Steers are abused in the same way. They are generally thin with open sores on their hips and back. Their wounds never have time to heal before they’re abused again in the pens. They are depressed and listless. Being shipped to the slaughterhouse seems a merciful and kind end to the horror they’ve endured in the hands of sadistic rodeo thugs.

Rodeos are violent, sadistic and heartless and we should be ashamed of ourselves for allowing it to go on. While trapped inside the bucking chute, horses and bulls are routinely shocked with 5,000 to 6,000 volts of electricity to make them appear "wild."






Rodeo professionals bite their ears, slap, punch and kick them, shock them with electricity, stab them with broken wire from coat hangers and pull bucking straps as tight as possible pinching their soft underbelly and flank in an effort to get them to “perform.” And when the chute opens, the rider continually gouges and rakes his spurs across the shoulders, neck and sides of his victim causing as much pain as possible so the animal puts on a “good show” for the judges and audience.

Horses subjected to this torture often buck "blindly" just to get away from their tormentors and the pain. They run full force into fences and gates, maiming themselves. They fall down and they break their own limbs. They're terrified, confused and in a state of pure panic.



Undercover investigators from different organizations seem to agree that the animals’ tormentors are callous and unconcerned about the pain they inflict. In fact, some investigators have signed sworn affidavits claiming the perpetrators appeared to enjoy beating and torturing their victims. Certainly anyone viewing the photos here and the videos linked below can’t possibly think the animals are hired actors.

Rodeo officials swear the animals are loved and cared for and never, under any circumstances, are the animals hurt, harmed or abused. Yet the photo below tells a very different story.



So, who is responsible for all this abuse?

There's the stock contractors who supply the animals who are abused. There's the organizers who set it all up, arrange the prizes and judges. There's the "cowboys" themselves who are desperate to "be somebody" by tormenting innocent animals for rodeo scores. There's the sponsors who put their stamp approval on it all. There's local politicians and law enforcement who turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to the screams, blood and anguish. There's the veterinarians who stand by while these creatures are made to suffer unconscionably - after they took an oath to help them. There's a whole slew of people involved; from the musicians and/or the celebrities who perform, right on down to the stable hands who clean stalls. There is complicity.

Now let's put our "thinking caps" on here... what do all these folks have in common? What is the motivation?

It's not rocket-science. It's Money.

Here’s a partial list of companies that sponsor rodeo cruelty:

Toyota
Coca-Cola
DaimlerChrysler (Dodge)
AT&T
Bank of America
Southwest Airlines
United States Army
Wal-Mart
Holiday Inn
McDonalds
Coors
Jack Daniels
Ariat
American Quarter Horse Association
American Veterinary Medical Association
Bayer

Here's a partial list of celebrities who glorify this disgusting, offensive "sport" - it would make this article look like "War and Peace" to name them all.

Def Leppard
Oprah Winfrey
Willie Nelson
Larry the Cable Guy (real name Daniel Lawrence Whitney)
k. d. lang
Bon Jovi

* Continued in part three