This July as in many previous years, hundreds of wild horses have been rounded up and wrestled to the ground as part of a 400-year-old Spanish festival during which the horses are sheared and trimmed by men in the village as festival goers encourage their bravery in dealing with the wild horses.
Shearing and grooming wild Spanish horses
Hundreds of wild horses have been rounded up and wrestled to the ground as part of a 400-year-old Spanish festival during which the horses are sheared and trimmed by men in the village.
© 2013 by Jose Pereira
The Rapa Das Bestas, translated as Shearing Of The Beasts, sees horses herded down from the mountains in northwestern Spain to be trimmed and groomed.
Thousands of visitors descended on the small village of Sabucedo this weekend and endured temperatures of almost 40C to witness the traditional spectacle.
The festival which has attracted criticism from animal rights groups began as a way of checking horses for disease and cutting their shaggy coats to keep them cool during hot summer months.
But it has turned into a festival that attracts thousands of visitors to the small community.The horses come from the mountains of Galicia where they roam free most of the year.
Over three days, about 30 local Aloitidores or "fighters"must do battle with their hands only, since no ropes are tools are allowed. Three men are needed for each horse. One jumps on the horse's back, another hangs on its neck and the third graps the tail.
The men risk being trampled or mauled by the horses as they wrestle the horse to the ground and shear its shaggy coat and trim the tail and mane. Younger horses that have not previously been tagged are branded.
The action begins and the first Saturday in July with an early morning mass and lasts through Monday.