Spanish Horse Wrestling Festival

1. Jake D.
   July 29th, 2008 at 1:51 pm

   Don’t worry, guys, the horses love it!

2. BlessedBlogger
   July 29th, 2008 at 2:39 pm

   Barbaric. It looks really dangerous for not only the horses but the people as well. I can’t believe anyone would think this was a good idea.

3. Tedd
   July 29th, 2008 at 4:16 pm

   did the horses ask to be wrestled? they probably have no idea wtf is going on other than they are being manhandled and forced to the ground. wtf is with these people?

4. CMYK
   July 29th, 2008 at 5:42 pm

   Please, don’t be so stupid. From the linked site:

   “There’s no point of comparison.
   This is done once a year. All in all the horses are “fought” for brief minutes and it has a PRACTICAL use: they’re trimmed and marked, so it’s easier to identify them in the wild. This actually helps vets and forest rangers to keep track of them and avoid/deal with possible illnesses, etc.
   As a matter of fact, this becomes part of the life of these otherwise WILD FREE horses, which are not killed or mistreated at all. Vets and officials are present when all this happens.
   Comparing this traditional “marking” with bullfights is just lame and totally stupid.”

5. dj
   July 29th, 2008 at 6:17 pm

   What a bunch of nut jobs.

6. Lindsey
   July 29th, 2008 at 7:30 pm

   heh, “tales”

7. Kirkburn
   July 29th, 2008 at 7:50 pm

   CMYK,

   Somehow “fighting” them has some bearing on whether they can be trimmed and marked? /How/ exactly would that be related?

   Having someone official present or saying “it’s a part of life” means very little. Look at the damn photos - I don’t think you have to experience it to tell that it does not look enjoyable for the horses.

8. elfi21
   July 29th, 2008 at 8:09 pm

   It would be much safer (for both horse and handlers) and less traumatic to the animals to handle them in chutes for the trimming and branding. It is how the American wild horses are handled… for the most part.

   Additionally, there is no reason that the hair should need to be cut from the horses. All the removal of the hair does is remove the horses’ natural defenses from flying insects. You need only to look at the photos on the site to see how horrific the process is.

   Spain seems to love their festivals of animals in “uncomfortable” situations.

9. Louisa
   July 29th, 2008 at 8:37 pm

   Well, that was disturbing. Something is very wrong with Spanish society. Their celebrations always include cruelty to animals. Barbaric.

10. Ali S.
    July 29th, 2008 at 8:48 pm

    I bet you those horses said something or another about those guys mothers. Tsk tsk.

11. Nonefdgdf
    July 30th, 2008 at 12:57 am

    Spain surely loves torturing animals.

    Fuck Spain

12. BBQchicken
    July 30th, 2008 at 5:26 am

    What a bunch of retards.

    I would like to put two horses on one person and see them get a kick out of the wrestling then.

    Pointless, ridiculous and morronic.

    Who cares if its tradition. Its pathetic.

    I would personally like to punch each man and woman who takes part in the face.

13. Larfin Jackarse
    July 30th, 2008 at 5:35 am

    Yeah, Spain, animals and showing off in public.

    They need to talk privately about it with someone.

    At least we here in Oz keep our abattoirs, chicken gitmo’s, pig pen’s, roo cull’s etc out of the public eye.

14. Spanish
    July 30th, 2008 at 6:03 am

    WTF????

    I’m a spanish guy.
    I don’t like these kinds of festivals either. But some people like it, and it’s a very old tradition. That’s not justifying the action, I’m just saying that a long time ago all the civilizations did these kinds of things or even worse ones. Some people are fighting to eliminate these things in our country.

    But at least I don’t have the hypocrisy to judge a whole country for just a few topics about animals, when your country is killing human beings for everywhere in the planet.

    Who is the one that have a cruelty problem? the one that is killing his own specie or the one that is mistreating animals?
    And don’t make me talk about the violence in your streets, schools, movies and society in general…

    Please stop seeing problems or criticizing other countries, and look at your own country before do it.

    There’s nothing wrong in the Spanish society if we compare it with your society Louisa, and Spanish people (most of them) don’t love torturing animals Nonefdgdf. Stop stupid topics about this, and look the real problems!

    Hypocrisy makes me feel sick…

15. Charlie
    July 30th, 2008 at 6:20 am

    why don’t they leave the horses alone and wrestle each other?

16. tamat
    July 30th, 2008 at 7:55 am

    Just another point from a spaniard.

    If you go to one of those hated traditional animal spectacles (like bullfighting, sanfermines, etc) you would get surprised the incredible amount of tourist you find there, most of them americans.

    Bullfighting is an issue in our country and there are lot of people fighting to ban it, probably more people than people who enjoy watching it.

    Don’t judge a country from what the small country areas do as traditions.

17. JamesT
    July 31st, 2008 at 4:47 am

    That’s plain stupid and barbaric indeed.

18. fearu
    July 31st, 2008 at 11:17 am

    I’m from Spain and never heard of that traditions. Please, don’t judge Spanish people by what you see on the internet, rare traditions look like more extended than they’re.

    The pictures are really funny although.

19. RM
    August 3rd, 2008 at 9:04 pm

    I can´t call them “barbaric”. I would be a hypocrite if I say that I don´t like seeing a bull hitting those bastards.

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