Ban The San Diego Rodeo
San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria
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The Rodeo at Petco park must be cancelled. The San Diego Padres, in collaboration with two other companies, announced in September that Petco Park will host its first-ever rodeo from Jan. 12 to Jan. 14, 2024 — billing the potential monstrosity as “the world’s top cowboys competing for over half a million dollars in prize money.”
This Rodeo would cause significant harm to the community, animals, and the city at large. Rodeos engage in dangerous and harmful activities for animals including calf roping, steer tripping, steer wrestling, and horse tripping. The Los Angeles Times drafted a report that highlights the systematic animal cruelty behind rodeos. Injuries to animals often result in immediate or almost immediate death. Even when they survive, rodeos routinely deny animals veterinary care and fail to report the fate of these animals. These accidents, however, do not fully account for all the harm and abuse animals go through, given LA times report also argues are underreported. All of these facts underscore the harm animals subjected to rodeos experience.
The otherwise gentle animals often are abused to act out in the unnatural “bucking” and high-speed behaviors prized in rodeo arenas — including by being jolted with painful electric prods, stabbed with spurs, or irritated by uncomfortably tightened straps around their bodies, according to the Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association.
The Washington Post points out that rodeos also pose a serious risk to humans, with many accidents and deaths happening across the country. Just this year in the US, at least two teens and a young adult have died while attempting to ride a bull. Bulls, horses, and other animals used at rodeos are unpredictable, and are scared. Regardless of how experienced rodeo workers are, accidents are not a matter of if but rather when. For the safety of both participants and audience members, Petco park should not host a rodeo.
For these reasons and many more, cities like Napa County, San Francisco, and Pasadena in California as other cities — including Fort Wayne (IN), Pittsburgh (PA), Leestown (VA) — and the entire state of Rhode Island have done by banning rodeos entirely. San Diego is a vibrant city with a diverse community that shares important values, such as caring for the welfare of animals. Petco park is one of San Diego’s many attractions, and an important hub for tourism and community. However, using Petco park for rodeos would do substantial harm to the community and the animals. Blocking the Rodeo would send a strong message that San Diego is in the forefront of animal welfare.
Sponsored by
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To:
San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria
From:
[Your Name]
Dear Todd Gloria,
I am writing today in opposition to the rodeo at Petco park because it would cause significant harm to the community, animals, and the city at large. Rodeos engage in dangerous and harmful activities for animals including calf roping, steer tripping, steer wrestling, and horse tripping.
The Rodeo at Petco park must be canceled. The San Diego Padres, in collaboration with two other companies, announced in September that Petco Park will host its first-ever rodeo from Jan. 12 to Jan. 14, 2024 — billing the potential monstrosity as “the world’s top cowboys competing for over half a million dollars in prize money.”
The Los Angeles Times drafted a report that highlights the systematic animal cruelty behind rodeos. Injuries to animals often result in immediate or almost immediate death. Even when they survive, rodeos routinely deny animals veterinary care and fail to report the fate of these animals. These accidents, however, do not fully account for all the harm and abuse animals go through, given LA times report also argues are underreported. All of these facts underscore the harm animals subjected to rodeos experience.
The otherwise gentle animals often are abused to act out in the unnatural “bucking” and high-speed behaviors prized in rodeo arenas — including by being jolted with painful electric prods, stabbed with spurs, or irritated by uncomfortably tightened straps around their bodies, according to the Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association.
The Washington Post points out that rodeos also pose a serious risk to humans, with many accidents and deaths happening across the country. Just this year in the US, at least two teens and a young adult have died while attempting to ride a bull. Bulls, horses, and other animals used at rodeos are unpredictable, and are scared. Regardless of how experienced rodeo workers are, accidents are not a matter of if but rather when. For the safety of both participants and audience members, Petco park should not host a rodeo.
For these reasons and many more, cities like Napa County, San Francisco, and Pasadena in California as other cities — including Fort Wayne (IN), Pittsburgh (PA), Leestown (VA) — and the entire state of Rhode Island have done by banning rodeos entirely. San Diego is a vibrant city with a diverse community that shares important values, such as caring for the welfare of animals. Petco park is one of San Diego’s many attractions, and an important hub for tourism and community. However, using Petco park for rodeos would do substantial harm to the community and the animals. Blocking the Rodeo would send a strong message that San Diego is in the forefront of animal welfare.
I strongly urge you to take this important step by forbidding the rodeo to come to San Diego.