PETA has calculated that the number of bulls killed during bullfights in Spain has decreased by 56% over the last 10 years.

The calculation is based on data recently released by Spanish authorities.

As the archaic spectacle has fallen out of favour with the majority of Spanish people – as well as tourists – the number of bulls stabbed and killed dropped from approximately 16,000 in 2008 to roughly 7,000 in 2018.

The decline reflects increased opposition to bullfighting throughout Spain in recent years: Catalonia and the Balearic Islands both passed laws that effectively ended bullfighting in those regions.

Running of the Bulls

The finding comes just a few days ahead of Pamplona’s San Fermín festival and its infamous Running of the Bulls event, which still draws in over a million tourists, many from the UK. Most are unaware that the bulls who are forced to run slipping and sliding through the city’s narrow streets will later be stabbed to death in the bullring.

Altogether, 48 bulls are barbarically tortured and killed during the San Fermín festival every year.

Running of the Bulls

Torture, Not Tradition

During a typical bullfight, several men taunt and stab a bull with harpoon-like banderillas until he becomes weakened from blood loss.

Then, the matador stabs the exhausted animal with a sword, and if the bull doesn’t die straight away, he’ll commonly use a dagger to cut the animal’s spinal cord. Many bulls are paralysed but still conscious as their ears or tails are cut off as trophies.

What You Can Do for Bulls