In central Arkansas, there’s a unique toad themed festival that takes place annually in Conway, Arkansas. The first one took place in May of 1982, in a township close by named “Toad Suck” before it was moved to downtown Conway. 

As you can infer from the festival’s name, Toad Suck Daze, not only is the festival toad themed, but it’s a big deal to locals. Arguably the biggest element of Toad Suck Daze is the “World Championship Toad Races” where people bring real life toads to “race” against each other. 

Participants are encouraged to catch local toads before the race, sometimes even weeks prior. These toads are forcibly taken from their natural habitats, handled by humans for hours up to weeks at a time, and likely don’t receive the proper care and diets that are necessary for their survival. They are then taken to a noisy, packed festival and cajoled, harassed, and forced to jump and race. Imagine being such a small creature, being torn from your home by an unknown, much larger being, then taking to a foreign location to perform in a place that is not your natural habitat. How terrifying would that be? 

Toads are prey animals. They rely on blending in to their environment to avoid danger. Blending in also requires stillness. Placing these toads in foreign environments and forcing them to race and jump puts them into an unnatural state of anxiety. These toads can become injured, or even die from getting hurt, mishandling, or even being dropped. 

Additionally, there is a risk to human health not commonly discussed within the context of these toad races. Toads can carry bacteria harmful to people, and even spread infections. Toads (as well as other amphibians and reptiles like turtles or lizards) can unintentionally be a source of Salmonella. This illness can become serious, especially in younger children. 

In addition to the obvious ethical problems with racing toads, the petting zoo at this festival has recently come under fire. Posts about the festival this year include concerns about the well being of animals in the petting zoo, and a lack of worker or parental supervision. Children were described as mishandling rabbits and chickens, dropping them, stepping on them, and unintentionally harming them. I can attest to this being an issue for more than just this year-when I went a few years ago in college, I saw the same exact thing. Children grabbing rabbits by their limbs, turning them upside down, dropping animals several feet. And no worker or parental intervention. Instead of using this as an educational opportunity to learn how to safely handle animals, these poor creatures are left to be abused and terrorized. 

One post in particular that has been circulating shows a rabbit that has very clearly been neglected and injured. You can see patches of raw, inflamed skin, one of which is especially large. It looks incredibly painful, and the expression on the rabbit’s face reads as exhausted, completely sapped of life. 

Animals are not here solely for our entertainment, enjoyment, or consumption. Even creatures as small as toads and rabbits can feel things. They can experience fear, anxiety, and pain. The animals involved in Toad Suck Daze have been subjected to unimaginable levels of terror and stress. 

Although tradition is important to any community, we can create new traditions that aren’t barbaric. I encourage everyone who reads this to sign the petition and share, but also to contact the city of Conway about this. We can keep the toad theme of the festival through art, fashion, and costumes. Living toads and petting zoos are unnecessary to the success of this tradition.