Uruguay | Lascano | Rodeo | Horsemeat import
[Translate to English:] Den Pferden werden vor dem Rodeo die Augen verbunden.
[Translate to English:] Ein Pferd geht mit dem Reiter zu Boden.
[Translate to English:] Ein Schimmel trägt von den Sporen eine tiefe Wunde davon.
[Translate to English:] Ein Pferd blutet aus dem Maul.
[Translate to English:] Ein verängstigtes Pferd wird am Schweif gezerrt.
[Translate to English:] Ein Pferd springt in Panik gegen einen Zaun.
[Translate to English:] Ein sich aufbäumendes Pferd fällt mit voller Wucht auf den Rücken.
The “jineteada” is a traditional type of rodeo that is practised in Uruguay and some other South American countries. The rider has to stay for 6 to 15 seconds on the back of a bucking horse that is feral or untrained. First, the horse is tied to a wooden post and the eyes are blindfolded. When the rider is ready, the cover is taken off and the horse is loosened. The rider uses big spurs to make the horses start bucking. We observe a horse that refuses to “play the game” and goes down with the rider on its back. Another horse rears up and rolls down over its back, likely in an attempt to get the rider off.
Several horses go down while being tied to the post. They are so frightened that their legs give in. We observe a horse that is “sitting” by the post as his hind legs have given in. Gauchos try to make the animal stand up by pulling its tail and kicking it. They finally succeed and the rider gets into the saddle. During the rodeo, the panicked horse jumps into a fence while bucking and falls on his back with the rider still in the saddle.
A white horse has been kicked very hard with spurs, so badly that we can see a deep bleeding cut on its flanks. We notice another horse that is bleeding at the eye and from its mouth. It has a deep cut in the lower lip. In panic, the horse has crashed into a fence during the rodeo. From the organisers of the festival we learn that this rodeo has no veterinarian in charge. They tell us that there is no need for a veterinarian and start threatening us when they realize that we are filming.
About 25 % of the horses abused at rodeos are sold to EU approved slaughterhouses when they are injured, old or do not perform well enough.
