Cockfighting: Harmful to Both Humans and Animals
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals - PETA
September 08, 2006
By Heather Moore
According to nationwide news reports, one man was just killed and another was injured during a dispute at a cockfight in Needville, Texas. Tragic? Yes. Surprising? No. Anyone who enjoys watching animals rip one another to shreds surely has a similar disrespect for human life. Cockfighters have an obvious taste for violence and thirst for blood, and potential spectators should think not only of the animals, but of their own safety, before attending a fight.
Cockfighting is a barbaric blood sport that has no place in civilized society; it is illegal everywhere in the United States except for Louisiana and a very small part of New Mexico. Roosters raised for fighting are usually tethered to overturned plastic barrels or kept in small wire cages and given steroids and stimulants. Many birds have their feathers plucked, and their wattles and/or combs hacked off so other roosters can’t do it in the fighting ring. Because roosters do not have sweat glands, the loss of these body parts deprives them of the ability to cool themselves.
Many cockfighters slice off the birds’ natural spurs and attach metal spurs, gaffs, or knives to the birds’ legs to make the fights bloodier. The birds must duel to the death, and if fighting wanes, handlers will often pick the birds up and torment them to reignite the fighting frenzy. The surviving birds typically suffer broken wings and legs, punctured lungs, severed spinal cords, and gouged out eyes.
A number of other people have been killed or injured at cockfights, and law enforcement officials have documented a connection between cockfighting and the distribution of illegal drugs. According to Commander Bob Nishiyama of the Mendocino County Major Crimes Task Force in California, “It’s been our experience that a lot of the people who are involved with raising fighting roosters are also involved in the drug trade. It’s not only the people who raise and fight the roosters, but also the people who bet on them.”
According to the National Chicken Council, cockfighting causes a “continuing hazard for the dissemination of animal diseases.” Illegally transported birds caused an Exotic Newcastle disease epidemic in California in 2002, and some world health officials fear that the trade and transport of fighting cocks will lead to new outbreaks of avian flu.
Cockfights are detrimental to both animals and humans and should be relegated to the history books—just like slavery, segregation, child labor, and other shameful practices in our unenlightened past. To find out how you can help stop cockfighting, please visit www.PETA.org.
Heather Moore is senior writer for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), 501 Front St., Norfolk, VA, 23510; www.PETA.org.
According to nationwide news reports, one man was just killed and another was injured during a dispute at a cockfight in Needville, Texas. Tragic? Yes. Surprising? No. Anyone who enjoys watching animals rip one another to shreds surely has a similar disrespect for human life. Cockfighters have an obvious taste for violence and thirst for blood, and potential spectators should think not only of the animals, but of their own safety, before attending a fight.
Cockfighting is a barbaric blood sport that has no place in civilized society; it is illegal everywhere in the United States except for Louisiana and a very small part of New Mexico. Roosters raised for fighting are usually tethered to overturned plastic barrels or kept in small wire cages and given steroids and stimulants. Many birds have their feathers plucked, and their wattles and/or combs hacked off so other roosters can’t do it in the fighting ring. Because roosters do not have sweat glands, the loss of these body parts deprives them of the ability to cool themselves.
Many cockfighters slice off the birds’ natural spurs and attach metal spurs, gaffs, or knives to the birds’ legs to make the fights bloodier. The birds must duel to the death, and if fighting wanes, handlers will often pick the birds up and torment them to reignite the fighting frenzy. The surviving birds typically suffer broken wings and legs, punctured lungs, severed spinal cords, and gouged out eyes.
A number of other people have been killed or injured at cockfights, and law enforcement officials have documented a connection between cockfighting and the distribution of illegal drugs. According to Commander Bob Nishiyama of the Mendocino County Major Crimes Task Force in California, “It’s been our experience that a lot of the people who are involved with raising fighting roosters are also involved in the drug trade. It’s not only the people who raise and fight the roosters, but also the people who bet on them.”
According to the National Chicken Council, cockfighting causes a “continuing hazard for the dissemination of animal diseases.” Illegally transported birds caused an Exotic Newcastle disease epidemic in California in 2002, and some world health officials fear that the trade and transport of fighting cocks will lead to new outbreaks of avian flu.
Cockfights are detrimental to both animals and humans and should be relegated to the history books—just like slavery, segregation, child labor, and other shameful practices in our unenlightened past. To find out how you can help stop cockfighting, please visit www.PETA.org.
Heather Moore is senior writer for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), 501 Front St., Norfolk, VA, 23510; www.PETA.org.
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