Horrendous Horse Fighting Blood Sport
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Horse fighting — a vicious spectator blood sport that dates back 500 years — is still practiced today in parts of China, Indonesia, South Korea and in Mindanao in the southern Philippines.
Photo Daily Mail
This horrific blood-bath tournament took place in the town of Don Carlos in the Philippines which involved 54 horses, many of which had grisly injuries.
Picture this … the crowd cheers wildly in approval as the stallion sinks his teeth in the throat of his adversary. The terrified victim rears up on his hind legs and veers away in a desperate effort to flee — nowhere to turn — blood pouring into his eyes so he can no longer see, while his right ear is badly torn and covered in blood. The bloodier the injuries, the louder the crowd roars, stimulated by the gore, fury and intensity of the fighting.
The steed moves in for the coup de grace, kicking the weaker horse in the head again and again with his front hooves, who soon collapses to the ground, lying there panting in a massacre of defeat.
Horse fighting has become a hugely popular sport, as thousands flock to watch the bloodbaths, including countless children. Many of the adults at this spectacle were drunk and spent their time gambling and jeering at the battling animals.
Photo Daily Mail
Many were quickly covered in gashes and bites while others limped around the arena with a glazed look in their eyes as they pitifully attempted to escape.
“These tournaments are truly barbaric.” says Andrew Plumbly of the Network for Animals welfare group, which has been campaigning to bring these savage tournaments to a halt.
“Our vets have seen horses being kicked in the head so hard that their eyes have popped out of their sockets. Other horses have had their ears ripped off. It’s straight out of the Middle Ages.”
To get the stallions into a fighting rage, they’re whipped into a hostile frenzy by the presence of a young mare ‘in season’ which is staked to the ground in the middle of the muddy arena.
Completely overcome by desire, the stallions attack one another in attempt to defeat their sexual rivals. “Horses often die in the ring from exhaustion or their injuries.” says Plumbly.
The tournament is equally traumatic for the mare used as bait for the steeds. Not only was the mare in this horse fight repeatedly hit by stray blows from the dueling horses, but she was also required to mate with the victorious stallions from each fight — mounted as much as 30 times during one tournament which can last up to 6 hours.
Aside from the physical pain and wounds incurred by the Stallions, the mares are also subjected to animal cruelty, as they’re injected with hormones to keep them in heat for prolonged periods.
Photo Daily Mail
Veterinary care is often too expensive for most owners, so wounded horses are typically killed for their meat with the choicest cuts barbecued and sold to the crowd. A similar fate holds true for horses deemed too old or too weak to fight as they’re ’sacrificed’ by pitting them against much stronger stallions. Some break their legs as they desperately try to escape.
Even though horse fighting is illegal in the Philippines, corruption and lack of enforcement ensure that the tournaments carry on — and with apparent official sanction as they’re featured on TV, and local businesses sponsor horses and tournaments. Local authorities even offer prize money. Thousands of dollars are bet on fights — a small fortune in a desperately poor country.
The matches are promoted as a ‘cultural tradition,’ when in fact they’re organized and controlled for the most part by crime syndicates who rake in vast profits from gambling.
Photo Daily Mail
Some horses are bred specifically for horse to horse combat, while some are acquired by promoters for their size and sturdiness and trained for fighting.
Network for Animals wants to build clinics to treat injured horses and to educate local people about caring for animals and encouraging tourists to avoid the southern Philippines.
“If people want to help stop these tournaments they should write to their embassy and tell them that they will not visit these islands.” says Plumbly.
“The threat of a loss of tourism money will help bring this despicable blood sport to an end.”
Yet in another dusty arena set in Guizhou, China, with wild, rolling eyes filled with a mixture of fear and hatred, nostrils flaring, blood already flecking their ragged flanks, two stallions rise on hind legs to fight one another.
Photo the Telegraph
All around them as they bite, kick and snort, a keyed up, cheering crowd takes bets on which one will triumph. While animal welfare groups condemned the horse-fighting tradition celebrated by China’s Miao ethnic group in Rongshui county, Guangxi province, locals pointed out that it’s been going on for 500 years.
The fighting, part of the summer Xinhe festival which asks for blessings on newly planted crops is even included on some tourist itineraries in South West China.
“It is nothing but barbaric.” said Vivian Farrell, president of the International Fund For Horses, which has led campaigns to ban horse fighting. “It’s cruel and inhumane and I don’t know why they do it.”
While tourist guides tell tales of teams of horses being led into the makeshift arena to the sound of gunfire and a reed pipe band, they fail to mention that the stallions are whipped into a frenzy.
Vivian Farrell said, “They will rear at each other and kick and bite in the bid to show whose bloodline is superior. Sometimes the fights last 10 minutes — sometimes they go on for half an hour.”
Photo the Telegraph
The Miao people, the fifth largest of 56 ethnic groups recognized by the People’s Republic of China, regard the fighting as ‘thrilling, exciting and fascinating.’
One guide explains how two teams of horses, specially selected to be ‘plump, sturdy and energetic,’ are led to the arena and then pitted against each other one by one. They bite each other, turn their hooves and kick the other side heavily.
If one horse falls down or runs away, the other one is declared the winner and another 2 take their place. The winning horses then fight each other.
While the losers are led away to lick their wounds, the sweat-soaked champion is draped in red while his owner ‘feels very proud for having such a brave and strong steed.’
Karen Chisholm, from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, said countries often defended horse fighting as a tradition, but “torturing these magnificent animals in the name of entertainment is deplorable”.
“Tradition never justifies cruelty and this has no place in a civilized society.” she said.
The horses are often bred specifically for combat. Stallions that don’t immediately engage in battle are whipped, or gunshots are fired to provoke them. The stallion left standing is declared the winner.
Photo International Fund for Horses
The International Fund for Horses says competing horses are often ill-matched, resulting in gruesome injuries and even death to the weaker opponent.
“While tradition has long been used to legitimize horse fighting, money and gambling appears to be the real reason for its continued existence”.
Promoter Kim Byong of South Korea denies the blood-sport is cruel, on an island where horses are usually traded for meat and medicine, and few are sentimental about watching the proud animals fight.
“Horsefighting simply brings out that basic instinct in an animal.” says Byong.
The stallions are awarded marks for the number of bites and kicks they land on their opponent, and weaker horses are sometimes killed. The organizers are hoping the sport will catch on with tourists — and if the spectacle of the fighting fails to draw them there’s always the celebratory horsemeat barbecue to follow.
Watch the gruesome video if you must here.
The Fight to End Horse Abuse
“One of the most disturbing things about these images is the crowd of sadists (and children who are too young to know any better) who look on and smile — as if they were at a football game rather than a ritual torture.” says PETA.
PETA Asia Pacific is working to raise awareness about this hideous blood sport, and will continue to fight the ludicrous notion that ‘tradition’ can justify torture in this or any circumstance.
• For more information on NFA campaigns and how you can help, visit Network for Animals, or donate International Fund for Horses, where you can find out more on their website.
Not all of the images in the following clips are cases of neglect, but they do reveal what horses go through. They are bona fide cases, authentic pictures, real horses and their actual lives. Whether they died of natural causes or those inflicted upon them by humans, they still suffered a great deal.
More than 94,000 horses go to slaughter each year, strictly for human consumption. Over 1 million suffer from Neglect.
Use your voice, stop cruelty, slaughter and neglect today.
Part 1
Part 2
Sources: Daily Mail, Telegraph, PETA, ABC, the Sun and the Mirror
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Save Our Whales – Sea Shepherd
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Completly disgusting !!
If only these stupid humans could feel the pain they’re afflicting to these poor horses !!
Totally stupid thing. This human can’t realize the pain of those horses.
I’m with you 100% Skullpat. Give them a taste of their own medicine.
It’s beyond me how some people don’t have the sense and sensibilities, London.
that mean
Indeed it is, Rorie.
It’s one thing to see animals fighting like this in the wild–where they are defending territory or their right to mate, but stage this behavior for human “enjoyment” is despicable. Thanks for sharing this. I had no idea that this was happening to these beautiful animals.
Thanks Jason, that’s exactly it — it’s one thing when it occurs in nature, but an entirely different and ugly matter when man induces it for sport.
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those guys are f***ing sick im sorry! some one needs to get a f***ing rope and hang those f***en c***
Indeed, it’s utterly horrendous, Bubby.
that’s really stupidly thing n only supid ppl how r doing sh** like zt
My god. To see such horrific pictures…I love horses let along all animals, but what we do to animals in general is sometimes just too cruel. WTF who the hell do these people think they are?! We should lock them up and whip them, to make them fight, see how they like it.
Seeing those pictures makes me want to cry! I can only think of my horses and how angry it would make me to have someone do that to them! Do these people have no hearts!? Im sorry of it’s tradition that doesn’t make it right! Those people should be ashamed of themselves!!! These pictures make me furious!!!
It chills me to the bones to see this kind of treatment to animals, Sara. It’s absolutely gut-wrenching.
Do these people have hearts? Apparently not, Ang. Nothing can justify torture to animals.
This is equally disgusting to the violent seal beating that takes place.
ABSOLUTLY APPAULING!!! People should have their lives ruined and taken for doing this to these animals!!!
THIS IS STUPID i am doign a thing on blood sports at school and this is the top 1 why do it
Incredibly appalling, Danielle
It’s great to see you doing something to raise light to these sorts of issues Luke.
This is absolutely one of the worst sports i have ever seen! actually its is probably the worst sport along with all the other inhumane animal fights (dogs, roosters etc.) !!!!!!!
Exactly Maddie. While it may not be as commonly known, all of the animals ‘blood sport’ fights are utterly despicable. It usually means the demise of one or both animals in the fights.
It really does anger me when I see things like this. I mean, these people barely have money to buy food and yet gamble on horses trying to kill each other! Sadly, there is a lot of cruelty around the world… but that isn’t an excuse that should be used for not trying our best to help these defenseless animals.
Ahhh, but isn’t that frequently the way with gamblers, to bet their money away that they need in other areas of their lives, like food?
I don’t understand it, but I guess to them it’s like betting on horse races.
But once it becomes life-threatening in ANY way for animals, it should never be condoned. And this steps far beyond those boundaries, it needs to be abolished entirely!
My friend and I have started a campain for this barbaric ’sport’ (if thats what you should call it) we are still only young, but are very srong minded on this matter, I am passionate about horses, and want to spend the rest of my life around them (I am hoping to be an equestrian vet) and when we saw these reports, we couldn’t just sit there fretting, we are now currently writing letters to many animal welfare groups, and are going to do our bit to help
I HATE THESE STUPID A**HOLES WHO DO THIS WHO MAKE AND TRAIN HORSES TO FIGHT THERE ARE MOTHER******* THATS WHAT THESE POOR HORSES GET BITE ATTACKED FOR NO REASON WHYYYYYYYYYYYY WHY DO WE DO THIS ITS GAAAAY IF U DO THIS UR A MOTHER BEEEB AND A BEEEPHOLE SO GO SHOOT UR SELF
Emily, I applaud you for your efforts. I highly doubt that many are widely aware of this ‘blood-sport,’ so anything that you can do to help create awareness to hopefully put an end to this is highly commendable.
Sadly Tricia, they typically do it for cheap thrills in gambling.
omg thats harsh
u have to be out of your mind to do such thing like this….and all those stupid humans which are staying and watching whitout doing a thing…If it`s up to me I will put them to fight for their miserable lives…to see that the horses aren’t made to fight….they`re made to be our friends…and we shouldn’t do this to our friends…but some “creatures” without brain don’t konw this….arest them…or better, kill them >:)
Scarlet and Yoyo, I’ve run out of words for this horrendous ’sport,’ but I’m really happy to see more and more are being made aware of the atrocity for it. More awareness brings more controversy, and inevitably, more people battling to stop it.
Thats disgusting. I was looking for beautiful pictures to paint(Im an artist) and saw the one of the darker horse biting at the white one. I was curious to see what was going on in the picture. I dont much feel like painting right now. Those people are sick. How sad.
It is indeed very sad, Ladie.
thats made me feel sick, how could some people just sit and cheer?
shame on them
OOOOOOO those people piss me off to do that type of treatment to animals ,it is the same thing with the bulls.Those primitive people
need cable tv and the internet and a good sport not an ugly cruel sport.
I really strive to understand the minds of these people.How could you posibly, knowingly do that to a helpless animal? It’s sick , wrong, and groulsome.
For some, they know nothing better being raised in certain cultures, but any way that you play it Ana, it’s utter cruelty.
Deborah if you wish we can comunicate so use my e mail adress above.
Ciekawy post, dodalem twoj blog do ulubionych, bede tu teraz wpadal czesciej, pozdrawiam
I Was Looking Through Pictures For My Assignmentt, Because I Am Studying Horses At College..
This Is Horriablee. Horses Are Not Territorial Animallss And They Are Flight Or Fight Animals. But There First Instinct Is To Run..
So There Next Is To Fight If Feel Threatened Why Would They Feel Threatened By Their Own Species When They Are Herd Animals.. Whatt Provoked Humanss To Do This.
I Dont Understand How People Can Be This Sick
Thats Like Killing My Own Pony
It’s a betting sport in some cultures, Sherry, just as there are dog fights and cock fights.
this is disgusting, i am studying blood sports at college but i had no idea horse fighting went on. i have horses of my own and they are the most sensitive animals i know.
this makes me feel sick
I HAVE 3 HORSES OF MY OWN AND I COULD NEVER EVEN IMAGIN LETTING THEM FIGHT OTHER HORSES. ITS CRUEL AND DISCUSTING. PEOPLE WHO LIKE THIS SORT OF THING OR LET THEIR HORSES FFIGHT AGAINST EACHOTHER ARE NASTY. AND I WISH THEM A PAINFUL DEATH IF NOT BY A HORSE THEN BY ANOTHER PERSON. HOW DARE THEY LET THESE HARMLESS ANIMALS DIE THIS WAY. WHAT DID THE HORSE BREEDS EVER DO TO THEM????
IF YOU CAN ANSWER THAT THEN YOU MUST BE A GENIOUS.
I agree with every point i have just read up there ^ why on earth humans feel they are superior and have the power to treat animals in this way i do not know, people who make this happen deserve to die, i bet they would feel different if it was their family put in a ring to fight like this, if anything to this extent happenend to humans it would be thought horrific and disgusting by everybody and the criminals would be jailed for life or even killed, so why is it different when it happens to animals, they share the same emotions as us, so why not have the same treatment. They are cleverer than people think and I pray that one day – whether or not its a hundred years from now – that animals will learn to speak our language and then i’m sure the world would be a different place. These people will pay one day for what they have done . . . i believe karma is true and they will feel the pain they have inflicted on these magnificant creatures.
until then i moarn for all the creatures who are stuck in this time warp of cruelty and ignorence 
OH MY LORD
WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH PEOPLE HORSE FIGHTING, DOG FIGHTING
I AM SURE THAT THE BEAUTIFUL HORSES THEY TORCHER AND STARVE WOULD NOT FIGHT EACH OTHER WHY WHY WOULD PEOPLE FORCE THEM TO FIGHT FOR MONEY F***ING SICK MOTHER F***ING PEOPLE AND THE SICK BASTARDS CAN BE PART OF ANY RACE OF HUMAN WHICH IT MAKES ME SICK TO ADMIT I AM PART OF THE SAME SPECIES AS THESE F***ING PEOPLE WHO SHOULD BE TIED UP AND CUT IN TO LITTLE PEICES WHY IS THIS SITE EVEN ALOUD ON THE INTERNET WHAT THE F*** SICK F***ING PEOPLE OH MY GOD WHERE IS A GUN WHEN YOU NEED ONE MENTALLY UNSTABLE PEOPLE LIKE THESE IN THIS SITE DESERVE TO BE TORCHERED SLOWLT LIKE WHAT THEY DID TO THE ANIMALS THEY CAUSED SO MUCH SUFFERING TOO>> WHO EVER APROOVED THIS SITE IS THE SICKED MOTHER F***ER ALIVE!
SICKEST MOTHER F***ER ALIVE********************
i love horses it is very sad to say that it is also a tridition to them. I love horses and hate the people who fight them. I have been with horse for many many years and the one with the men holding the horse and it getting bucked in the face, the man is smiling like happy, that horse most likly snapped its jaw and ws in alot of pain, they also then eat horse meat there after it and it could be the one that lost just inhumanly slaughtered for them.
sd
sd
This is horrible
OMG!!!! That pisses me off so badly! I am a senior in high school and I want to go to college to become a therapist for horses! How can this be allowed to happen? Gambling on lives? This injustice just cannot stand! Tradition? Ha! I spit on their so called ‘tradition’!Let’s put them in a little ring and make them fight!
Wow this is the second site i have seen just like this. Seriously this is f***ing retarted.These people should just fu***ing kill themselves. the
its sick to see people do this to our loved animals like it makes me so mad to see people do this ! horses are my favoroute animal and i hate to see people do this i am doing my oarl on horse fighting and i want to try to teach my class more about this . im going to put up posters and going to try to get a point across to people ! im so mad looking ad the videos and for people to smile in the croud i would just jump and break up the fights or at least i would like to think that i can !!!!!!!!1
i would love to kill every goddamn idiot who gets animals to fight.these clowns and losers are to retarded to care about anyone but themselves.i hope my belief in karma will result in them get horrofic injuries or hopefully worse maybe death slowly by fire or a dibilatating disease.as whats the point in having people like that in this world.its like you treat people the way you want treated.it is a noted fact that people who are involved in animal cruelty are usually criminals with low iq and of course a bad upbringing and are the ones most likely to commit crimes not just minor the sick ones. as above put a bullet in these people and save the horses!!!.because they will never support or care about anything expect the next dollar or themselves.
tell them i will fight them to the death if they want to come to my door!! grrr it make me so angry these people!
oh my gosh… seeing stuff like this is absolutly HORRIBLE! horses are meant to be our companions! they want to be our friend! theyve been beside us for so long, and what do we do to repay them? stick them in a ring to fight to their death? sick! these horses could have been happy horses in a good home, and that is even sadder to think that people do this… >:(
omg!!!! those people are soooooooooooooooooooooooo terrible!!!! they didnt even do the simplest thing to clip thier hooves!!! im 110 percent devistated i am goin to do somthing about this if its the last thing i do i WONT stand for this.
OMG!! MY favorite animal is a horse. I cant believe people are so heart!!!!! We are doing a speech at school about i picked horse abuse but when i started to dig around i made a dession. Ia sked my teacher if i could presteneed it to the class then the entire school at an essembly. And i did the school and i did something about it we raised money and saved 57 horses from that cruel sport we moved them to a few of my friends farms and sold them to good people. Also i am only 12 years old and i started this. Image what Canada can do!! Of only 556 kids from grades pre k to 8!! Also just one person speaking out!! That was a year ago we did this but we are planning to save the money to shut the whole thing down one small step at a time we are still moving horses to my friends farmss!!go my friends they gave there farm to me to use and we go from school to there 34 stundent my friends!!
i cant beleve people would do such thing .. im a horse loverr i would kill them people .x 14 years old .
horrible! that is the most supied game i have see ! no anyone stop them? this people dont have a brain!
This is SO cruel! I cant believe this this is mean! how can they enjoy this?
lmao damn the us should bomb Asia again fucke those ppl dnt deserve 2 live they should just all die fucken chinks they cnt even see so wats the point of them living
This is disgusting. I have my own horse and i have seen him in a fight but nothing like this. how someone could watch a horse fight like this. it wouldnt be nice if someone beat you to the point of insanity, starved you and then put u in a ring with food in the middle and made you fight for it. not cool. some of those horses could have had a beautiful life in a paddock or a field somewhere and loved by a little family, given apples over the fence by the kids when they get off the bus. but instead they are made to kill each other. its sick. sick sick sick.
seein this page you are going to get done im the rspca and have had a discussion about this together and is very shocked to see this we are all willing to stop this. any one have the guts to go this awell please do!
these people are so messed up! i googled this because i figured it would help if i was more aware, but now i’m so sick to see what people can do, that i don’t know if i’ll be able to sleep! once school starts up again, i’m doing a project on this! the more people that know about this horrid treatment of horses the better!! how dare they make such beautiful, majestic animals fight! one of my horses was abused before he was rescued and it makes me so sad, but this is so much worse! how dare they! if i could make them pay for what they did…. oh they would suffer so much!!! they would wish they’d never been born! horses have the same feelings we do!! and what’s sad is the horses are more humane then we are! how would we feel if we were forced to fight! those poor mares in the middle! being forced to mate over and over… good God! this is the height of cruelty! in my opinion this is as bad as abortion! maybe worse! at least the babies never really knew what they would be missing out on!! it was just a little pain… but they never got to live
but the pain that we’re causing these horses! i say we because humans in general have caused so much harm to the planet. i think the world would’ve been a much better place if God had never created us. but he did so we should take care of what he gave us. not destroy it and make his animals fight to the death just so they can mate. its barbaric. what are we now, medieval???? is it suddenly the dark ages? wtf are we thinking? dog fights… cock fights… are we insane???? they all need to die! terrible deaths…. that makes me feel better thinking about how i could kill them…. violent i know.. but in my opinion, they deserve every bad thing that happens to them
I think you guys covered it. I’m not shocked to hear that horses are fought, along with dogs and chickens and other animals. It’s barbaric. These animals do so much for us, and it’s not a good way for them to die. Or live. Or anything!
I hope that some day we realize that these people deserve to be on death roll, the same punishment as human-killers.
This is just… ugh. So disgusting. It’s embarassing, besides!
The thought that someone in *my* species would ever do something so cruel to an animal so helpless, just wanting to be loved? Innocent, friendly horses that put their life into your hands, and hope that you give them food, water, shelter, love, groom them, let them play and run free, not caged up to fight to their bloody, horrible deaths.
And for what, exactly? Fun? OK, there are a LOT of other things you could do for fun! Umm, waterpark? Skiing? Snowboarding? Go for a walk. Swim! Play a sport… put a puzzle together. Watch funny youtube videos. Maybe RIDE your horse(s)! For money? Well get a REAL JOB!!!!
I know where my next vacation is going to be. Philipines here I come, just dont ban the fun before I get a chance to see it.
People who did this have sick minds and should be shot at sunrise.
Y the hell do these bitches do this? If i asked 1 they’d probably be like “I am having my horses fight for money” in some a-hole asian voice
Umm. . . i have no trouble believing people are capable of such ugliness, but i never thought that ugliness could stretch to a species i consider my family. we have rescued several horses, and have one now that was beaten on his face. a lot. he is so trusting now, it’s hard to believe how people can do this kind of thing to these beautiful creatures. when you look at them, what do you see? i understand, though don’t like or agree with, the fact that these people see money, and a way to make a name for themselves and their “things”. horses are just a means to an end to them. but to all you people who are against this, it’s not just the asians. i would probably bet my horse, and that’s saying a lot, that this happens in the us too. so are you going to start cussing your own race out too? it’s not totally collective, so don’t stereotype.
I THINK IT IS MEAN HOW THEY TREAT THE POOR ANIMALS
I FORGOT TO SAY IT ALWFULL AND MEAN AND IF U WAS AN ANIMAL OULD YOU LIKE TO BE TREATED LIKE THAT …
MY GUES NO YOU WOULD NOT SO DONT TREAT THEM LIKE THAT IT IS UNFAIR AND IM 12YEARS OLD
wow this is bull these animals were put on this earth to be loved not for fighting these people need to die or realize thier going to hell
i dont know why people like watching horses fight.???
its horrible, i wish i could go and tell those people who do that everything i think about them!!!
it upsets me alot……
they r HORRIBLE