Independence Day in the west is prime rodeo season. Throughout the state of Utah, hundreds of rodeos big and small are taking place, and hundreds of thousands of visitors are gearing up to go watch the “fun”. If you’re considering attending a rodeo this holiday weekend, maybe you should also consider the following:

- Individuals at events associated with the Professional Rodeo Cowboy’s Association (PRCA) have been caught on video administering electric shocks to bucking horses - some of whom collapsed and died during their turn - and yet none of these violations, nor the names of the violators have been made public. The vast majority of the PRCA’s animal welfare rules have nothing to do with the animals’ safety and health.

- The PRCA doesn’t mandate humane euthanasia for injured animals at their events. Animals have been observed being left to slowly die at PRCA events, with no veterinary care. Even thought the PRCA mandates a vet be in attendance at all rodeos, the fine for not doing so is only $500 - equal to or less than the cost of hiring the vet.

- Rodeo events like steer and calf roping are inherently inhumane. Nothing about throwing a rope around the neck of a three to four month old baby cow and jerking him so hard he becomes air born before smashing to the ground, possibly breaking his neck, legs or back, is remotely humane OR representative of how calves are roped “on the range”, which is what rodeo events are supposed to imitate. Contestants often care more about scoring then they do about the baby animal they are brutalizing. Calves are sometimes dragged by improperly trained horses, and are otherwise terrified by the horrific treatment they receive. The PRCA’s rules on how to properly rope calves state that calves “may not intentionally be flipped backward” but there is no penalty for doing so “on accident.”

- Animals awarded as “prizes” to contestants are often brutalized and/or killed after the events end. Witness the case of a young pig named Peapod who was awarded to a young boy in a pig scramble, and then nearly beaten to death in the parking lot by the same boy and his friends after the rodeo ended.

- Animals placed in chutes are repeatedly beaten and abused while they cannot escape their captors. Animals who struggle in the chutes often injure themselves because of the way the chutes are constructed. Despite a rule stating that these animals should be immediately released, video footage shows that instead, excessive cruelty is usually inflicted instead, in full view of the judges.

- The fine for animal mistreatment is only $250 for the first offense - if it’s reported.

Need more proof? Here are some videos from SHARK.

For more info, you can visit sharkonline.org.

By the way, I feel I should mention that I have spent enough time around the rodeo to have seen the callous attitudes in action myself. I’ve barrel raced and I’ve team penned and I’ve attended more rodeos than I’d like to admit. I understand that a lot of people think that this is a) normal and b) okay because it’s been done for so long, and because it’s ingrained in tradition. I’ve heard all the arguments, worked with the people, and this? It’s unacceptable.