For Immediate Release:
November 10, 2008

Contact:
Lindsay Rajt 757-622-7382

Canyon, Texas -- This morning, PETA dispatched a letter to Danny Byrd, owner of the 47-foot-tall, 8,000-plus-pound Tex Randall statue in Canyon, Texas, offering to lease the imposing piece of Americana in order to save it from being torn down by the property owners or moved out of Canyon. Although Byrd owns the statue--as well as the nearby Wrong Way Diner--he doesn't own the land that the statue sits on and isn't eager to part with the reported $50,000 needed to move it to his diner. PETA's plans? To hang a sign on Tex reading, "For Cows' Sake, Give Leather the Boot!"--making him the world's most recognizable cow-friendly cowboy.

"It's a lofty goal, but we hope that by saving Tex Randall we can help save cows' hides," says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. "This old icon could have a new purpose--as the world's tallest cow-defending cowboy--and PETA hopes Byrd will take us up on our offer."

For more information, please visit blog.PETA.org or click here.

PETA's letter to Danny Byrd follows.

November 10, 2008

Danny Byrd, Owner
Feldman's Wrong Way Diner

Dear Mr. Byrd:

On behalf of PETA and our thousands of members and supporters in Texas, I'm writing with a win-win proposition regarding Tex Randall. As an animal protection charity, we don't have the funds to purchase him or pay for his moving costs, but we would like to lease Tex while you look for a permanent home for him. We would like to turn Tex into a cow-friendly cowboy holding a sign that reads, "For Cows' Sake: Give Leather the Boot!" (see attached image).

Most people already understand the needless cruelty behind fur, and with Tex Randall, we aim to draw attention to the suffering inherent in leather production. Cattle are castrated, and their horns are ripped out of their skulls. They get painful burns when branded--all without any painkillers. Ranchers cram thousands onto barren feedlots and force these natural herbivores to eat ground-up animals and other unnatural feed. They're dosed with hormones and antibiotics that are illegal in many countries so that they'll grow more quickly. Cattle frequently collapse during their hellish ride to the slaughterhouse. Many are improperly stunned, which means that they are skinned and dismembered while still conscious.

Turning an iconic cowboy like Tex Randall into a cow defender would be a unique way to boost PETA's efforts to expose the horrors of the leather industry. And by renting Tex for awhile, you'd raise funds to help keep him in Canyon. Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Chris Holbein
Senior Special Projects Coordinator