes the limits of human authority, showing how easily a trainer's authority crumbles the moment they show fear, physical weakness, or the numbing effects of alcohol. Ultimately, the text explores how animals retain their wild nature regardless of how well they are trained, serving as a reminder that captive beasts are merely subdued, never truly tamed.

Why Read It Today

This text offers a fascinating, unfiltered look into the gilded age of big-top entertainment before modern animal welfare standards fundamentally transformed the industry. Readers who enjoy classic adventure, natural history, or occupational memoirs will be drawn to its direct, understated tone and gripping firsthand accounts of near-fatal encounters. Bostock writes with a refreshing lack of sensationalism, treating the handling of five-hundred-pound carnivores with the calm pragmatism of a trade professional.

While modern audiences may cringe at period attitudes toward keeping wild animals in small traveling cages or pitching performance tents over old graveyards, the book remains surprisingly progressive in its rejection of physical cruelty and its insistence on understanding animal psychology. Its steady pace, detailed observations of animal health, and unvarnished depictions of blood, scars, and sudden violent springs make it a deeply engaging historical document that captures the true physical price of early show business.