Protesters chant ‘Stampede OK, rodeo no’ following chuckwagon horse deaths

CALGARY – Activists set up cardboard tomb stones and held up placards across the road from the Calgary Stampede grounds to protest the treatment of animals at the event.

The demonstration comes two days after three horses died at the chuckwagon races.

A few dozen protesters chanted slogans like “Stampede OK, rodeo no!” and “tradition is no excuse for abuse” at the side of a busy thoroughfare.

One of the event’s organizers, Jeremy Thomas, says he has no problem with people taking in a country music concert or going on rides during Stampede week.

He says Calgarians can celebrate their western heritage without being cruel to animals.

Eleven-year-old Adriana Shaw-Norbash says she’d like to see the calf-roping event at the rodeo stopped because she can see the pain in the animals’ eyes.