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Opinion Editorial

Most Calgarians are against Stampede rodeo and chuckwagon events

Article originally published in the Daily Hive.

The Calgary Stampede has long been a symbol of the city’s vibrant culture, drawing more than a million visitors each year to attend a wide variety of events ranging from community gatherings to world-class concerts.

Yet, recent polling data from Research Co. suggests that a change is sweeping through Calgary, with a growing number of residents opposing the Stampede’s controversial animal events.

Polling shows opposition to animal events growing in Calgary

The findings, collected in February and July 2024, indicate a significant shift in local attitudes toward animal welfare and the ethical implications of rodeo events and chuckwagon races.

According to the poll, opposition among Calgarians surged after this year’s rodeo in three of the five events included in the survey. Those included the two events that resulted in tragic fatalities this year — steer wrestling and chuckwagon racing — as well as calf roping.

What happened at the 2024 Calgary Stampede rodeo?

New footage shows stress, suffering, and serious injuries resulting in euthanasia at the 2024 Calgary Stampede rodeo. Take action to end inhumane rodeo events at: vancouverhumanesociety.bc.ca/rodeos

Rising disapproval of steer wrestling

Disapproval of steer wrestling rose from 49% in February to 57% in July after a steer’s neck was snapped in front of a live audience at the Monday rodeo event. The wrestler involved in the incident did not receive a point penalty, because the action of twisting the steer’s neck back dangerously is simply part of the event. The danger to animals is inherent and accepted in the rodeo stock business, which budgets for loss of life.

Footage from the event shows handlers holding down the steer’s legs to prevent him from thrashing in front of the crowd, then moving him fully conscious out of the arena before euthanizing him. The focus appears to be on maintaining the atmosphere of the “Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth,” rather than animal welfare, despite the Stampede’s claims.

Chuckwagon racing becoming even more controversial

Opposition to chuckwagon racing, once a darling of the Calgary Stampede, rose from 46% to 54% after three horses died throughout the 10-day event. Chuckwagon racing remains the deadliest animal entertainment event at the Calgary Stampede, leading to 78 of the 109 known animal fatalities since 1986.

Calf roping sees sharp increase in opposition

The sharpest increase in disapproval was to one of the Stampede’s most controversial events. Opposition to calf roping among Calgarians skyrocketed from 47% in February to 58% in July. Although the camera cuts away from the calf at one of the most visually shocking moments, when the rope tightens around his neck and he is jerked to a sudden stop, the suffering of the young animals remains clear in event footage.

In coverage of the event, calves’ tongues loll out of their mouths as they are lifted and thrown to the ground. Their eyes bulge and roll back into their heads as three of their legs are tied together. In some cases, the calves are dragged helplessly through the dirt by their neck.

Opposition to all events increases across Canada

The figures from Calgary residents reflect a wider trend nationwide — opposition to all five animal events increased among a national audience, who bore witness to the news of the deadliest Stampede rodeo and chuckwagon races of the last half-decade. They also reflect a growing ethical awareness and concern for animal welfare that is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.

This shift in public opinion presents both challenges and opportunities for the future of the Calgary Stampede. On one hand, the event organizers must grapple with the growing discontent and calls for reform. But, as has always been the case at the Stampede, an evolving public landscape presents an opportunity for innovation. Organizers have a chance to reimagine the Stampede in a way that aligns with contemporary values and ethical standards.

What’s next for the Calgary Stampede?

One potential path forward is to transition toward events that do not involve animals or that ensure their safety and well-being. By focusing on community-centred activities, music festivals, and cultural showcases, the Stampede can retain its atmosphere of celebration while respecting the evolving attitudes of its audience. 

Dropping the inhumane rodeo and chuckwagon events would not only address ethical concerns but also attract new crowds, as was noted in a 2022 poll of Calgary residents.

How the City of Calgary can lead the way

Moreover, the City of Calgary could take the lead in promoting animal welfare and humane treatment through legislative measures. By prohibiting inhumane tools and practices in rodeo events, Calgary can follow the lead of municipalities and nations around the world that are recognizing the suffering of sentient animals and the growing public demand for change.

The shift in local opinion also underscores the importance of public engagement and dialogue. Open discussions about the future of the Stampede and the role of animal events can help bridge the gap between traditional entertainment events and modern values.

By involving the community in these conversations, event organizers and policymakers can develop a vision for the Stampede that honours its heritage while putting an end to the death and suffering of sentient animals.

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Opinion Editorial

The overwhelming love of pet guardians in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside

Article originally published in the Daily Hive.

This past weekend, I was in the Downtown Eastside sharing emergency veterinary resources and handing out pet supplies as part of the Vancouver Humane Society’s Because They Matter event. The tables were laden with bright new leashes, harnesses, and toys, tempting treats, and sturdy carriers and litter boxes.  

I spoke with a man who carefully fitted new shoes onto his dog’s feet, telling me how she would now be safer walking around on the sidewalks. As one person switched her dog’s collar for a well-fitting harness, she turned to me and said, “You folks are angels.” A sweet pup walked over carrying a new toy in his mouth and rested his paws on my knee when I bent down to greet him. His tail wagged until he and his smiling guardian rounded the corner out of sight. 

The Downtown Eastside is one of Canada’s most placed-at risk communities, where many residents spend their days on the streets. Folks are either unhoused or seeking relief and community away from the under-resourced single room occupancy buildings (SROs) where they live. Many people are living on extremely limited incomes, like disability assistance or pensions, and can’t afford the ever-rising cost of living in our city. 

In the heart of the Downtown Eastside, where life’s hardships often loom large, there’s a remarkable testament to love and resilience in the form of pet guardians. Each year, I hear stories of connection, family, sacrifice, and unconditional love from people with pets. I have heard people say they didn’t know how they would afford groceries that week, but they had bought a new bag of pet food with their last $30. In turn, their animals provide companionship and joy that helps get them through difficult days. 

A youth who stopped by the event shared that she had been precariously housed with roommates for several months. Recently, she lost her housing because of having a dog. She chose to keep her beloved companion with her rather than to be housed without him. She is not alone in this difficult decision; unhoused individuals who have pets are often forced to choose between shelter and their animal companions and, as a result, are more likely to sleep unsheltered than those without pets. 

For a long time, a common public opinion has been that pet guardianship should be limited to people deemed wealthy enough to “afford” it. But human-animal families come in all shapes, sizes, and income levels. The “don’t get a pet if you can’t afford the vet” mentality ignores circumstances beyond a pet guardian’s control, while dismissing the profound trauma that both pets and their guardians can be subject to when forced to separate. It also does not account for the many animals who come into their guardians’ lives unplanned. 

One couple I spoke with had taken in a dog and her litter of puppies twelve years earlier from a friend who could no longer care for them. They spent long nights caring for the newborns and ensuring they were all receiving enough food. Eventually, they rehomed all but one of the dogs. The runt of the litter, Remy-Roo, became like their own baby. When she was afflicted with a life-threatening pyometra infection before they had a chance to have her spayed, they scraped together funds for her emergency surgery. As I saw the three of them together, Remy-Roo snuggled into them, licked their faces, and looked at them like they were her whole world. Her bright eyes and slightly greying fur spoke of a lifetime of happy memories. 

Their story – taking in a pet from someone who didn’t have the capacity to keep their animal at home anymore – was echoed by nearly everyone I spoke with at Because They Matter. A man had taken in a cat from his ailing mother. A woman was regularly watching and walking a dog whose senior guardian had limited mobility. A man cared for his neighbour’s dog each time she had to work. 

Research tells us that this phenomenon is well understood by people from low-income communities. In a recent study, one participant stated, “A lot more people who live in poverty or are low-income are more willing to rescue animals, because there’s this greater sense of community.” 

This mutual aid within the community is sorely needed. In the wake of rising costs of living, people living in poverty face a growing number of barriers to keeping their pets. Financial struggles continue to be one of the top reasons people surrender their pets to shelters. And with animal shelters across Canada still struggling to meet the surge in demand, there is often nowhere for animals to go. 

The solution for animals in loving, low-income families is not to hand them off to people with more resources, but to make more resources available to the people who already care for them. 

The Vancouver Humane Society’s McVitie Fund program is one such resource. The program provides life-saving veterinary support to pet guardians living on a low income, saving them from the heart-wrenching decision of watching their pet suffer or giving them up to get the help they need to survive. Demand for the program has skyrocketed over the past five years, rising from about one animal helped each week in 2019 to an average of 15 each week in 2024. 

The stories I heard this weekend are a testament to the deep, unwavering commitment that loving guardians in the Downtown Eastside have to their animals, despite facing their own hardships. These animals are essential members of the community; they are family members who provide love, companionship, and a sense of purpose.  

By embracing a culture of empathy and support, we can ensure that these human-animal families stay together, because they matter. 

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Opinion Editorial

The Calgary Stampede rodeo is cruel, stagnant and stuck in the past

Article originally published in the Daily Hive.

“Just because something is traditional is no reason to do it, of course.”

This sentiment was written by beloved children’s author Daniel Handler, more widely known by his pen name Lemony Snicket. It has also become the centre of a culture war that has taken root in Calgary over a controversial part of the city’s most famous event: the Calgary Stampede’s rodeo and chuckwagon races.

The Stampede plays host to some of the city’s most iconic attractions, showcasing Calgary’s vibrant culture and arts scene. Sadly, the celebratory mood is soured by a few outdated and cruel events.

Cowboy culture takes root in rodeo

When the first rodeo took place at the Calgary Stampede in 1912, the romanticized image of cowboy culture was fresh in the minds of North Americans. In actuality, open-range cattle ranchers were an American import and were only common in Canada from the late 1870s to the early 20th century. 

Though the movement certainly didn’t define a large part of our nation’s history, the romantic idea of cowboys was married with the draw of the agricultural fair to present rodeo for entertainment purposes.

The public was once captivated by the fast pace of rodeo, which involves animals being agitated with tools like uncomfortable flank straps or practices like ear pulling and tail twisting. These methods provoke the animals’ “fight or flight” fear response, leading to bulls and horses bucking or calves and steers bursting out of the chute to be chased and roped or wrestled to the ground.

But times have changed; the public expects better for animals. 

A roped calf lies on the ground at the Calgary Stampede rodeo
Jo-Anne McArthur / We Animals Media.

Rodeo falls behind public’s welfare expectations

Unlike the requirements for on-farm handling of the same animals, the practices used in rodeo have failed to evolve with changing public attitudes. Canadians have greater expectations of transparency and humane treatment of animals on farms. The National Farm Animal Care Council’s Beef Cattle Code of Practice, which provides guidelines for the care and handling of beef cattle in Canada, requires “quiet handling techniques” to be used.

Quiet handling would make many rodeo events impossible, but animals are paying the price for the continued use of stressful methods and fast-paced events. The Stampede sees near-annual animal deaths in the rodeo and chucks. 

Near-annual animal deaths a stain on celebrations

Since 2000, there have only been three years of the Stampede in which no fatalities were reported: 2003, 2016, and 2021. The Stampede’s deadliest event, chuckwagon racing, was cancelled in 2021 due to pandemic concerns.  

In total, 105 animals have died at the Stampede since the Vancouver Humane Society began tracking fatalities in 1986, including 75 horses used in the chuckwagon races.

These high-profile deaths, along with a growing body of evidence showing that animals experience stress, fear, and pain in rodeo events, are changing the hearts and minds of the public.  

Polling reflects changing opinions

Research Co. poll conducted in February this year shows that more than half of Albertans disagree with the use of animals in steer wrestling, calf roping, and bronc riding. When presented with photos of calf roping, 60% of Albertans and 62% of Calgarians said they would not watch the event.

Evidently, the look of fear in the eyes of a calf as he is chased, thrown to the ground, roped, and dragged by his neck while the oblivious contestant walks off celebrating is enough to put most people off the so-called sport. Perhaps this is why the Calgary Stampede website’s depiction of calf roping (euphemistically deemed “tie-down roping”) only features a contestant and horse, with the rope mysteriously disappearing out of frame. 

A screenshot from the Calgary Stampede website shows the listing for "tie-down roping" with no calf visible
Screenshot: CalgaryStampede.com

Rodeos losing steam elsewhere

Rodeo’s dwindling popularity is already making waves elsewhere. Last year, the City of Red Deer bade farewell to the Canadian Finals Rodeo after four of its five years of hosting resulted in financial loss.  

Many cities across North America and nations across the globe have banned rodeos, limited events, or prohibited tools such as electric prods, flank straps, and sharpened spurs, which are used before and during events to control animals or provoke desired behaviours. These include Vancouver, British Columbia; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; New York, New York; Los Angeles, California; parts of Brazil; the United Kingdom; and the Netherlands. 

Increasingly, public values are leading a change in the way we view the use of animals in entertainment. Rodeo is becoming a symbol of outdated cruelty, much like the once-popular use of performing animals in circus acts or dolphins trained to jump through hoops in aquarium shows.  

The future of the Calgary Stampede

Surely Stampede organizers are aware that they must adapt to changing interests and attitudes. The “Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth” would not have survived more than a century if it insisted on staying the same.  

The Stampede has evolved to grow its Midway into the sprawling icon it is today. It has added new exciting exhibits and events, including a host of concerts that draw hundreds of thousands of spectators each year. Yet, in its animal events, the Stampede remains stuck in the past. It has become a symbol of stagnancy and division rather than progress and unity.

If the Calgary Stampede is looking to the future, one thing is certain: cruelty has no place there.

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Opinion Editorial

A stressful and fear-filled glimpse into an animal’s first rodeo

Article originally published in the Daily Hive.

Bring up animal welfare to a rodeo supporter, and you’ll often hear the same set of arguments: these animals are trained. They’re used to it. They’re athletes akin to other rough sports, like football or boxing. While these arguments are easily unravelled, new footage from this year’s rodeo in Merritt kicks the legs out from under them entirely. 

The newly released footage taken by the Vancouver Humane Society shows handlers aggressively pulling and twisting a steer’s tail in the chute as he falls to his knees. Footage also shows steers with flank straps tightened around their sensitive underbellies and panic in their eyes, bucking wildly as saliva spurts from their mouths. Several animals become so agitated that they slip and fall to the ground of the arena. 

It’s common to see handling techniques like the ones shown in this video used in rodeo events. Pulling an animal’s tail or shaking their head initiates their “fight or flight” fear response, which causes them to perform the behaviours expected in a rodeo event: running away at high speeds or bucking violently. 

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The newly-released footage taken by the Vancouver Humane Society shows handlers aggressively pulling and twisting a steer’s tail in the chute as he falls to his knees. Footage also shows steers with flank straps tightened around their sensitive underbellies and panic in their eyes, bucking wildly as saliva spurts from their mouths.

Generally, a compassionate observer can see the signs of stress in animals subjected to this treatment, including visible whites around the animals’ eyes, extended tongues, and excessive drooling. The reactions of the steers at the Nicola Valley Rodeo in Merritt are far more obvious, however. A look at the Pro Rodeo website tells us why. 

The Nicola Valley Rodeo page on the Canadian Professional Rodeo Association website lists the Steer Riding Contractor as “local beef cattle,” which suggests these steers are from a nearby farm and not a rodeo stock contractor who raises and keeps animals specifically for the purpose of being used in rodeo events.

Animals from farms are not accustomed to the fast pace of rodeos; in fact, the National Farm Animal Care Council’s Beef Cattle Code of Practice, which serves as an industry guideline for the care and handling of beef cattle in Canada, requires that quiet handling techniques be used on farms. The high-speed, rough nature of animal handling in rodeo events is completely contradictory to the handling guidelines for these same animals in a farm setting.  

Where other rodeo animals may have become accustomed to the stressful and rough handling inherent to the sport, this video footage reveals what could very well be these animals’ first rodeo. 

Of course, it would be erroneous to say that other animals who are used to rodeos no longer feel fear and stress. Adverse reactions from other rodeo animals can be seen in footage from this year’s BC rodeo events as well: a calf defecates as they are pulled along the ground by a rope fastened around their neck; a bucking horse jumps over a fence, landing on their shoulder; and multiple clips show animals thrashing around in rodeo chutes and resisting handlers. 

In other cases, the animals’ relatively subtle response to stressful stimuli like flank straps, ear pulling, and tail twisting could be a result of learned helplessness.  

Learned helplessness is a psychological state that animals can experience when they repeatedly face a stressful situation over which they have no control. Though they continue to experience a heightened stress response, they lose motivation to try to change their situation and appear passive.

Because these individual beef cattle have likely not become resigned to the treatment common in rodeos, their responses offer the public a glimpse into what the beginning of the journey may look like for all rodeo animals. After all, every animal used in these events has experienced a “first rodeo.”

Animals used in timed events like roping, wrestling, and bucking must endure multiple rodeos each season; they face stressful travel between events; and they experience hours of use in rodeo practice sessions, where less polished iterations of the rodeo events seldom reach the public eye. 

Being used again and again for the sake of public entertainment does not transform frightened animals into willing athletes. Despite the pomp and pageantry about rodeo animals and human athletes working together in events, the two parties have remarkably little in common. 

Real athletes understand the rules of the game. They make the decision to sign up and prepare for events. They do not need to be coerced into the arena through the use of physical discomfort and pain. Each time they perform, it’s because they’ve chosen to do so. 

Animals don’t have the capacity to do this. They do not understand the concept of “winning” at so-called sports designed by and for humans. They can, of course, try to opt out of events by simply standing still – despite the stimuli activating their fight or flight instincts and at the risk of being punished for their disobedience.

Most importantly, where athletes’ first rodeos are marked with excitement, this year’s videos prove once again that animals’ journeys are marked by fear. 

With growing opposition to these events and so many other ways to celebrate BC’s vibrant community, the continued use of stressed animals for public entertainment makes less sense than ever. It’s high time for the province to buck the inhumane rodeo tradition.

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Opinion Editorial

Taxpayer money should NOT be funding rodeos in BC

Article originally published in the Daily Hive.

What would you do if you saw someone yanking an animal’s ear, twisting their tail, shaking them by the head until they’re thrashing about in stress? Would you turn away? Speak up in protest of the cruel treatment? Call in a report?

Or would you open your wallet?

Most British Columbians would say the unnecessary, cruel treatment of animals, like the aforementioned practices, which are commonly used to make rodeo animals “perform,” should be stopped immediately. In fact, only one-quarter of British Columbians agree with the use of animals in rodeo. Most would never hand over money to see this cruelty in person.

The catch? If you pay taxes in British Columbia, you’re paying for it anyway.

The BC Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture, and Sport announced in February that it would provide $30 million in provincial funding to support BC-based events, including rodeos.

More than 2,000 British Columbians emailed Tourism Minister Lana Popham asking that this public funding not be used to subsidize an inhumane private industry. Their calls for justice were ignored – to the tune of nearly $800,000 given to events that include rodeos.

Meanwhile, the provincial government provides no funding for animal cruelty law enforcement. This means that no proactive monitoring is being done at BC rodeos to prevent the improper handling of animals.

The fast-paced nature of the events and aversive tools used to provoke fleeing and bucking behaviours in rodeo animals are contrary to the quiet handling techniques outlined in current standards for these same species on farms.

Now, with BC in the last stretch of its dreaded annual rodeo season, many organizers are opening the gates to animal suffering with taxpayer dollars in their pockets. Significantly, an incident earlier this year suggests that organizers are well aware of the welfare issues inherent in the sport.

Over the May long weekend, the Falkland Stampede held a number of bucking, roping, and wrestling events, which notoriously subject animals to fear, stress, and discomfort. Later, rodeo manager Melissa Seaman requested that an image of a calf being roped tightly around the neck be removed from Facebook, stating that “it doesn’t cast rodeo in the best light.”

Though organizers wished to censor publicly available images of a practice integral to their calf roping event, the Falkland Stampede was happy to accept $24,900 in public funding. The move should raise eyebrows: why is the Province giving funds to an entertainment event that only seems acceptable from carefully selected angles?

The Chilliwack Rodeo, which received $7,500 in funding and will be held August 11 to 13, previously came under fire for its apparent use of electric prods at a 2018 event. It was again the subject of media scrutiny when the Vancouver Humane Society released disturbing footage from last year’s event of animals being roughly handled and deliberately agitated.

What happened at this year’s Chilliwack and Langley rodeos

The return of the Chilliwack rodeo this year, along with a controversial new rodeo held in Langley Township, has raised concerns about the well-being and welfare of animals made to perform in rodeo events. Video footage taken at both rodeos this summer shows stressed and frightened animals being roughly handled and deliberately agitated into fleeing and bucking.

In one video clip, a bull falls on his horn and is seemingly injured. In another clip, a calf runs into the arena fence while fleeing from a rider who is chasing them on horseback. Research has found that calves showed signs of distress across all the phases of calf roping, from being chased, lassoed, and caught to when they were released.

The Chilliwack Fair, which hosts the rodeo, received an additional $31,500.

The marketing of these events as “family-friendly” has drawn criticism for the behaviours they teach children. Many children are naturally drawn to animals, and studies show that children who are empowered to form positive emotional bonds with animals develop greater compassion. Conversely, a strong correlation exists between cruelty to animals and violence toward humans.

Rather than nurturing children’s empathy toward animals, rodeos teach children that animals are here for our entertainment. They demonstrate that animals should be treated with force rather than building trust.

But it’s not just the moral lesson that should give pause; several of the rodeos that received funding feature dangerous events specific to children and minors, such as mutton busting (children riding sheep), barrel racing, steer riding, and breakaway roping of calves.

Events that feature children’s rodeo activities include Valley West Stampede in Langley (which received $33,700), Lakes District Fall Fair, Children’s & Music Festival ($12,300), and the 74th Annual North Thompson Fall Fair and Rodeo ($26,200).

Rodeo events are inherently risky to both humans and animals and can end in devastating consequences. A University of Calgary study found it to be one of the most dangerous sports in the world, with a catastrophic injury rate about 20 times higher than football. Tragically, children and adolescents have lost their lives in rodeo events as recently as this year.

From a government that recommends children avoid “high-risk” activities for their safety, the dissonance is astounding.

The public funding of these dangerous, inhumane, and outdated events shows a concerning lack of judgement on the part of provincial decision-makers, who could instead direct this funding to events like music festivals, fairs, and arts and cultural events that bring communities together and that don’t put animals in high-stress, high-risk situations.

By boycotting rodeos and writing an email to the Ministry of Tourism, British Columbians can send a clear message that animals, families, and taxpayers deserve better.

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Opinion Editorial

After yet another death, Vancouver should not support horse racing

Article originally published in the Daily Hive.

A heartbreaking incident this weekend showed many Vancouverites that horse racing is not all fun and games. 

Vancouver’s Hastings Racecourse is once again the subject of controversy after a three-year-old horse named Lent Me Twenty tragically lost her life at The Cup – formerly known as the Deighton Cup – event on Saturday. 

Reports of Lent Me Twenty’s death offer conflicting accounts. David Milburn, president of the Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association of BC – an industry group that supports the continuation of thoroughbred horse racing – believed that the horse reared up before falling and striking her head on the ground. 

One of around 30 spectators who witnessed the death, Darren Hill, said, “It just walked normal in front of me with its trainer and then as it passed me, it just dropped sideways.”  

The true cause of Lent Me Twenty’s death is currently under investigation. Regardless of the outcome, it is doubtless that humans caused her death by choosing to use her as entertainment.

The selective breeding and use of animals for entertainment like horse racing always carries a risk. Sadly, that risk is not taken into account because the animals are not treated as sentient, feeling individuals. The industry requires that we see these horses as objects. 

This is likely why, after Lent Me Twenty’s body was hidden beneath a tarp and carried away on a trailer, races continued throughout the day

The tragic incident of Lent Me Twenty’s death is yet another stain on the satin shirt of this ostensibly high-society event. 

The Cup markets itself as stylish and sophisticated; it invites people to dress up for a “good ol’ fashioned day at the races.” However, under the pomp and pageantry, the reality for animals is far less glamorous.

Unlike human athletes, racehorses are not given a choice of whether to participate. They are bred and raised for the purpose and forced to perform at high speeds in front of roaring crowds.   

There is no choice to opt out when they are not feeling their best or conditions are not favourable. The show must go on – even on days like Saturday, in temperatures far exceeding what horses prefer to exercise in, and when a horse had just lost her life. 

At the end of the race, horses have no concept of winning or losing. Dr. Stephen Peters, a neuroscientist who has worked with both humans and horses, notes that “The idea that horses love the event they compete in is something we’ve created. It’s a myth more for us than the horse.”  

Unlike when horses “race” each other in a field, running around a racetrack is not a natural behaviour for horses, says certified applied animal behaviorist Dr. Sue McDonnell. 

Horses do not understand the thrill of competing in events developed by, and for, humans. For animals, the thrill of play and competition can be seen when they set their own rules and are given freedom to move and behave as they please, like when a dog “chases” his guardian through the grass.  

Instead, what these horses know is the stress of being carted between different loud and highly controlled environments, the bite of an uncomfortable bit in their mouth, and the pain of a whip on their flank as they run along a strictly guided path. Their so-called “careers” are short and marked by fear. 

Typically, horses begin racing around two years of age. Research shows that horses who begin high-intensity activities like racing at a young age have been found to have high rates of injury, and to decline and retire quickly.   

One study found that during the training and racing of two-year-old racehorses, 85% suffered at least one incident of injury or disease. Another found that of the horses that began racing at two or three years of age, only 46% were still racing two years later.  

Racehorses typically retire around age four to six; but life after racing is no frolic in the pasture, either. If horses are not used for breeding or given another way to turn a profit, they run the risk of ending up at auction, where unwanted horses are sent and sold to the highest bidder.  

While some horses may be bought from auction for riding or companionship, others are less fortunate and are purchased by horsemeat buyers, destined for slaughter. Auctions are a stressful and dangerous place to be an animal, and rescuers at the Squamish-based horse sanctuary, Second Chance Cheekye Ranch, have said that all horses they have rescued from this process arrive with some degree of trauma. 

This display of risk and fear only exists because there is money in it. Every spectator at this year’s event at Hastings Racecourse can be part of the solution for horses by skipping next year’s event and spending a Saturday wearing a fascinator or cufflinks elsewhere. 

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Opinion Editorial

100 years of cruelty at the Calgary Stampede is nothing to celebrate

Article originally published in the Daily Hive.

The Calgary Stampede’s 100th anniversary of chuckwagon racing is getting a lot of attention this year, with commemorations of those 100 years being splashed across the Stampede website.

A book on the centennial was even published in March. The mood is downright celebratory.

But here’s something no one is proud to commemorate: more than 100 animals have died at the Calgary Stampede since the Vancouver Humane Society started tracking fatalities in 1986. Nearly three-quarters of those were horses used in the chuckwagon races.

The prospect of another 100 years of horse fatalities is certainly not worth celebrating.

The chuckwagon races are the most popular, and by far the most deadly, animal event at the Calgary Stampede. Event organizers and participants are well aware that any given race could quickly turn fatal in an event openly deemed the “Half-Mile of Hell,” as accidents are inevitable.

In fact, in the last two decades, there have only been three years in which the races did not result in horse fatalities: 2003, 2004, and 2016.

According to Stan Church, the chuckwagon safety commissioner of the Stampede in 2015, that risk has long been a draw for crowds. “A lot of people were disappointed if at least one wagon didn’t roll over” in the ‘50s and ‘60s, he said.

The thrill of the risk seems to continue to entice many. In fact, a disturbing pattern has emerged in recent years: each time organizers introduce a small change to improve the races’ safety in response to mass casualty events, those changes are vocally opposed by participants.

Reacting to a change that limited the number of wagons on the track for safety reasons, an anonymous veteran driver confided to the Calgary Sun, “I’m going to tell you, it’s boring watching three wagons compared to four wagons.”

The change came in response to the deaths of six horses in 2019. Safety is clearly not a top priority for all those involved in this sport.

Sadly, despite minor safety changes, horses continue to die in pain and fear nearly every year. That’s because changes to the number of horses and examinations of the track, while well-intentioned, fail to address the inherent dangers of the event: the fast pace, the close proximity of horses and wagons, and the fragile skeletal structure of the thoroughbred horses who are used, the latter of which has been the subject of criticism from animal scientist Temple Grandin.

Thankfully, the tide of public opinion seems to be turning on the use of animals in entertainment events like the Calgary Stampede. Sixty-one per cent of Canadians and 49% of Albertans are opposed to the use of animals in rodeo, compared to 29% and 40% in favour, respectively.

A Research Co. poll conducted during last year’s Stampede revealed the removal of the rodeo and chuckwagon events from the Calgary Stampede program would have virtually no impact on attendance rates.

The poll found that 64% of Calgarians asked indicated that they had attended or were likely to attend the Stampede last year, while 63% indicated they would be likely to attend without the inclusion of the rodeo or chuckwagon races.

What’s more, polling results indicated that the removal of controversial animal events would pique the interest of new crowds, with 24% of non-attendees from last year expressing interest in attending a Stampede free of rodeos and chuckwagons.

Without including the suffering of animals, the Stampede could truly become the Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth by highlighting the vibrant arts and culture of Calgary and beyond, bringing people together with festivities all Canadians can be proud to claim as a major national event.

Categories
Opinion Editorial

New bill would silence those who shed light on animal cruelty

Article originally published in the Daily Hive.

Members of Parliament may soon be voting on a federal private member’s bill that would impose hefty fines and jail time on those who expose animal cruelty and welfare issues on farms. While it’s being promoted as a measure to protect biosecurity, something far more sinister is happening beneath the surface.

In reality, Bill C-275 proposes a measure that’s well-known among animal advocates as “ag-gag” laws: punitive restrictions that target whistleblowers, journalists, and others who aim to shed light on hidden conditions and illegal cruelty within the animal agriculture system.

Ag-gag laws were first devised by the powerful US farm lobby in response to undercover investigations by animal advocates that showed the public the truth about the often-appalling conditions on factory farms. These exposés regularly caught farms cramming animals like pigs and chickens into tiny, filthy cages; workers hitting, kicking, and punching animals; botched euthanasia; and much more. The abuse captured on camera was bad press for the meat, dairy, and egg industries, and threatened to interfere with profits. But rather than addressing the crisis of cruelty, legislators in several US states instead passed ag-gag laws that made it illegal for undercover whistleblowers to film on farms—ensuring the abuse would stay behind closed doors.

Undercover investigations into factory farms became common in Canada in the 2010s, exposing heartbreaking animal suffering and leading to prosecutions and conviction, such as at Chilliwack Cattle Sales, where an undercover video led to some of the largest animal cruelty fines in Canadian history. The farm industry soon started pushing for ag-gag laws—Alberta and Ontario both introduced laws banning undercover whistleblowers in 2019—and imposing incredibly punitive fines on trespassers. Manitoba and PEI have passed their own versions of ag-gag laws since then, and the first federal ag-gag bill was introduced in 2019.

Ag-gag laws are so damaging to transparency that courts in six US states have struck them down as a violation of free speech provisions in the US Constitution. Animal Justice is leading a legal challenge to Ontario’s ag-gag laws, with the case slated to be heard this fall.

It’s clear these laws limit much-needed transparency on farms, but are they a necessary evil to prevent trespassing and protect biosecurity, as they purport?

If we look at the laws already in place, it’s evident these laws are not about trespassing at all. The justice system is well-equipped to respond to trespass; each province has general anti-trespass and similar laws which have been used to prosecute people who enter farms without permission.

In fact, existing laws have already been used in a way that is favourable to the animal agriculture industry. Many Canadians were disturbed by the high-profile case of the Excelsior 4 in BC last year, which saw advocates put on trial for exposing horrific cruelty at Excelsior Hog Farm. Two advocates were convicted of criminal mischief for entering a farm after the court forbade them from providing evidence of the unjust and potentially illegal cruelty as a “defense of necessity,” further withholding the transparency that Canadians expect in their food system.

Within a justice system already used to serve the bottom line of the animal agriculture industry, Bill C-275 would do more than punish trespassers; it could jail people who bring a camera or tape recorder onto a farm without permission—including undercover advocates, existing workers, or even someone visiting a farm on an “open house” day. It would also doubly punish undercover investigators in provinces such as Alberta and Ontario that already have ag-gag legislation in place. Shockingly, fines for violating the ag-gag law could be as high as half a million dollars.

Disease outbreaks happen regularly on farms, but animal advocates aren’t the cause. Animal Justice analyzed data compiled by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), which monitors and investigates reportable disease outbreaks in Canada. The report reveals that standard farm practices and poor adherence to biosecurity protocols by farmers are regularly linked to illness and lethal diseases—such as inadequate hand-washing, failure to change boots and clothing, sharing equipment between farms, sharing needles, or in the case of mad cow disease, feeding infected cow flesh to other cows.

If Bill C-275 was serious about stopping diseases on farms, it would set out clear, legal standards for biosecurity in Canada—which don’t currently exist.

It’s obvious that ag-gag laws have little to do with biosecurity or protecting the food supply, but everything to do with hiding the poor conditions where animals are kept. Animals kept on farms deserve national regulations protecting their well-being, coupled with transparent, proactive monitoring and enforcement such as publicly available reporting and surveillance footage. MPs should reject dangerous ag-gag laws, and instead focus on protecting animals farmed for food and increasing transparency.

Categories
Opinion Editorial

Calves could be stuck in isolation until 2031 under new dairy industry guidelines

A version of this article was originally published in The Province.

Amid an onslaught of controversies surrounding the Canadian dairy industry, including a scandalous viral video of an Ontario farmer dumping milk down the drain, new guidelines for the care of dairy cows have been quietly released. 

Late last week, the National Farm Animal Care Council (NFACC) released its updated Dairy Cattle Code of Practice, which provides guidelines for the care of dairy cows on farms across Canada. The Code reportedly received a record-setting number of comments from more than 5,800 individuals. Although a strong public response prompted some positive changes, several areas of the Code still fall short of expectations. 

During the public comment period on the Code of Practice, one of the sections that received the strongest response was that on calf housing.  

It’s easy to see why; like other social animals, calves thrive with interaction and physical touch. Most human parents are familiar with the importance of cuddling to a baby’s development. Like human children, calves who are deprived of physical contact experience stress, slower growth, weakened immune systems, and lower welfare. Conversely, research shows that “pair or group housed calves show improved cognitive development, perform more play behaviours, and are less reactive to novelty”. 

A 2018 study found that 63% of farms in Canada reared dairy calves in individual housing. It is a promising step that the NFACC has acknowledged in the new Code of Practice the harms that this can cause, as well as the many benefits of social housing for calves.  

Unfortunately, the new regulations pave a long road to change. The updated Code of Practice will continue to permit the isolated housing of calves until 2031. This prolonged regulation shift will put millions of calves at risk of being housed individually over the next eight years, denying young calves the ability to engage in their natural herding instincts during their formative months.  

Perhaps most shocking is the continued absence of required emergency planning.  

The public comment period for the Dairy Cattle Code of Practice launched November 29, 2021, while rural communities in B.C. were still reeling from the impacts of disastrous flooding. The floods claimed the lives of approximately 640,000 farmed animals in B.C., including about 420 dairy cattle. Farmers, veterinarians, volunteers, and community members scrambled to evacuate and house thousands of animals, as many were trapped for days standing in deep, murky water.  

The Code recommends that farms develop a plan for evacuating cattle in the event of an emergency, but has no requirements around emergency planning. 

Other concerns that remain unresolved by the updated guidelines include the continued use of electric prods, the stressful separation of cows from their newly born calves, the lack of required outdoor access, and the transportation of cows who are compromised or lactating. 

There is some good news – the new Code explicitly prohibits abusive handling, which it defines as “kicking, beating, striking, tail twisting, dragging, improper use of a prod, and forcefully pulling cattle by the tail, head, or neck”. 

Avoiding many of these techniques was previously only considered a recommended best practice, but recent controversies have prompted a public cry for accountability. In 2021, the industry was subject to public scrutiny when news coverage revealed disturbing footage of dairy cows being violently beaten, kicked, and dragged at Cedar Valley Farms in Abbotsford. 

While the NFACC guidelines aim to address some of the systemic cruelty highlighted in undercover investigations like the one at Cedar Valley, the Code’s reach is not absolute. Meaningful monitoring, enforcement, and penalties for industry stakeholders found guilty of animal abuse are still needed to ensure animals are protected. 

The NFACC’s codes of practice are typically only updated every ten years, meaning that for better or worse, dairy cows will likely be stuck under these insufficient guidelines for the next decade. Meanwhile, consumers can find a growing selection of plant-based alternatives that increasingly rival the taste, texture, and price of dairy – without the suffering. 

Categories
Opinion Editorial

Why Canada needs to take action now to stop octopus farming 

Article originally published in The Daily Hive.

In the award-winning documentary My Octopus Teacher, filmmaker and Sea Change Project co-founder Craig Foster says, “A lot of people say an octopus is like an alien. But the strange thing is, as you get closer to them, you realize that we’re very similar in a lot of ways.”

As one octopus develops a complex friendship with Foster, the film demonstrates how intelligent, curious, and sensitive these animals can be.

Industry stakeholders seem to be relying on the perceived otherness of octopuses to enable consumers to look the other way as they begin to establish the first inhumane octopus farms, even as our society is increasingly critical of cruel intensive animal agriculture practices. Thousands of animal advocates and allies across the world have spoken out to agree: it’s not working.

Earlier this week, reports of horrific plans for the world’s first octopus farm began making their way across the media cycle after confidential planning proposal documents were released to the BBC by the organization Eurogroup for Animals.

Rows of barren tanks at Kanaloa Octopus Farm in Hawaii each confine a single octopus who was caught from the wild. Laura Lee Cascada / The Every Animal Project / We Animals Media.

The farm, which is planned to open in Spain’s Canary Islands by multinational corporation Nueva Pescanova, will be a nightmare for octopuses.

In the wild, common octopuses—the species set to be farmed, and the species featured in My Octopus Teacher—are typically solitary animals who are highly territorial. They spend time interacting with their environment, in which they are capable of using complex problem-solving skills and tools. They hunt a varied diet of many marine species, usually at night. They are accustomed to the dark and prefer making their home in crevices where they can easily hide.

By contrast, Nueva Pescanova’s intensive farming plans would keep octopuses in crowded communal tanks, at times under constant light, where they would be unable to express their natural behaviours such as hiding and hunting. The animals would be defenceless as they would be raised and picked off for human consumption.

Content warning: This image depicts the bodies of deceased octopuses at a processing plant. (Click to expand)

A worker at a processing plant, processes octopus bodies with water through specific machines to make them turgid for sale. Selene Magnolia / We Animals Media.

Plans also note that octopuses will be killed by “ice slurry,” which has been identified as a painful and stressful death for the fish on whom it is currently used. The aquaculture industry has already begun shifting away from this slaughter method, including a requirement in the National Farm Animal Care Council’s (NFACC) Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Farmed Salmonids to transition to acceptable methods by 2025.

If we could have stopped industrial-scale animal farming before it began, the reality for animals would look very different now. Industrial animal agriculture has been called the biggest animal welfare crisis on the planet, with more than 70 billion land animals killed for food each year.

Content warning: This image depicts the bodies of deceased octopuses at a processing plant. (Click to expand)

Octopus bodies at a processing plant. Selene Magnolia / We Animals Media.

The Sentience Institute estimates that 74% of farmed land animals and virtually all farmed fishes are currently on factory farms, which are characterized by large numbers of animals confined in cramped, barren and unnatural conditions. Many of these animals are never given the opportunity to see the sky, smell fresh air free of the scent of ammonia, or feel the grass.

In Canada alone, 825 million land animals were killed in 2021. The number of farmed aquatic animals who are killed in Canada is so enormous that they are counted by weight rather than lives: 191,249 tonnes of finned fish and shellfish in 2021.

The Canadian animal agriculture industry has been the face of numerous scandals over the past decade, as undercover footage revealed live chickens with their legs ripped off, dairy cows cornered and beaten with canes, and conscious sheep flailing about with their necks cut open.

While we can do our collective best to decrease the demand for animal products and address the terrible suffering that industrially farmed animals endure, we sadly cannot go back in time to save the millions of lives squandered in misery, awaiting a painful and terrifying end.

However, we can prevent this tragic fate for octopuses. A federal petition calling on the government to ban the breeding, keeping, and import of farmed octopuses and other cephalopod species in Canada has already amassed more than 10,000 signatures.

The decision is simple, and it must be made now: before another species is subjected to horrific suffering; before cephalopod farms are established; before the federal government must contend with industry interests and try to unring yet another bell of cruel treatment. For the sake of protecting these intelligent, complex animals, sign the petition today.

Federal e-petition: No factory farms for octopuses