URGENT: Speak Out Against Animal Giveaways in Rapid City, SD!

Experts agree that fish are highly complex animals who have the same capacity to feel pain, fear, and stress as mammals do, and they deserve better than to be doled out as trinkets. However, PETA just learned that the Central States Fair in Rapid City, South Dakota, apparently hired a midway company to provide entertainment, which is doling out goldfish as prizes to its game booth attendees, scheduled through August 29. Our caller also reported that the booth operator disclosed that they often commonly dump unwanted goldfish into public waterways—which is not only cruel, but also prohibited in all states because they wreak havoc on ecosystems—and has been conveyed to local law enforcement!

Orange and white goldfish with blue background

Goldfish are sentient beings, and being carted from one event to the next, placed in tiny plastic bags without aeration/oxygen, and being jostled by booth winners is a miserable experience for these animals. And when kept in captivity, these animals require a sizeable amount of water (one goldfish requires at least 25 gallons!), climate control and filtration, regular aquarium maintenance, and ample enrichment. Most spontaneous recipients of these living, feeling “prizes” are hardly prepared for such a commitment, and the animals suffer as a result.

Please join PETA in politely urging the Central States Fair Board to ask its midway provider to immediately exclude this booth and forgo animal giveaways at future events—then share this alert with everyone you know!

Send polite comments to:

Central States Fair Board
[email protected]
605-355-3861

Please also leave a comment on their Facebook page:

Central States Fair Facebook