Staff Editorial
Professional Bull Riders (PBR), sponsored by the U.S. Border Patrol, is coming to PPG Paints Arena on Friday, the first time a bull riding event will be held in Pittsburgh in more than 30 years.
In 1992, Pittsburgh City Council banned devices commonly used for rodeos and bull riding, including electric prods, bucking straps and spurs, effectively banning bull riding and rodeos.
But a provision was inserted into this year’s state budget that overturned Pittsburgh’s de facto ban. Now, municipalities are required to allow rodeo or rodeo-related organizations to hold ticketed events for up to 12 days per year in their limits, despite any ordinances they have.
Not only does this violate residents’ ability to govern themselves, it also provides more opportunity for a sport that is notorious for abusing animals.
This is a gross misstep for Harrisburg.
The tools that Pittsburgh City Council banned are specifically designed to hurt and stress the animals they’re used on. All the tools City Council banned are designed in one way or another to stress the bull out to get it to buck harder — so hard in fact that the cattle injure themselves. The act of bucking is a defensive behavior on the part of the bull, who probably doesn’t appreciate a strange animal holding onto its back.
Not only does bull riding hurt and stress out the bull, events like PBR expose young children to officially sanctioned animal abuse, no doubt poor for their development.
Finally, of course, there’s a toll on the rider. A 2007 article from the International SportMed Journal comparing injuries in various sports found that bull riding had an injury rate 10 times higher than American Football. But PBR seems to glorify their injuries with their “top wrecks” highlight reels online.
Young boys and men are drawn into the sport through its machismo coding, high pay and adrenaline, only to end up with serious long term injury and potential brain damage.
What the state has done, then, is force the City of Pittsburgh, which decided it didn’t want to host such a cruel and violent sport, host said sport anyway. Why? To give PBR the opportunity to make more money in an urban market? One can only imagine that most people interested in seeing a bull riding event will be coming in from out of town anyway.
The event happening at PPG Paints this weekend is a cruel and violent one that has been forced on the people of Pittsburgh by a few unnamed politicians in Harrisburg. It is for this reason that the Duke is calling for a boycott of all PBR events and any future rodeo-style event
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This editorial is riddled with misinformation about professional bull riding, a sport enjoyed by tens of millions of Americans, which will bring millions of dollars of positive economic impact to Pittsburgh this weekend.
PBR bulls are extraordinary animal athletes. They get very good care, and live a long, satisfying life. There is no negative stimulation that causes a bull to compete. It’s in their DNA. The bulls in PBR are not in pain, fear, or distress. They are not agitated or harmed. These prized animal athletes are born to buck, cared for as true stars of the sport, and live a long great life. (PBR bulls are the ONLY bulls in this country who die of natural causes).
It is instructive to address the allegations and disinformation about the equipment:
FLANK STRAP:
The flank strap is a soft cotton rope used to encourage a genetically pre-disposed bucking bull to kick. In training a bull, it is tied relatively loosely around the haunches of the bull to stimulate bucking behavior. The bull tries to kick his way through the rope in training. Later in his career, it’s used to signal “go time.”
Contrary to misinformation commonly spread, the flank strap never touches the bulls’ genitals. (Said another way, the flank strap harms the bull as much as the belt you might be wearing right now harms you.)
SPURS:
A bull rider’s spurs are dull and never cut or hurt the bull, whose skin is seven times thicker than human skin. The spurs are inspected before every event. Should a rider have sharp spurs, he’d be disqualified.
ELECTRIC PRODS:
Electric prods are not used to encourage a bull to buck. This is strictly against PBR’s rules.
I’m posting this as an animal lover (I live in NYC – so for us, it’s been pugs, chihuahuas, Pomeranians, and now the world’s smartest poodle), the father of an animal lover (a yorkie and chihuahua, snakes and snake tattoos), and an employee of PBR. I would not work in bull riding for one second if the animals were abused. To the contrary, PBR spared bulls a death sentence – the bulls competing in Pittsburgh would all have already been sent to the hamburger factory. For them, being in PBR is like winning the animal lottery, now part of a sport that celebrates them, and treats them like Kings.
Anyone who appreciates and loves animals should be a PBR fan. And those fans will be filling the seats to the rafters of PPG Paints Arena this weekend for two sold-out shows, for they have taken the time to do the research and will be in cheering on the remarkable animal athletes as much as the ridiculously overmatched cowboys.
Thank you for taking the time to listen and have an open mind to the facts.
Andrew Giangola
This editorial is so far off with its claims that it would be laughable if it wasn’t taken seriously by people who might not know the actual facts and statistics of PBR.
As Mr. Giangola so eloquently stated, this editorial is full of misinformation, if not outright lies.
Interestingly enough, this editorial is written in the vein of, “When did you quit beating your dog?” It is written to make you defend being a fan of bull riding or simply not having the same opinion as the staff editorial. And make no mistake, the editorial is filled with opinion.
From the implications of this staff editorial, you must be a serial animal abuser and suffer from toxic masculinity to agree with the PBR coming to Pittsburgh. It is interesting that the only cited article to back up any kind of injury claim is an 18-year-ol article that cites injuries to humans not animals.
Furthermore, no one is “forcing” anyone to do anything. In fact, it is quite the opposite. The PBR is finally able to produce an event in Pittsburgh which had previously been “forced” out of town. With the number of tickets sold (trending towards a sell-out), it seems as if the citizens of Pittsburgh and the surrounding area are speaking with their dollars in reminding the staff that wrote this article that they do not speak for everyone.
This editorial is wrapped up in a big, pretty, red bow by not showing any facts to support the apparent staff position that PBR is animal abuse, but by trying to guilt you for having an opinion contrary to them. As stated in the staff editorial, they cannot imagine that someone from Pittsburgh might not agree with them. It would seem that at least PPG Paints Arena and the current trend of ticket sales speaks to something completely different. I would suggest that the staff that wrote this article may need to expand the group of people that they interact with.
Scott Dorenkamp
This editorial is riddled with inaccuracies and blatant misinformation.
To set the record straight, there is absolutely no abuse of animals involved. The stock contractors who raise and supply bulls for PBR events treat these animals as family, prioritizing their care and well-being above all else. Furthermore, the PBR prohibits using cattle prods or electric shocks during their events. The health and safety of the bulls are non-negotiable priorities.
I challenge the editorial staff to visit a stock contractor’s ranch or attend one of the events they are so misinformed about. Gaining firsthand experience from those who work with the bulls daily would provide invaluable insight.
Is that really too much to ask? I’m confident that arrangements could be made.
I also like how they did not include the name of the editor. As someone who is involved in the field of veterinary medicine and raises bulls for a hobby, I clearly fully support bull riding. As everyone has mentioned above this is not abuse. The bulls love going to work and they are they are some of the best taken care of animals in the world with special diets and care. I could go on, but next time city slicker, do some research before slamming an industry that help to found the USA.
I became a big fan of PBR a couple of years ago while attending my first event in MSG (NYC) and have gone to several more events since including the last event at MSG. I read a ton about the treatment of the bulls and life stories of the riders prior to my first event. What I learned and witnessed is so far removed from the blatant inaccuracies spewed in the anonymous “staff editorial”. I believe the State of Pennsylvania did its homework before making the correct call to bring a PBR event to the city of Pittsburgh. Maybe the editorial staff should do some research before handing in their assignments. God Bless our Border Patrol and the fine people (and animals) of the PBR family!!! Keep up the great work.
Your, “Staff” editorial is pure idiocy and just like what will be all over the ground at the colosseum, BULLSHIT.
This article made me want to buy 5 tickets
What a complete lack of research and knowledge in the editorial “Boycott PBR! Bull riding has no place in Pittsburgh”. What a trash piece of supposed journalism. Full of blatant lies and misinformation. Try harder guys, this sucked.