After Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus announced that it will no longer have elephants in the show starting in 2018 , the organization gave a rare tour of the facility where the elephants will retire . Once the animals are done in the ring , they 'll be taken to the Ringling Brothers Elephant Conservation Center in an undisclosed , 200-acre area of Polk County in central Florida . Some of the Asian Elephants will live out their post-performance lives in the center , while other will be used for breeding . Scroll down for video . All elephants will be phased out of the Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus performance by 2018 . Once they retire from performing , elephants will be taken to the Ringling Brothers Elephant Conservation Center in an undisclosed , 200-acre area of Polk County in central Florida . Ringling spokeswoman Melinda Hartline told FOX Tampa Bay that the center is 'all about preserving the Asian Elephant ' . Elephants born in the center can be sold to zoos or other breeding programs . This will hopefully increase genetic diversity in the species and increase its population . The population of animal has decreased to between 25,000 and 32,000 from it 's 100,000 population over the last century . Poaching and habitat destruction are among the reasons for the decline . Twenty people work at the center to feed , care for and manage the animals , and over the next three years Ringling will determine if more staff or additional facilities are needed . Despite having what seems to be ideal living conditions , Ringling ties some elephants by the leg overnight , something animal rights groups , including People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals ( PETA ) are disappointed by . Some elephants will live out the rest of their lives in the conservation center , while others will be use for breeding . A spokesman for the center said that the organization 's goal is to conserve the Asian Elephant , an animal who has seen massive population decline over the last century . Much of the population decline - which has gone down from 100,000 to between 25,000 and 32,000 - has been caused by poaching and habitat destruction . 'Zoos do n't chain elephants and the American Veterinary Medical Association advises against it ' Delciana Windners , PETA general counsel , told FOX . The animal-rights organizations also urge the company to take the animals off the road sooner . Just days before announcing that the elephants would be taken out of the ring , PETA prevailed in an open-records request and obtained documents proving that , at least since 2010 , Ringling has had elephants test positive for the human strain of tuberculosis . TB is highly transmissible from elephants to humans , even without direct contact . A statement from PETA frames Ringling ’ s announcement as a preemptive move to keep the public in the dark about the health risk posed by moving sick elephants to cities throughout the country . 'These elephants suffer greatly , but now their retirement is vital to everyone ’ s safety , ' the statement read . Animal rights groups , including PETA , have said that Ringling Brothers should take elephants out of their shows before 2018 . PETA released information earlier this year stating that at least since 2010 , Ringling has had elephants test positive for the human strain of tuberculosis .
zoo Brothers zoo and Bailey Circus announced that it will no longer have elephants in the show starting in 2018 . The elephants will be taken to the Ringling zoo Elephant zoo Center in central derby . Some will live their lives out there while others will be used for training .