YORK, PA. — PETA is claiming a victory today after the York Revolution baseball team confirmed they will not hold a promotion this year that rankled the animal rights group last year. The promotion, a Cowboy Monkey Rodeo, ran last July and drew protests from the animal rights group and its zealous followers. A Cowboy Monkey Rodeo features capuchin monkeys riding sheep herding dogs and at baseball games they perform between innings. The events have been targeted across the country.
PETA says that monkeys used for “rodeos” are vulnerable to neck injuries, such as whiplash, which can easily occur when they’re subjected to repetitive high-speed accelerations on the backs of dogs, who run at speeds of up to 30 mph. The dogs may also inadvertently run the monkeys into hard objects, such as walls, fences, and poles.
Doug Eppler, Director of Marketing and Communications for the York Revolution, says the promotion was never scheduled for this summer and that pressure from PETA had little bearing. The decision not to bring back the Cowboy Monkey Rodeo was in fact based on a number of factors. “We routinely rotate promotions from one year to the next,” said Eppler. “We look at things like fan interest and ticket sales when making decisions, and we have just 70 home games providing opportunities for a top notch fan experience. We have a great slate of promotions scheduled for 2017.”
**NOTE: This is a corrected version of this story: a prior version stated that the Revolution CANCELLED the Cowboy Monkey Rodeo. The Revolution never had the event on the 2017 Home Schedule.**
