Rodeo events including calf roping, steer wrestling, and bull riding raise significant animal welfare concerns that are poorly regulated in most US states.
Rodeo events raise genuine welfare concerns for the animals involved. Calf roping involves chasing young calves and stopping them with a neck rope that causes abrupt jerking force. Steer wrestling involves grabbing and twisting the neck of a running steer. Flank straps in bucking events cause irritation that encourages the bucking behavior. These are not incidental to the event but integral to it. Injuries are documented and competition schedules keep animals in repeated stressful situations. Rodeo enjoys strong cultural support in some regions, making welfare reform challenging, but some improvements including mandatory veterinary presence, injury reporting, and limits on the most harmful practices have been implemented in some jurisdictions.