Boycott Coke! Sponsor of Cruel Rodeos

The following is a press release I received today from SHARK – Showing Animals Respect and Kindness.

Horse Killed, Other Animal Casualties at 2009 Cheyenne Rodeo

Dear Friends,

The animal hell that is the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo is ongoing and is taking its usual heavy toll on animals. Numerous calves and steers have been injured, but it took a horse named Strawberry Fudge taking a violent and fatal fall to finally get the Cheyenne area media to report an animal casualty. In fact, each of the first six performances of the Cheyenne Rodeo saw one or more dead or injured calves, steers or Strawberry Fudge carried out.

Strawberry Fudge about to drop to her doom.

Strawberry Fudge – another victim of the cruel and deadly CFD Rodeo.

Just minutes after the doomed Strawberry Fields was removed from the arena, another horse crashed over a barrier, leaving her to run in a panic down the outfield of the arena until she crashed into another barrier where she was down for an extended period of time before finally leaving on her own. Any possible injuries to that horse are unknown at this time.

As has been the case for at least the past few years, Coca-Cola, which claims it does not sponsor rodeos, is a Gold Sponsor, and its banner proudly proclaim Coke to be the “Official Soft Drink of the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo.”

SHARK investigators are filming the brutality of the Cheyenne Rodeo after the Cheyenne Frontier Days Committee retracted their initial camera ban. Although Cheyenne’s new camera policy claims it won’t allow “systematic retrieval of images from the rodeo.” Cheyenne’s policy also states it will not allow pictures or video to be used for “issue advocacy.”

Above, calf being impossibly contorted in a dangerous jerked down. Below, injured calf is driven off field.

We’ve included links to several articles, about the death of Strawberry Fudge, as well as articles about Cheyenne’s changes in its camera policy. To its credit, the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle newspaper wrote a great editorial criticizing the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo for its attempts to keep SHARK’s cameras from exposing the truth about rodeo animal abuse.

Comments to any/all of the news articles are allowed without sign-up. Please let the people of Cheyenne and all of Wyoming know your thoughts. Wyoming Tribune Eagle Online Letter to the Editor Form

Here is an excerpt from the Wyoming Tribune Eagle about the Strawberry Fudge’s fatal performance:

Strawberry Fudge, a 4-year-old mare owned by the Vold Rodeo Company, fell to the arena floor on its right side shortly after leaving the chute. It is suspected Strawberry Fudge suffered head and neck injuries… To read the entire article, click here.
http://wyomingnews.com/articles/2009/07/20/sports/19sports_07-20-09.txt

VERY IMPORTANT — Please contact Coca-Cola representatives and tell them to stop sponsoring animal cruelty and deaths, and to stop lying about it.

Coke’s toll-free number is 800-438-2653. Please call them now!

Or e-mail Coke here (Coke has shut down their general consumer email as I did try to email them through this link provided in the original article. I did however, manage to send them an email through their press link which they had not shut down.) pressinquiries@na.ko.com

Click here to read my email correspondence with Coke

Related posts:

1. Rodeo Claims More Animals
2. Rodeo Rednecks: Coke Responds, Kind of
3. UPDATE: NM board to probe alleged animal cruelty