Unsung Heroes: Women in the Bull Riding Industry

Being a stock contractor doesn't just mean being the one standing on the back of the chutes. There is more that goes into raising bulls, and a good share of that work is done by women. There are a whole lot of handy chicks out there that are married to stock contractors that feed, doctor, haul and care for bulls and cattle daily. They are really the unsung heroes of the bucking bull industry.LeAnn Hart and Sara Best-McCoy are two great examples of that. LeAnn is a woman who can balance being a mom, being a role model to kids everywhere, photography and a singing career and still can go out and feed cows or get a bull out of the pasture. If that's not a stock contractor, I don't know what is! And Sara is just a hand on a horse, with bulls and everything else she does

Last night, I received an email from a friend who was concerned I was promoting animal cruelty with this seed. Since this is on the minds of many because of the claims of animal rights activists, I thought I’d address it here.

I grew up around cowboys, including rodeo cowboys. Not far from us was Andy Juragi’s place. Andy was a leading rodeo stock producer at the time. He held rodeos at his place once a month. Since I was a regular there, I was allowed behind the chutes and in the arena.

Years later, when attending a rodeo, there were animal rights activists picketing out front. I stopped and talked to them. Not one had ever attended a rodeo or been behind the chutes, so none of them could have known how the bucking stock are handled. They’d been told by another animal rights activists what to say. They readily admitted that person had also never been behind the chutes. I realize their hearts are in the right place, but I do wish they’d get the facts before spouting falsehoods.

My friend, who cares deeply about all animals, obviously heard the propaganda put out by these groups that don’t have the facts. Here’s what she wrote:

These poor animals are tied up around the testicles so it causes excruciating pain, they are electrocuted just the second be f ore they leave the box sp\o they go crazy from pain............

Let’s take the concern about their testicles first. If what she describes was actually happening, I’d be outraged. But it isn’t true. Here’s a photo of a bull where you can see his testicles are not even close to the flank strap. You can also see the flank strap is not excessively tight. If it was, you would see it embedded deep in his flesh. It isn’t. It’s not even creating a slight depression in his flesh. My own waist bands have been tighter than this. This is a typical fit for flank straps. Anyone who wants to check it out further should search for “bucking bulls” and look at lots of photos.

http://www.bonsallbuckingbulls.com/bonsallbuckingbulls-cgi/gallery/showgallery.pl?20110620091927

The area just in front of a horse or bull’s hind legs is called the flank, thus the belts are called “flank straps.” The flank is naturally touchy. Some animals are extremely ticklish there. The sole reason they use flank straps is to encourage the horse or bull to kick high as they buck. That is the natural reaction when the flanks are touched. Horses have to be trained not to buck when their flanks are touched, as anyone who has ridden double can tell you. When you ride double on a horse, the second rider’s legs hang down over the flank. Horses that aren’t trained different will buck if the rider grips with their legs. I mention this to show it is not the underbelly that is important, but the flank itself.

No one wants to harm the testicles of a bull. Bulls are used for breeding, so healthy testicles are important. The flank straps do not touch the testicles. They are like a man's belt. The bulls could not buck if they were so tight as to cause pain. They would collapse instead. The bulls would buck without the flank strap. The strap simply encourages them to buck higher. If you still have doubts about their testicles being crushed, ask a man you know what he could do if his testicles were crushed. I’m willing to bet he’ll tell you he’d collapse.

Her second concern, about electrocution, refers to the use of hot shots, which have less power than a taser. When I was young, hot shots were commonly used around chutes, especially on the ranches. They are still available today but their usage is greatly lessened. Rodeo contractors don’t rely upon them anymore. Just like the training methods for horses have evolved, so have the training methods for bulls.

They train their bucking stock to move into and out of the chutes voluntarily. If you watch a bull after he’s rid of his rider, you’ll see he’s searching for the gate to leave the arena. This is because he knows there’s food waiting as a reward for a job well done. He’s also been trained to move easily into the chute by use of food as a reward.

The bulls want out of the chute, so they don't need any encouragement most of the time. Occasionally they hang back but not often. When they do, if the cowboy can't convince them to go out, he gets off and they let the bull go out alone because it is against the rules to help the cowboy once the gate is open. If they used hot shots in the chute, whether the gate was open or closed, that would endanger bull, the cowboy on his back and the people helping him. It would also teach the bull to hate the chute and undo all of the training they’ve done to get him used to and willing to enter the chute on his own.

These bulls are not wild. They are domesticated and used to working with people. Rodeo stock are taken care of very well. They are worth a fortune. Some of these bulls are worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. All of them are worth somewhere in the thousands. They are only bucked a few times a year. For instance, in the Milwaukee rodeo this month, one of the best bulls there hadn't been bucked since January. The rest of the time, they are in pastures at home.

As to bucking, if you watch, most of them continue to buck even after the ropes and the cowboy are gone. Bucking is as natural to horses and bulls as running. You can watch them in pastures doing the exact same moves you see in the arena. This is a form of play for them. It is also a crucial skill for animals in the wild in case a mountain lion lands on their back.

I hope this eases the concerns of people who’ve heard these false assertions about how the bulls are treated. The Professional Bull Riding Association has cameras right over the chutes and broadcasts what goes on in the chutes before every ride. You can watch everything that goes on in the chutes, so if you are still concerned, find a PBR rodeo that is being broadcast on one of the sports channels and watch. That way you’ll see for yourself and won’t have to rely upon others to tell you.