Animal Health: What do Vets Think About the Rodeo Industry?

Veterinarians are arguably some of the strongest advocates for animal welfare. They have no issues educating the public on what is considered unethical or detrimental to the animal's health. These same opinions apply to the rodeo world. Rodeo veterinarians main goal is to prevent injury and make sure that the animals are being treated well and that they are not being hurt or mistreated.

Hear it Straight from the Veterinarians Themselves

Several rodeo veterinarians have spoken out on the issue of animal welfare in rodeo and have given their take. While there are some that are against the use of animals in rodeo, several vets speak in favor of the sport. In an article written by Lisa Granshaw titled, "How Rodeo Veterinarians Help Keep Animals Healthy," Dr. Douglas Corey speaks out as a veterinarian that is a part of the Pro Rodeo Cowboy's Association's Animal Welfare committee. In the article, he states that "Injury rates at PRCA rodeos are 0.0005, so it's a lot of watching the rodeo and then dealing with the occasional and rare injury." This statement from Dr. Corey shows how rare injuries are at rodeos. Vets are there in order to prevent injury and provide animals with the best preventative care. Another vet speaks out alongside Dr. Corey in this article, Dr. Leslie Easterwood, one of the official veterinarians for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, shares some very similar opinions. She states that "rules such as far a roping calf can be dragged, how often the stock is used, etc., help to decrease preventable issues...horse athletes are cared for very much like human athletes, with support bandaging, regular exercise to maintain fitness, etc." The general opinion of veterinarians seems to be that rodeo is not dangerous or cruel to animals and that injuries are easily preventable. Many veterinarians take pride in their work and would not back up rodeo if they thought it was detrimental to animal health. Vets care about the animals first, so it is easy to trust and respect their opinions on rodeo and the treatment of animals. 



Granshaw, L. (2022, October 10). How rodeo veterinarians keep animals healthy. Vetstreet. https://www.vetstreet.com/our-pet-experts/how-rodeo-veterinarians-help-keep-animals-healthy 


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