A couple questions

I have been getting lots of email about the donkey roping situation.  I really think we are making progress.  The feedback I have been getting definitely indicates that they are on the defensive.  I have gotten a couple of questions that I don't have good answers for so I thought I would post them here and see what we get:

Q: I saw a poster for the event that listed sponsors whose names I copied down. But now I am unable to find the poster again! Any chance you have seen it and have a link to it? I've written to quite a few.

My answer:  I think I saw this poster in a group of donkey roping photos that were circulating.  I tried to go back and check this and copy the link to post and guess what....they are now password protected and unavailable (that seems like a sign of progress to me).  Does anybody have this information?

Q: I am trying to find out what happened to the beautiful little sweetheart in the photo that was with the story about this gruesome and cruel “sport” in Texas called “donkey roping.”  Do you happen to know?

This photo has been circulating all over the web.

My answer: I think that the first time I saw this photo, the caption said this donkey was in the custody of a rescue group.  I am really not sure though and I too would like to know what happened to this donkey. 

 If anybody has any answers, please let me know.  Thanks!

Stirring Things Up

I seem to have stirred up quite a bit of dust here about this donkey roping thing, which is OK by me:)  The response has been amazing and has spread farther and faster then I could have imagined.  I am trying to compile a list of contacts for people to get in touch with...politely please.   If you haven't seen it yet, here is a letter posted by Justina at Morning Bray Farm:

I just got off the phone with Patricia Golden at the Van Horn, Texas Chamber of Commerce. She's a very nice lady and we had a civilized conversation.
I suppose I was fortunate to get through. I've seen some comments online where folks are saying that their calls aren't being answered by the Van Horn Chamber of Commerce. When I asked Ms. Golden about this, she said that she's had to stop answering the phone because people are calling and screaming and cursing at her. If you called me and dropped the F-bomb on me, you'd better believe I wouldn't want to talk with you either.  :-)
It's possible to be angry and civil at the same time, folks. We're not going to get anywhere with this if we're screaming at the people with whom we're trying to communicate.  :-)
She's received about 550 emails so far and wishes that she could answer them all. She's quite grateful for the education she's receiving about donkey roping... like many people, she didn't realize that there are valid and explainable reasons for why donkeys shouldn't be roped. She reminded me that this (rodeo) is very culturally ingrained there - it's up to us to educate and to rationally show these folks why this is no longer (okay, it never should have been) culturally acceptable.
Ms. Golden wrote a letter to the Van Horn city administrator this morning warning him that the "donkey community" out there is gaining momentum and that this is not going away.  When she Googled "donkey roping Van Horn Rodeo" this morning, she saw first hand how much is going on out here on the Web... she's very aware!
She's not the decision maker here, but she is a key influencer. She requested that all phone calls go to Jason Owens; the promoter of the event. His phone number is 432-940-9051. Ms. Golden said that she spoke with Jason this morning and told him that she would be directing folks to him. Jason said that he would take all calls. Please call Jason Owens and tell him (civilly) why he needs to cancel the donkey roping competition in next Saturday's (June 23) Van Horn Rodeo. Ms. Golden pointed out that if Jason receives enough phone calls educating him about why this should not happen - he very well may decide to bow under pressure. But again, please be civil. Believe me, I'm angry too!
One additional request from Ms. Golden - she needs to show the city administrator public pressure from the media. When she checked the local papers yesterday evening, there were no letters to the editor about this subject. She said if she could show the city administrator letters to the editor, it would go a long way.
Please start by writing to Larry Simpson, editor at The Van Horn Advocate: lsimpson@vanhornadvocate.com


I see this donkey roping issue as a symptom of a larger problem. That being: too many unwanted donkeys and not enough public awareness regarding donkeys in general along with their lack of monetary value.  This last, combined with their numbers makes them easy targets for abuse and neglect.  I haven't figured out how to address this larger problem beyond what I am already doing.  For now, I would be happy with ending the roping.  If anyone has any suggestions, I would be glad to hear them.

At the moment,  I think that targeting media sources and promoters like Jason Owens (politely) will be the most effective.  The link to the local paper is in the above letter.

Here is a link to one of the Van Horn radio stations:
http://www.afa.net/Radio/

There is also an online petition which you can sign here:
http://www.change.org/petitions/van-horn-texas-chamber-of-commerce-donkey-roping-must-be-stopped

Since the response to this has been so overwhelming (in a good way) I will try to post updates as I can.  Don't worry though, if a baby donkey happens to show up here, everything else in the universe will come to a screeching halt and you will definitely hear about it:)

Up on my soapbox

I have seen some blog posts, notably this one from the Mugwump chronicles (click here) that describe humane methods of using donkeys for roping practice.  I acknowledge that there may be ways of using donkeys as an aid in training roping horses that do not harm the donkeys.  I have seen videos of this and I agree it can be done and done well.  I also see that there is value in training these donkeys this way.  If the majority of roping donkeys were treated like this, I would support it whole-heartedly.  Anything that makes a donkey more economically valuable is a good thing.  It's the best insurance of good treatment an animal can have. 

However, this kind of training really has nothing to do with donkey roping competitions.  Once these donkeys are forced to run into an arena using a cattle prod, chased down by a team of ropers in a timed event and thrown to the ground as fast and as hard as possible so that they go down and stay down...well, there just isn't any way to do that in a humane way. 

These competitions are not training sessions.  The roping horses are not there to learn new skills.  These donkeys are not being taught anything useful.  This is not helping to promote donkeys or increase their monetary value, far from it in fact.

The reason you won't see many posts of this nature on this blog is that it is too easy to point fingers and cry foul.  There is far too much of that floating around the web already.  I believe that if you really want to help an animal (or person), then just go out and do it.  Lord knows, you won't have to look far.

However, some things need exposing, they need public awareness and outcry.  We need for our community as a whole to simply say "this is not acceptable".  Look to the gaited horse industry and the horrors of soreing that have been going on for decades if you need an example.  Donkey roping is a fairly new "sport".  Lets try to put a stop to it before it becomes an entrenched tradition and way of life. 

If you have made it this far and are still with me up here on my soap-box, here is another name for your mailing list.  This guy is a donkey roping promoter: 

Jason Owens
Dos Gringos Productions
432-940-9051
thedollarj@hotmail.com

If you sent a message to the Van Horn Chamber of Commerce, please pass it on to this guy as well.  He is not just the local Chamber of Commerce, but one of the guys actually promoting these events across the Southwest.

Thank you to all of you who have taken the time to read this and thank you again to those who have  taken action.  
 

The Best Weed-Eater

Did you know that donkeys make excellent weed-eaters and gardeners?  Just make sure that the plants you want to keep are of a not-so-tasty-variety and let your donkey do the rest.  Might I suggest Periwinkle and Iris to start with.  We have had good luck with them so far. 

All you need is one of these lovely appendages.  It has proven quite adept at selective weeding... 

My weed-eater never needs any pulling, yanking, coaxing or swearing to get started...

There is no need to stress over whether you have gotten the fuel mixed at the proper ratio...

This weed-eater is quiet, cuddly and never runs out of gas.  

Always ready, willing and eager to get to work, this is the very best weed-eater an overworked gardener could ask for:)

Donkey Roping

I was sent an email asking me to help get the word out about trying to stop this shameful "sport" that is becoming quite popular in Texas.  I don't normally post this kind of thing, but the growing popularity of donkey roping is frightening to me.  All I have to do is picture what this would do to my little Emma to know that this is a horrible thing to do to any donkey.  Emma would be absolutely devastated by this kind of treatment and she is exactly the kind of donkey these people are using.

Donkeys do not handle this kind of abuse well at all, especially when it is repeated over and over and over again.  Unlike calves, who are never roped more than a few times because they are too valuable to damage, donkeys in Texas have no monetary value.  Because of this, these donkeys are roped over and over again until they either shut down completely from terror and trauma or are too maimed to continue.

Please take a moment to contact the Van Horn Chamber of Commerce (one of the supporters) and ask them to put a stop to this.   Their contact info is:

P.O. Box 762

Van Horn, Texas 79855

(432) 283-2043, Monday - Friday
9:00 am to 3:00 pm

patriciagolden@vanhorntexas.org

Please pass the word about this.  Most of the population has never heard of donkey roping, I know I hadn't until I bought Emma and started researching donkeys.  This is the kind of thing that won't last if enough light is shed on it so please spread the word.  Emma and I thank you for it.

June Skies

The weather has been a bit volatile lately.  Seems like it always is in June anymore, it's the new normal.  Terrible hay-making weather, but interesting to watch.  I took all of these over a single afternoon (Try to ignore the black specks.  They aren't UFO's, just junk in my camera.  The price of having the camera on hand when it's needed:)... 

 

The Weekly Belly 6/8/12

I wish I knew what was going on in there...