SURREY (NEWS 1130) – While animal rights activists have their concerns about the Cloverdale Rodeo, there are not expected to be any big protests this year.
Shannon Claypool, who speaks for the rodeo, says protests have eased in recent years after certain events were discontinued.
“Since we did away with the calf roping and the steer wrestling, we’ve seen a significant drop,” he says. “The Vancouver Humane Society calls us the most humane rodeo in North America.”
Those events were discontinued in 2006, and Peter Fricker with the Vancouver Humane Society agrees the rodeo has improved.
“That was certainly a big step forward and as a consequence of that, we hadn’t been actively campaigning against the Cloverdale Rodeo.”
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Meantime, Fricker notes there are concerns about the bucking events, like bull riding, and says the animals are put in stressful situations just so attendees can be entertained.
“We do still oppose those bucking events because they do cause animals stress and we believe it’s inhumane,” he says.
The Vancouver Humane Society is also refuting claims that it has called the Cloverdale Rodeo the “most humane rodeo in North America.”
“We certainly wouldn’t want people to go away with the impression that we approve of the Cloverdale Rodeo,” Fricker told NEWS 1130.
“It’s not correct. It’s certainly fair to say that because they don’t have some of those events that it’s better than other rodeos, but the remaining events, we still think, are inhumane,” Fricker said.
The four-day rodeo wrapped up on Victoria Day.
Editor’s Note: This article has been edited to add in comments by the Vancouver Humane Society refuting the Cloverdale Rodeo’s claim that the VHS calls it the “most humane rodeo in North America.” The VHS tells NEWS 1130 that while it’s “fair to say that because they don’t have some… events that it’s better than other rodeos,” the VHS did not explicitly say the Cloverdale Rodeo is the most humane one in North America.