Mashable:

A circus without elephants might be more humane, but apparently it’s far less enticing.

The owners of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus said they will permanently end their 146-year-old show this spring. “The Greatest Show on Earth” saw a steep decline in ticket sales after removing elephants from performances in May 2016.

“After much evaluation and deliberation, my family and I have made the difficult business decision that Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey will hold its final performances in May of this year,” Kenneth Feld, chairman and CEO of Feld Entertainment, said in a Jan. 13 statement.

This makes the kid in me very sad (I still remember the first circus I ever saw as a little kid in Nova Scotia) but the adult is happy the animals will no longer be forced to perform.