Gay Rodeo - No Fun for Animals!
Above: animals being abused at 2011 Bay Area Gay Rodeo
Animals used in rodeo are docile creatures who don't naturally buck or enjoy being chased, ridden and wrestled by strangers. They are at risk for injury and death, and there was at least one fatally-injured steer at a Minnesota Gay Rodeo, according to Mercy for Animals. Bay Area Gay Rodeo organizers even brag about the pain and stress they cause, stating in their 2011 Events Guide, and formerly on their website, "...the unpredictable bull is known to come looking for the rider when the ride is completed."
In the bucking events, animals are forced to violently jump and twist through the use of painful and annoying "bucking straps," cinched around them, spurs, and other techniques and devices (including electric prods and beatings in "traditional" rodeos, such as our local Rowell Ranch and Cow Palace rodeos).
In the "calf-roping events," baby animals run for their lives as they are chased by men or women on horseback. They are violently thrown to the ground.
In the "goat dressing" event, animals are restrained and have their hind legs roughly and quickly jerked up to have panties forced onto them. Goats have been observed limping afterward.
In "chute dogging" (or "steer wrestling"), animals' heads are violently twisted until they are forced to the ground. On two occasions when we asked rodeo organizers if this would be acceptable treatment for a dog, they disturbingly come up with examples where they claim to have done so, ostensibly for "training" or "self-defense."
Confused and frightened animals are trucked into the unfamiliar rodeo grounds and kept in small stalls, then forced into performing for our amusement and profit. Then, many of them are destined to go on to a frightening and painful death at a slaughterhouse.
Gay Rodeo has stricter rules than "traditional" rodeo (e.g., it requires break-away ropes in the mounted calf-roping events), but much of the same cruelty is still inherent (as described above), and it's well-documented that traditional rodeos routinely don't follow or enforce their own rules.
As another group who has experienced oppression and abuse, let's show some respect and compassion for others who are weaker than us, and not harm them unnecessarily. Instead, let's use our creativity to re-define "Gay Rodeo" as a fun Country-Western-themed event without involving animals. There are already many fun events prior to the actual rodeo.
Disclaimer: though we realize that "traditional" rodeos are well documented to be extremely cruel and corrupt and we also campaign against them, "gay" rodeo is a subject close to gay animal advocates because members of our own community are responsible, because it reflects poorly on us, and because it's easier to put a stop to.
What You Can Do...
Boycott the rodeo until organizers decide to exclude "performing" animals from the festivities, and ask your friends to do the same.
Contact the sponsors and supporters and politely ask them to withdraw their support as long as animals are harmed in the rodeo, and inform them that you will boycott their businesses until they do so.
Post polite comments on the Bay Area Gay Rodeo's Facebook page here.
