Williamsport Crosscutters Pledge to End ‘Monkey Rodeos’ After PETA Appeal
Move Comes After Minor League Baseball Discourages Teams From Using Animals for Entertainment at Ballparks
For Immediate Release:
August 3, 2016
Contact:
Moira Colley 202-483-7382
After receiving letters from more than 5,500 PETA supporters, Minor League Baseball’s (MiLB) Williamsport Crosscutters agreed to stop hosting “monkey rodeos”—stunts in which terrified capuchin monkeys are strapped or chained to dogs running up to 30 mph—at BB&T Ballpark.
The team’s decision comes on the heels of a statement from MiLB President Pat O’Conner discouraging MiLB teams from using any animals for entertainment during game-day promotions.
“A baseball field is no place for a sensitive capuchin monkey who belongs in the treetops with his or her family—not dressed in a cowboy outfit and strapped to the back of a dog for a cheap laugh,” says PETA primatologist Julia Gallucci. “PETA looks forward to a kinder future at Williamsport Crosscutters—and all Minor League Baseball—games.”
As PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment”—noted to the Williamsport Crosscutters, monkeys used for traveling exhibits are typically torn away from their mothers shortly after birth and spend their lives in cages. They are deprived of psychological and social stimulation, exercise, and the opportunity to engage in natural behavior, such as exploring, seeking mates, raising young, and foraging.
For more information, please visit PETA.org.
