Activists lock down Chuckwagon track

[Minnie]

Buys one at 7-11.

[Derek Sutton]

Originally Posted by Angelamc

I want to know more about how a horse gets a heart attack?

Think of a 70 yr old fella shovelling 2ft of snow off of his driveway.

[Delthefunky]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

What hasn't been mentioned is that some of the horses get heart attacks.

I've abandoned everything to do with the stampede simply because of the rodeo. I don't invite guests to Calgary during the stampede after being emberassed over the dead horses announcement on the radio. Leave everything but the rodeo and i'm in. The rodeo is an emberassment to our world class city.

Other than that, this thread is really confusing, the owners love their animals and they are well cared for yet they race their horses to a possible death. Lots of money has been put into training these horses for the races yet they have been saved from the slaughter. Bit of contradiction in here.

Go Stamps Go!!

[BloodFetish]

Originally Posted by pylon

The sooner they stop this stupid carnival of cruelty the better. We don't need our cities signature event to be such a slack jawed, backwoods, barbaric gong show. Calgary no longer needs the Stampede to identify itself. We are a world class city, but mutilating animals for pleasure is anything but world class. It's a black eye we need to rid ourselves of. Run the festival portion, just get rid of the damn rodeo already. At least the murder events.

inb4: But I am such a1337 cowboy wearing my Budweiser buckle, Jack Daniels Cowbot hat, and faux snake skin boots while I shuttle my kids around in a Volvo. I am the definition of a cowboy.

inb4: But you eat meat, and chickens, and they get the mean treatment too you hypocrite.

inb4: But it is so good for the economy.

Yeah, we could also divert the Bow River California on a mega pipeline, and that would be awesome for the economy too! Doesn't make it right.

inb4: But Oilsands!!!!!11!!!11!1

[AcGold]

Perfect forum name and response combo

[FFR]

Originally Posted by Angelamc

I want to know more about how a horse gets a heart attack?

They don't get heart attacks like a human does - that's just a commonly used term. Typically there is an aneurysm or aorta rupture which essentially results in cardiac failure. There is research being done to try and confirm what causes these events but it's hard to do for ethical reasons and researchers have to rely on post-mortem information. One theory is an un diagnosed heart condition (that could be asymptomatic) - think like a high school athlete who suddenly dies during physical activity. It's often due to an undiagnosed and a symptomatic heart condition. If a horse suffers from one of these conditions, it's only a matter of time before something happens - could be running freely in the field, could be racing on a track. I'll try and find some links/sources.

The stampede recently introduced new rules requiring rigorous vet examinations prior to racing which are supposed to try and identify any health conditions prior to racing - a number of horses were banned from racing last year because of it. It's not a perfect system but it's a step in the right direction.

[Dion]

Good!

[troutman]

Pylon had my interest until he proposed a
10 day long country music festival. That is cruelty to humans.

[pylon]

Originally Posted by troutman

Pylon had my interest until he proposed a
10 day long country music festival. That is cruelty to humans.

LOL, like I said, not my cup of tea.... but isn't Johnny Cash, widely regarded as primarily a country artist?

[djsFlames]

The activists' points are acknowledged, but it's time to move on. These events have been going on for 100+ years. This is the biggest tourism cash cow in the province all year. Nothing's gonna slow it down at this point.

I hate to see the odd fatalities on/off the track too, but I believe the racers love these animals and treat them with much care when they can. It's a dangerous sport, #### happens. It sucks. But the show is just gonna go on. At least until everyone ceases to buy the tickets and fill up the grandstands. Nothing we can really do. There's an ugly side to a lot of things, Stampede is just another one of those things that brings a lot of good, at the price of some bad. Just look at the FIFA WC... Large events typically are never "clean"..and never will be.

[troutman]

Originally Posted by pylon

LOL, like I said, not my cup of tea.... but isn't Johnny Cash, widely regarded as primarily a country artist?

There is real country music, and then there is the garbage that is "new country".

[Jacks]

Johnny Cash isn't Country Music, he is his own genre. I hate pretty much all Country Music but Johnny is the man. If you doubt what I say click below.

Spoiler!

[Jason14h]

Who would win a race. Johnny Cash vs a Chuckwagen? What if the Chuckwagen was name Chuckwagon Ditka?

[Jacks]

Originally Posted by Jason14h

Who would win a race. Johnny Cash vs a Chuckwagen? What if the Chuckwagen was name Chuckwagon Ditka?

Chuck Norris

[sun]

The Johnny Cash defence that country music fans constantly trot out is always good for a chuckle.

[flamefan74]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

I've abandoned everything to do with the stampede simply because of the rodeo. I don't invite guests to Calgary during the stampede after being emberassed over the dead horses announcement on the radio. Leave everything but the rodeo and i'm in. The rodeo is an emberassment to our world class city.

It revolves around the rodeo. Always has. Take that away and you have Klondike Days. We are better than Edmonton.

[driveway]

Based on the list of animal fatalities posted on the first page, it's clear that the chuckwagon races are far and away the most dangerous for the animal competitors. Even though I find them hugely entertaining to watch, I'd be perfectly fine with ending chuckwagon races for reasons of animal safety.

[Oling_Roachinen]

Originally Posted by driveway

Based on the list of animal fatalities posted on the first page, it's clear that the chuckwagon races are far and away the most dangerous for the animal competitors. Even though I find them hugely entertaining to watch, I'd be perfectly fine with ending chuckwagon races for reasons of animal safety.

And for the most part the horses that would otherwise being racing in the wagons would be going to slaughterhouses where they are often inhumanely killed. What's more unsafe than painful certain death?

From my understanding most of the horses are just former race-horses who's time was up. Thousands of former race horses are sent each year to the slaughterhouse, if you want your day ruined check out some of the leaked footage of the inhumane practices employed at slaughterhouses across Canada.

The root of the problem is thoroughbred horse-racing. If you're not stopping that there's no point at all going after the chuckwagons. The vast majority of the racing-horses will be raised and trained for two or so years, race for 3 and be dead before they are 6. The chuckwagons are just a second shot at life, again from my understanding, most of the horses you'll see there.

It's one of those things where it's because we see it it's so much worse. We see the fall, we find out the damage and we know that outcome. We don't care about the other 100,000 of horses (unwanted racing horses, neglected pets, injured farm horses etc.) destined for the slaughterhouse in Canada alone this year because out-of-sight-out-of-mind. So maybe in a bad year 5 horses will be injured and sent to the slaughterhouse thanks to a wagon accident at the Stampede. Well chances are they would been dead earlier if not for the chuckwagons so I don't see the evil.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10561757
An article and video on Wayne Knight, a chuckwagon racer, who says he's saved 500 horses alone.

As an animal lover, I completely understand the sentiment that a couple posters have expressed. I just believe it's ill-informed.

I do believe there's more room to talk about other animal cruelty related to the rest of the Stampede, like say the bucking horses who are bred by the Stampede for that purpose. But horses who would be dead if not for the chuckwagons? Not sure I understand that argument. "It's animal cruelty and dangerous to put them in a race where there's a possibility they may die...let's shoot them in the head instead and see how that goes."

[RedMileDJ]

I always get a real kick out of the people that protest and jump on the "down with the Stampede" band-wagon (pun intended) for 10 days of the year. Why aren't you protesting other Stampede and rodeos during the other 355 days of the year?

The animals at the Calgary Stampede are very well taken care of. Have accidents happened? Yes. It happens in any sport. Steps are taken to reduce and prevent injuries.

The Stampede rodeo is part of Calgary's identity. It has been for just over 100 years. To take that away would make the Stampede another mindless midway attraction. No thanks. I like living in a city that isn't like all the rest.

[cancer man]

Originally Posted by Red-Mile-DJ

I always get a real kick out of the people that protest and jump on the "down with the Stampede" band-wagon (pun intended) for 10 days of the year. Why aren't you protesting other Stampede and rodeos during the other 355 days of the year?

The animals at the Calgary Stampede are very well taken care of. Have accidents happened? Yes. It happens in any sport. Steps are taken to reduce and prevent injuries.

The Stampede rodeo is part of Calgary's identity. It has been for just over 100 years. To take that away would make the Stampede another mindless midway attraction. No thanks. I like living in a city that isn't like all the rest.

Exactly this.