Why PETA Urges Everyone to Steer Clear of the Running of the Bulls

Most tourists who decide to partake in the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, Spain, don’t realize that all the bulls used in the event will be killed within hours of its start.

During the San Fermín festival, which takes place from July 7 to 14, six bulls (uncastrated males) and at least six steers (young neutered males) are released into the streets each day before being corralled into the bullring. A total of 48 bulls are tortured and killed over the course of the week, as thousands of people witness their violent deaths.

Here are 10 reasons why you should skip the Running of the Bulls:

1. A rocket is launched to terrify the bulls as they’re forced onto city streets mobbed with screaming festival attendees.

Panicked, the animals slip and slide down the narrow streets among thousands of shouting people, including tourists, who hit them with rolled-up newspapers and pull their tails along the half-mile route to the bullring.

2. The frantic animals often fall or crash headfirst into walls while running at full speed, sometimes causing them to break bones.

3. The violence against animals also encourages violence against women.

The 2024 event alone brought the arrests of 23 men for 24 reports of sexual assault. One study found that people who abuse animals are five times more likely to commit violent crimes against humans. If someone doesn’t have empathy for animals, it’s very likely that they don’t have empathy for anyone.

4. The event is extremely dangerous for humans in other ways, too.

Between 50 and 100 attendees are injured each year, and 16 have died since records began.

5. In the evenings, the bulls are herded into the bullring.

In the first stage of the six bullfights, men on horses circle a bull and drive lances into his back and neck.

6. Then, they twist the lances deeper into the gaping stab wounds.

This is to ensure that a significant amount of blood is lost (between 3 and 6 liters, which is 18% of a bull’s blood) and that the animals can’t lift their heads or defend themselves.

7. In the next stage, banderilleros dart around the terrified, bleeding animals while plunging banderillas—brightly colored sticks with a harpoon point on one end—into their already-injured backs.

The wounded animals are forced to run in circles, until they stop because they’re too dizzy, disoriented, and weakened from blood loss to continue.

8. Next, a matador enters the ring and—after around 10 minutes, or whenever they decide that the bull is too weak to continue—tries to sever the dying bull’s aorta with a sword.

9. If the matador misses on the first try, he will keep stabbing the bull over and over until the bull falls down.

Then, a puntillero stabs the bull in the back of the head with a dagger.

10. The bull is often paralyzed but still conscious and twitching as someone cuts off his ears and tail and holds them up as “trophies” in front of the cheering crowd.

Finally, the bull is chained by the horns and dragged out of the arena.

Partaking in an event that ends with someone standing over a defenseless animal and stabbing him multiple times with spears, harpoons, swords, and a dagger until he’s dead—and then demanding applause—is barbaric and inexcusable.

This cruelty isn’t entertainment—and it shouldn’t even be called a “bullfight,” because the bulls never have a fighting chance. It’s tormenting and torturing them to death in front of audiences full of rowdy tourists who have no respect for animals or don’t understand the true nature of the event.

More than 100 Spanish towns and cities have stopped holding bullfighting events, and a 2019 poll found that more than half of Spaniards want to see it banned. The future is bullfight-free.

If you travel to Spain, enjoy the art, beaches, breathtaking architecture and views, castles, flamenco dances, hikes, live music, parks, plazas, nightlife, soccer games, and sunsets. Go on tours, meet locals, visit museums and markets, and try vegan pinchos, tapas, sangria, and sorbet. Just remember: Cruelty is not a part of culture worth preserving. Seek thrills somewhere other than bullfights!

Here are just a few of the things that you can enjoy in Spain instead: