Horse brutally injured, potentially killed at Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo

SHARK PRESS RELEASE

On Tuesday, July 23, 2013 during the Steer Wrestling event at the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo (CFD) a horse suffered a brutal and devastating injury. Investigators from SHowing Animals Respect and Kindness (SHARK), who have been monitoring animal abuse at the rodeo, captured most of the horrific event on video.

WATCH VIDEO

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The video shows that, as the rider chased the steer, he aimed the horse at an angle that was dangerously close to the fence and large platform. In these following screen shots from the video, you can see how the horse was literally shot toward the fence and platform at high speed, with no chance of turning or avoiding the structure. In the last image, the horse is just inches away from the fence and structure.

Horse run dangerously close to fence during steer wrestling event. The horse was seriously injured and reasonably believed dead. SHARK image. (click to enlarge)

Seconds later, the video shows the horse on the ground, with his legs shaking. A few minutes after that, the unmoving horse was winched into a truck. A long trail of blood can be seen on the ramp the horse was dragged up on.

The announcer attempted to reassure the audience by saying that the blood belonged to one of the contestants who had dislocated his shoulder and that the blood was his and not the horse’s. He also said there is a staff of veterinarians on hand and the rodeo is guided by the rules of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). SHARK has documented many incidents of animal abuse, injury and death at PRCA rodeos, which is glossed over as “freak accidents” and ignored, including numerous violations of the PRCA’s no “jerk down” rule resulting in injured calves at CFD.*

SHARK believes that the rider may have created this situation by how he drove the horse toward the fence. The rider should have seen the danger before him and never abandoned his horse in such a dangerous position.

SHARK is demanding that the CFD release all the video that they have of this incident, including the veterinarian reports, and that an immediate investigation be initiated into the actions of that rider.

For more information, see: ShameOnCheyenne.com

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WE SAY

Blood from a dislocated shoulder of a contestant? How desperate an attempt at a coverup is that?

End this infantile barbarity now. No horse or any other animal should be subjected to suffering and death for any reason, let alone this.
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See post and video at Vivian’s personal blog >>