But doesn't Hilary support animal protection?

Some people may be quick to point out that Hilary Duff has aligned herself positively with animal protection. After all, in 2003 Hilary was the official Youth Ambassador for Return to Freedom, a wild horse sanctuary. An upstanding and hard-working organization, Return to Freedom's philosophy is that America's wild horses have a right to remain wild and free. Hilary's involvement with the sanctuary is described on their website:

"In July of 2003, Hilary came to visit the famed wild horse sanctuary Return to Freedom and met Spirit the horse that inspired the Dreamworks animated film. Upon meeting him, Hilary became a little star struck herself. "I had to catch my breath when I saw him," she said. "Oh my God, he's like stunning." Hilary instantly wanted to help and became Return to Freedom's official Youth Ambassador in 2003."

The question that begs to be asked here is, how can Hilary advocate for horses while at the same time lend her support and celebrity to events that abuse horses? Horses in rodeos and bullrings are routinely abused, injured, and even killed. SHARK has documented such traumas repeatedly, and just a sampling of these photos can be seen below. In addition to abuse within the arean, the rodeo community contains some of the biggest supporters of horse slaughter (other than the horses they slaughter in the rodeo arenas).

One way or another, horses in rodeo face slaughter, in or out of the arena. Ms. Duff's fans should be asking: How can Hilary continue to support horse rescue and horse abuse all at the same time?

Scroll below to see the horse abuses that Hilary is supporting.

Bullfighting is not only a horrific bloodsport the glorifies the slow killing of bulls, but also causes trauma and injuries to the horses that the supposedly "brave" killers use as living shields. As you can see below, the horses used in bullfighting are blindfolded so they never know what's coming as bulls charge, seeing the horse as part of the threat. Anyone who cares about horses should oppose bullfighting!

Chaos is created in this "Wild Horse" event, where many anxious horses are thrust into the rodeo arena together. The horses quickly become agitated and terrified, as thugs jump, pull, and push on them in any way possible just to get on the horses' backs. Injuries are common, as is seen here with a horse unable to get back up and then being hauled away by a tractor.

This horse was killed in the "wild horse race." Rodeo people claim to love their victims, but untold numbers are injured and killed. The rodeo associations refuse to disclose injury reports.

Even though this horse was obviously injured with a bloody rear left hoof, bloody mouth, and abrasions on his rear right leg, rodeo thugs decided to use him for bucking anyway.

In order to make 'bucking' horses appear wild, out-of-control, and somehow an equal match for the 'brave' cowboys, these animals are sometimes shocked prior to the opening of the chute. In each of these pictures a small, black prod not much bigger than a mobile phone is seen semi-concealed in the rodeo thugs' hand. Although widespread, routine shocking of an animal while in the chute is against the Pro Rodeo Cowboy Association's own regulations.