Cancel the cruel hog wrestling event for the 2015 county fair and future years.

Delaware County Fair Board, cancel the cruel hog wrestling event scheduled for the 2015 county fair, and for all future years.


Using pigs in this form of entertainment is inhumane, since the pigs have no choice in the matter of whether they want to wrestle or not. It causes undue emotional stress on the pigs, as evidenced by fearful squealing, and causes physical torsional stress on the pigs' joints. Some fairs have eliminated pig wrestling from their events due to the abuse & cruelty they experience at the hands of animal abusers. Pigs are put into a mud pit where teams of people will chase the pigs with the goal to throw the pig into a tire. The photo above showing a squealing in fear provides an example of the cruelty endured by the animals. We the signed ask the Fair Board to say no to this event and instead choose another event that doesn't promote cruelty to animals.

1) The proposed event is not wrestling. Full Definition of Wrestling: "a sport or contest in which two unarmed individuals struggle hand to hand with each attempting to subdue or unbalance the other." The proposed event does not meet the definition of wrestling. Instead a small targeted animal is overwhelmed by groups of much larger stronger individuals and children. The animal is grabbed, shoved into the mud, dragged and thrown onto a tire. The animal is in no way a competitor. Clearly this is abuse, bullying and terrorizing of a defenseless animal.

2) Do the pigs suffer? According to professors at Kansas State University and Purdue University pigs have a high sense of smell and also pigs are very sensitive to pain. Lifting and pulling pigs by their front legs is painful and can result in injury due to the fact the front leg leading up to the scapula is connected to the rest of the skeleton by tendons and ligaments instead of a ball and joint bone structure. Countless online photos and videos of pigs assaulted by teams of humans clearly show the pigs being hoisted by their front legs, their bodies being contorted at near 45degree angles and being forced into other abnormal positions, some photo's show children grabbing & pulling their ears just to get them onto the tire. In one online video a pig is seen with her head forced into the mud. When she finally struggles back up she clearly spews out the slop. Inhaling mud into her lungs and swallowing the mud is possible. Were a dog or cat treated in this manner charges of cruelty would result. We have seen no evidence that medical care is provided the possibly injured animals.

3) Proper Care of Livestock - The proposed event is in clear conflict with 4-H standards: 4-H Youth Development, Animal Systems University of Illinois Excerpt: "Animal welfare is a growing concern in this country today and warrants some attention during county fairs and any other 4-H livestock event. Therefore, it is imperative that we show all general audiences at these livestock events that we as keepers of animals do know the right way to raise and care for livestock.While we are at the fair showing livestock we are under the watchful eye of the general public.This gives us a great opportunity to show all kinds of people the method in which we care for our livestock. The following is a list of guidelines which should be helpful in preventing any misconceptions that the public or any special interest groups may have about the way we raise livestock. The proper care of animals in a public setting should receive primary attention.Two of those sixteen 4-H Guidelines are: 1)Handle animals in a very humane way. 2)Avoid stressing the animal.


4) It's a proven fact that violet criminals first start out harming animals when young and move onto humans. Promoting hog wrestling to children is teaching them that abuse is ok, even for their entertainment. Children exposed to cruel events such as this are more likely to grow up and further harm more animals and people. The city should instead be setting a positive example for its youth that harming animals, especially for entertainment, is wrong and inhumane. Adults who participate in cruelty to animals such as this are also more likely to abuse their children as well. In a city with a very high rate of child abuse and domestic violence, these events should be banned not promoted. The way a city treats all of its animals and children, shows the character of said city.


There are many non violent forms of entertainment events for humans that you could hold instead, such as, human mud wrestling (two humans), mud football, bicycle races, art contests, science fair, paint ball tag, water gun tag. The number of other types of events are endless.