'Horse tripping' video fuels debate over Oregon rodeo event
Published: Sunday, July 01, 2012
By Richard Cockle, The Oregonian
Showing Animals Respect and Kindness video A horse goes end-over-end in May at the Jordan Valley Big Loop Rodeo after thrown lariats catch it by the neck and forelegs.
JORDAN VALLEY -- A bill to ban "horse tripping" in Oregon went nowhere last year after rodeo advocates convinced lawmakers that the practice doesn't happen at the state's big competitions.
Critics also worried that the prohibition might lead people to go after calf and steer roping next -- both crowd-pleasing rodeo staples.
But a new YouTube video getting thousands of hits is renewing the call to make it a crime for cowboys to lasso horses around their necks and forelegs. The clip -- made by animal rights activists at the Jordan Valley Big Loop Rodeo in May in southeastern Oregon -- shows horses crashing into the dirt, sometimes on their snouts and heads after the rope circles their legs.
