United Poultry Concerns, Inc.
PO Box 150, Machipongo, VA 23405-0150
Phone: 757-678-7875 • FAX: 757-678-5070
www.upc-online.org • info@upc-online.org
March 13, 2023
Dr. Hallie Hasel
State Veterinarian
Wyoming Livestock Board Office
1934 Wyott Drive Cheyenne, WY 82002
E-mail: hallie.hasel@wyo.gov
Dear Dr. Hasel:
My letter concerns an animal-abusing activity in which chickens were roped for entertainment at a bar & grill in Moorcroft (WY) on Saturday evening, February 18, 2023. The bar & grill, known as Dewey’s Place, advertised that this was its ninth year hosting the “chicken roping contest.”
A visitor to this year’s event documented via text, photographs and video footage what was done to the chickens by inebriated men and women in the presence of many children. One child can be heard in the video yelling: “You’re probably killing that poor bird.” According to the visitor:
One of the highlights of the evening was the repetition of chokings that the birds had to endure again and again. Who in the world would want to have a cord or a rope around their neck and then be hoisted into the air? What can that be other than torture? Even Renee Jean, the business and tourism reporter for Cowboy State Daily, who published an article about this event, began her article with “Saturday was not a good night to be a rooster in Moorcroft” and later on stated “it’s clearly a stressful night for them.” See It's Not Quite Cheyenne . . .
As per our Feb. 8 News Release urging cancellation of this event: “While no animal of any size is built to be pulled in opposite directions, it is particularly obscene to pull in ‘opposite directions’ a small creature weighing just a few pounds. To the chickens at boot level of these ‘ropers,’ it’s like one of us being towered over by a tall tree or building in terms of proportionate sizes. . . . Imagine how scared and defenseless we would be and feel in similar circumstances.”
Dr. Hasel, I respectfully urge you to intervene to prohibit chicken roping contests henceforth in Wyoming. Chicken roping contests violate § 6-3-1002. Cruelty to animals:
(iii) Knowingly carries an animal in a manner that poses undue risk of injury or death.
Thank you for your attention to my letter. I’ll gladly speak with you directly by phone or by email upon your request regarding this matter. I look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience.
Sincerely,
Karen Davis, PhD
President
United Poultry Concerns
12325 Seaside Road, PO Box 150
Machipongo, VA 23405
Office: 757-678-7875
Email: Karen@UPC-online.org
United Poultry Concerns is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization promoting the
compassionate and respectful treatment of domestic fowl.
Federal ID: 52-1705678
See: Urge Wyoming Officials to Oppose Unlawful Chicken Roping Contest