A cowboy rides a bull as another is ready to help with the dismount.
History
Rodeo arose out of the competitive nature of the cowboys of the Old West. According to the Professional Rodeo Cowboy website, legend has it that the first rodeo took place in 1869 in Colorado. Regardless of the actual place or time of the first rodeo, the original competitions would pit wranglers, ranch hands and cowboys against each other in tasks that were based on the chores they saw in their daily work, like roping calves and riding horses. Over time rodeos also grew to include purely competitive tasks such as riding a bull for eight seconds.
Why Eight Seconds?
The eight-second ride helps to prevent the bull from being injured or overly exhausted. The time limit also helps to keep the animal's spirit high and healthy, which prevents the bull from breaking and ensures it has a long competitive life. The time is set purely to help the animals stay healthy and competing in top form.
Animal Welfare
The Professional Bull Riders, Inc. website reports that, "The bulls are treated with as much respect as the human athletes who ride them." The PBR restricts the number of times that a single bull may participate in an event. According to the site, a bull may not be used more than once a day. In addition to limiting the number of times a bull can compete, the PBR regulates the type of food the bulls eat, the method and accommodation for transporting the animals, and the veterinary guidelines for the bulls. The PBR site outlines very specific rules for rest, diet and safety restrictions.
Related posts
Make sure your pit bull has proper nutrition when she is nursing her puppies.Taking care of eight puppies can be very stressful and difficult for a pit bull mother. When a pit bull, or a dog belon...
The red coloring is a typical trait for a pit bull with Corvino heritage.The Corvino bloodline for pit bulls goes back nearly 100 years and is more than a little instrumental in determining the br...
Pit bull puppies are easy to house train.The pit bull breed is intelligent and easy to house train when a reward system is a part of the plan. Although positive reinforcement in training any puppy...
If you take the time to train your pit bull properly, it may turn out to be one of the liveliest and most affectionate canine companions you've ever had.It's no secret that pit bulls have a bad re...
Canine registries accept pit bulls of almost any color or pattern.Few breeds of dog invoke the same level or range of passionate emotions like the pit bull. This powerful breed first appeared in E...
