The Country
  • The Country home
  • Latest news
  • Audio & podcasts
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life
  • Listen on iHeart radio

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • Coast & Country News
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Horticulture
  • Animal health
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life

Media

  • Podcasts
  • Video

Weather

  • Kaitaia
  • Whāngarei
  • Dargaville
  • Auckland
  • Thames
  • Tauranga
  • Hamilton
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Te Kuiti
  • Taumurunui
  • Taupō
  • Gisborne
  • New Plymouth
  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Whanganui
  • Palmerston North
  • Levin
  • Paraparaumu
  • Masterton
  • Wellington
  • Motueka
  • Nelson
  • Blenheim
  • Westport
  • Reefton
  • Kaikōura
  • Greymouth
  • Hokitika
  • Christchurch
  • Ashburton
  • Timaru
  • Wānaka
  • Oamaru
  • Queenstown
  • Dunedin
  • Gore
  • Invercargill

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / The Country

Bull suffers leg injury, killed in Gisborne rodeo

By Leighton Heikell and Sophie Rishworth
Gisborne Herald·
28 Dec, 2018 12:00 AM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Bull dislocates leg at Gisborne rodeo. Facebook / New Zealand Anti-Rodeo Coalition

Protestors have called for all rodeos to be banned after a bull "snapped" its leg and was subsequently put down at yesterday's Gisborne event.

Video footage was released by the New Zealand Anti-Rodeo Coalition which, it said, shows an agitated bull not wanting to be ridden.

Protestors among the crowd of about 1500 were upset it took 25 minutes from when the bull snapped its leg to be "put out of his misery".

After two loud gunshots were heard, the announcer didn't say anything — no acknowledgement, a Facebook post from the Anti-Rodeo Coalition said.

"We were shocked and disgusted at how long it took and so were the people beside us — referring to the organisers with words we wont repeat. It is something we never want to ever see or hear again — devastating."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Organisers of the annual Gisborne Rodeo Association event said it was a "freak accident".

"Something like this has not happened for 30 years to animals at the Gisborne rodeo," said secretary Marsala Dalziel.

"We had a vet onsite and he made the call to put the bull down, and did it professionally."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

When asked about the 25 minutes it took to put the bull down, she said it was the vet's call.

"How do the protesters know what is good for the animals? Are they trained vet specialists?"

A video of the incident had been shared 287 times on Facebook and watched almost 10,000 times as of this morning.

East Coast Farm Vets had a veterinarian of 20 years experience on site at the event all day.

Owner and veterinarian Andrew Cribb said he spoke to the vet who felt what happened after the bull was injured was appropriate.

The bull dislocated its hock, which is like a human ankle joint, which is a common injury on a farm, said Cribb.

He was satisfied there was prompt treatment.

"First there had to be a diagnosis, and upon that diagnosis, euthanasia became the only option. To do that effectively you have to find the appropriate pen.

"The other thing you have to have in the back of your mind is human safety. You can't just go firing a rifle off in the middle of an event like that."

Cribb confirmed no pain relief was administered to the bull because that would have heightened the stress and prolonged the outcome.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"The time for the drug to work would be approximately two hours, so there was little point in giving the drugs if euthanasia was the only option."

NZ Rodeo Cowboys Association president Lyal Cocks said he was contacted immediately after it happened.

"It's terrible. The last thing you want is to get a call like that. It's a devastating incident to have any animal lost at a rodeo, especially for the animal and the people involved. But we have a lot of other successful rodeos going on and you have to balance it out."

Cocks said he was waiting for the official report on the incident.

"We will see if there are any lessons learnt from that. We are in a sport using animals like many other sports in New Zealand. We have got to remember not to let this overshadow the successful side of rodeo and all the good it does for local communities, the thousands of spectators who enjoy it, the hundreds of animals involved and the hundreds of people who compete.

"Regrettably this does happen sometimes in sports that use animals; it's not just rodeo."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Cocks said the association worked with the Ministry for Primary Industries to continually monitor their sport, to keep an eye on animal welfare but also keep it an exciting competition.

Changes had been brought into the sport recently, including the introduction of a minimum qualification for riders — so not anyone could just turn up and ride a bull.

This is the second death this rodeo season. A horse at Methven Rodeo died at the opening weekend of the season.

A protest is planned on January 1 outside the Warkworth Rodeo.

Direct Animal Action spokesman Apollo Taito said the protests were to highlight the harm of rodeo.

"This death is a clear indication of that. We've had enough of seeing animals dying for entertainment at rodeos. This situation needs urgent action."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

A report from the National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (NAWAC) in October recommended a new rodeo animal welfare committee be established to monitor the use and help improve the welfare of animals.

Gisborne Rodeo Association president Graeme Fogarty did not want to discuss the bull's death, other than to say it was a "freak accident."

"It was a good day, and everything else ran smoothly."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from The Country

The Country

'We're here to grow value': Govt announces grass-fed cert scheme, $17m resilient pasture programme

11 Jun 05:00 AM
The Country

The 17-year-old Queenstown rodeo star off to the US

11 Jun 04:27 AM
The Country

Govt and industry ink deal to tackle potential foot-and-mouth crisis

11 Jun 04:23 AM

Why Cambridge is the new home of future-focused design

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from The Country

'We're here to grow value': Govt announces grass-fed cert scheme, $17m resilient pasture programme

'We're here to grow value': Govt announces grass-fed cert scheme, $17m resilient pasture programme

11 Jun 05:00 AM

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said agriculture was leading NZ out of a recession.

The 17-year-old Queenstown rodeo star off to the US

The 17-year-old Queenstown rodeo star off to the US

11 Jun 04:27 AM
Govt and industry ink deal to tackle potential foot-and-mouth crisis

Govt and industry ink deal to tackle potential foot-and-mouth crisis

11 Jun 04:23 AM
How Fieldays' Wellbeing Hub became a rural health lifeline

How Fieldays' Wellbeing Hub became a rural health lifeline

11 Jun 03:00 AM
Clean water fuelling Pacific futures
sponsored

Clean water fuelling Pacific futures

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP