PETA Urges Royal Couple to Steer Clear of Calgary Stampede

Group Cites Cruelty to Animals, Deaths as Cause to Boycott Controversial Event

Calgary, Alberta. -- In advance of the upcoming visit by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to Calgary, PETA has sent an urgent letter to the Royal couple asking them to cancel their plans to attend the Calgary Stampede. In the letter, PETA points out that in the event, devices that are illegal in Britain—including electric shock prods—are used to cause great pain to the animals, who suffer broken bones, massive bruising, and internal bleeding, all for the sake of entertainment. In last year’s Stampede alone, six horses died.

“The Calgary Stampede has long been synonymous with animal abuse,” says PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk. “The eye of the world rests on the Duke and Duchess, and they are walking into a hotbed of controversy over cruelty if they visit this vile rodeo.”

For more information, please visit PETA.org.

PETA’s letter to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge follows.


Your Royal Highnesses:

Greetings from PETA U.S. I’m writing on behalf of our more than 2 million members and supporters worldwide regarding your proposed attendance at the notorious Calgary Stampede on July 8. You may be unaware of what befalls animals at this much-criticized throwback event or that six horses died during the Stampede last year. Devices that are illegal in Britain, including electric shock prods, certain types of spurs, and bucking straps that are cinched around the animals’ groins, are used to hurt animals in order to enhance the spectacle. Countless animals suffer broken ribs, backs, and legs; punctured lungs; deep internal organ bruising; hemorrhaging; ripped tendons; torn ligaments and muscles; snapped necks; and agonizing deaths in such rodeo events, and this rodeo is considered one of the most vile in the world. The whole world eagerly watches your public endeavors, and it will be extremely upsetting if you attend the Calgary Stampede because your presence will be taken as an endorsement of the egregious animal abuse that residents have long protested. Please do not attend this event. We look forward to your response. Thank you.

Kind regards,


Ingrid E. Newkirk
President
PETA