Last Saturday, an eight-year-old horse named MacLean's View died at the Merbein Community Rodeo in Victoria.
He had just bucked off his rider when he fell and severely broke a front leg. He was then led away in terrible pain to be put down.
MacLean's View did not have to die. He died because he was being abused by humans in the name of entertainment.
To quote RSPCA Australia:
"Rodeo horses and bulls buck repeatedly as an instinctive reaction to being repeatedly kicked with metal spurs and to the tightened flank strap around their sensitive underbelly. Horses and cattle are prey animals and their reaction to being ridden in this way is the same as their reaction to being attacked by a predator, a situation where they experience increased fear, stress and panic. It is not uncommon to see horses and bulls hurl themselves at solid objects in order to rid themselves of the rider. Only when the rider has been thrown or dismounts and the flank straps loosened do they quieten down."
This torment of peaceful farm animals must end. You can help end it, by signing and sharing this petition, by talking to friends, family and neighbours about the cruelty of rodeos, and by telling politicians that we want them to act.
If you live in New South Wales, please also sign and share my petition to Parliament. The link is here: Petition to Parliament - End Rodeo Cruelty
Thanks to all of you who are supporting my efforts to end rodeos. And thanks to the dedicated volunteers at Animal Liberation Queensland who regularly attend rodeos to capture the ugly truth of these events on video and in photos, such as the one above.
Please don't let the death of MacLean's View be in vain. Please speak up on behalf of him and all the other animals suffering the cruelty of rodeos.