Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Rejoneo and Cutting--Are they different from each other?




A calf it "cut" or removed from the herd, and has it's foundation in traditional ranching. Because the calf is scared to be alone, as it is a herd animal and finds comfort in grouping with members of it's species, it tries to return to the herd. A group/pen of calves is only used for a couple of cuttings, and then replaced with a new group/pen of calves because after a short time they stop/sulk/freeze etc., learning quickly that it is an exercise in futility all they are doing is making themselves tired, they realize they are in no danger, their herd is right there. In other words "they figured man out in short order." They are sent back to the ranch, fattened up for a year, and then sent to the slaughter plant, where death occurs.

A fighting bull, when he reaches adulthood at the age of 4, is removed from the herd, and has it's foundation in traditional ranching. Because the fighting bull is scared to be alone, as it is a herd animal and finds comfort in grouping with members of it's species, frantically looks for the herd outside the wall. Because it is bred for it's natural fighting aggressiveness, it's flight factor quickly changes to a fight factor. It is fought/tested for 15 minutes, and judged on a number of criteria. As it tires it is piced on the neck/shoulder hump, because an animal goes away from pressure, and the bandarilla's are the pressure(no more uncomfortable then a fish hook in your finger, but close to the surface and not deep which is why there is massive bleeding, like a razor cut) causing the head to lower so that it can be killed, behind the head with an estoque.

The fighting bull is only fought once for 15 min. because like the calves in cutting" he figures man out in short order," and would either be to dangerous to fight again, or would simply "sully" realizing like the calf, "what is the sense," and no amount of nothing could get him to fight. The rare exceptional animal, like a Kentucky Derby champion is spared, and retained as a breed, never to fight again for the reasons stated above. For the fighting bull it is over in 15 min with a sword., considering as has been noted, "there are good and bad" in every profession, which is why a small dagger is carried to severe the spinal cord, should a poor thrust be made with the estoque. For the cutting calf it is over a year later when it will be rendered unconscious by an electric shock behind the head where the above mention sword would plunge on a fighting bull or a bolt pistol shot between the eyes. Is it cruel to only give a fighting bull 15mins. before it becomes a rib eye? Or is it cruel to keep the cutting calf in captivity for a year before it becomes a rib eye?



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