Cockfighting barn busted

Over 160 roosters and hens – many of them with missing toes and lacking access to food and water – were seized from a barn just north of Dorchester and euthanized last Thursday after authorities raided what appears to be a cockfighting operation.

Humane World for Animals, formerly called the Humane Society of the United States, assisted the Clark County Sheriff’s Office with the seizure, according to a press release sent out by the organization last Friday.

Deputies served a search and seizure warrant on the property, located at 16332 Hiline Ave., at about 9 a.m. on May 22, finding roosters isolated in individual cases and “dead chicks strewn throughout the property,” the press release stated.

“Responders noted that most of the birds had no apparent access to food or water, and many were missing toes—one was missing both feet,” the press release states. “Most of the roosters had been dubbed, a common, painful procedure in cockfighting operations in which roosters’ fleshy waddles and combs are cut off to mitigate

See DEPUTIES on page 4 the potential disadvantage caused by blood loss in cockfights.”

Workers with Humane World for Animals handled the animals, documented the scene and identified animal fighting paraphernalia, such as “sparring muffs, which are used to prevent injuries during conditioning; and short knives, which are attached to roosters’ legs during fights to inflict severe injuries,” the organization said.

Responders also found items “consistent with the raising and conditioning of birds for the purposes of fighting,” including a transport box, “the inside of which appeared to be covered in blood,” the press release states.

“Cockfighting is a violent, tragic enterprise. Along with the terrible suffering of the roosters who are forced to fight each other to death, organized crime impacts the entire community--often including children,” said Laura Koivula, director of animal crimes and investigations, Humane World for Animals. “We are deeply grateful to the Clark County Sheriff’s Office for intervening in this situation.”

Clark County Sheriff Kerry Kirn thanked Humane World for Animals for helping with the case.

Humane World for Animals released the following statements regarding the criminal nature and public health hazards posed by cockfighting: “Cockfighting is a criminal industry that profits from violent cruelty to animals. It involves pitting two animals to fight—often to the death—for the purpose of profit, gambling and purported entertainment. Even birds who aren't outright killed during the fights suffer terribly. Common injuries include punctured lungs, broken bones and pierced eyes, yet the birds are forced to continue to fight.”

“Cockfighting can also pose a significant risk to the spread of avian disease, including highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1. These criminal enterprises are associated with the spread of avian disease due to gamefowl yards, where hundreds of birds are raised in close proximity and without protection from wild birds. They are often exposed to blood in fights and are transported across the country without oversight.”

“Due to the risk of spreading infectious diseases such as avian flu to humans and to commercial flocks and lack of placement options for roosters, the birds seized from this property were humanely euthanized by veterinarians.”

Humane World noted that a group of pro-cockfighting advocates have “launched a coordinated effort to reduce or eliminate penalties for cockfighting in multiple states across the U.S.”

“The group hosts pro-cockfighting rallies, raises funds and donates to legislators in their attempts to decriminalize cockfighting,” the press release states. “Cockfighting is a crime in every state and a felony in 42 states.”