F E AT U R E
• They are deprived of exercise so that all their
bodies’ energy goes towards producing flesh, eggs
or milk for human consumption.
• They are fed drugs to fatten them faster and keep
them alive in conditions that could
otherwise kill them.
• They are genetically altered to grow faster or to
produce much more milk or eggs than they naturally
would. Many animals become crippled under their
own weight and die just out of reach of water and
food.
When they have finally grown large enough, animals
raised for food are crowded onto trucks and
transported over many kilometres through all
weather extremes, typically without food or water, to
the slaughterhouse. Those who survive this
nightmarish journey will have their throats slit, often
while they are still conscious. Many remain conscious
when they are plunged into the scalding-hot water
of the de-feathering or hair-removal tanks or while
their bodies are being skinned or hacked apart.
Bullfighting: A Tradition of Tragedy
Each year, approximately 10,000 bulls die in
bullfights, an inaccurate term for events in which
there is very little competition between a nimble,
sword-wielding matador (Spanish for “killer”) and
a confused, maimed, psychologically tormented
and physically debilitated animal. According to
one matador, some of the top performers may “ask
breeders to deliberately select placid bulls. It’s the
only way to sustain your energy for the duration of
the season”.
Most bullfights are divided into three parts. First, a
bull is forced into the arena and taunted by a
matador with a cape. The bull is then approached
by picadors, men on horses, who drive lances into
the bull’s back and neck muscles, impairing the
bull’s ability to lift his head. They twist and gouge the
lances to ensure a significant amount of blood loss.
Then come the banderilleros on foot, who proceed
to distract and dart around the bull while stabbing
him with brightly coloured darts called banderillas.
After blood loss has weakened the bull, the
banderilleros run him in more circles until he
becomes dizzy and stops chasing. In the final act,
the matador appears again. After using his cape
and sword (the faena) to provoke a few exhausted
charges from the dying animal, the matador tries to
deliver the deathblow, or estocada, with his sword.
If he misses, succeeding only in further mutilation, an
executioner is called in to stab the exhausted animal
to death. If the crowd is happy with the matador,
the bull’s ears and tail or a hoof may be cut off and
presented as a gift. A few minutes later, another bull
enters the arena and the sadistic cycle starts again.
bullfighting, although the final bullfight occurred
there in September 2011 when the “season” ended.
According to a survey, 72 per cent of Spaniards
show no interest in bullfights. Interest in bullfighting
has also declined in Mexico and Portugal, and
according to one report, officials in Beijing decided
not to build a bullring at a popular tourist
destination for “fears of the country’s image.”
Unfortunately, there are still more than 1,200
government-funded bull ranches and dozens of
state-sponsored bullfighting schools in Spain. In
France, bullfights are held in the cities of Nîmes,
Arles, Dax, Toulouse and Bayonne.
If you are planning to visit a country that permits
bullfighting, please tell your travel agent that you
are opposed to cruelty to animals in any form and
that you do not want tickets to bullfights included
in any tour packages. Before vacationing abroad,
you can write to the country’s ambassador and ask
whether rituals involving animal slaughter are among
the country’s tourist attractions. Make it clear that
you want no part in such activities, and never be
afraid to talk about the cruelty of
bullfighting.
Barcelona has declared itself “an anti-bullfighting
city,” the last bullring there closed in 2006 because
of poor attendance. Thirty-eight Catalan
municipalities have followed Barcelona’s
lead, and in January 2012, Catalonia became the
first Spanish mainland region to ban
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