The purpose of the test is to screen top of their class bulls to ensure that their meanness is acquired through good genetics and not performance enhancing drugs. The test results are not expected to come back for another couple of weeks, but the owner, Jerry Nelson, insists that his prize bull is clean. The PBR wants to ensure the public that this is not believed to be a widespread problem, but there are a select few that some feel have been injecting their bulls with anabolic steroids and testosterone.
The PBR has taken the liberty of hiring anabolic steroids scientists from Iowa State University to test for the positives and negatives of injecting these bulls. According to the scientists, there are few positives because just a simple injection is not enough to enhance the bull’s performance. The bulls must be able to do things such as lift weights to take advantage of the performance enhancers. They also said that injecting the bulls with anabolic steroids would severely lessen their chance of reproducing, which could put a fair amount of breeding companies out of service.
The main incentive of enhancing these bovines are not necessarily to be at the top of their bucking game, because bulls receive little money for bucking off foes. The money comes from selling their semen as prize bulls when they are actually so-and-so bulls. This has led to a large outcry from clean bull breeders because it negates all of their hard work of raising a prize bucking bull.
-Anabolic Steroids: a class of steroid hormones related to the hormone testosterone. They increase protein synthesis within cells, which results in the buildup of cellular tissue (anabolism), especially in muscles.
-Bucking: To leap upward arching the back.
-Testosterone: A steroid hormone that is the most potent naturally occurring androgen and that regulates the development of the male reproductive system and male secondary sex characteristics.
What strikes me as interesting in this article is the fact that these anabolic steroids are the same exact types of steroids that are being injected into humans. These performance enhancers are having a huge effect on 1350 lbs. bulls! I find it amusing that human beings would go through these lengths to enhance their performance to ultimately make more money and glory.
Another thing that strikes me from this article is the analysis from the Iowa State University scientists. According to their studies the bulls must do things such a lift weights in order for these enhancers to have an effect. But according to my research many anabolic steroids need no catalyst to take into effect. Testosterone, specifically just increases the hormone made in the testes that does things such as increases muscle strength and mass. It also gives the bull more energy and broadens the shoulder blade and the rib cage which is a factor when it comes to bull riding. So insisting that there is no point in using performance enhancers on bulls is a bad analysis.
I am happy that the PBR is spending money on testing for performance enhancers, but it is stirring to think just what the rise of anabolic steroids have done to the world of sports. It has totally changed the mentality of being a top of your game athlete (human or animal) because there seems to be more and more suspicion that cheating must be involved. To me there are a lot of sports that should be looking at what the PBR is doing in order to stop the problem before it becomes widespread in the sport.
"PBR Puts Bovine Athletes to the Test." Sports Illustrated. 7 Feb. 2008. Associated Press. 10 Feb. 2008
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