Organized horse fighting is ablood sport between twostallions which is organized for the purposes ofbetting or entertainment.[1] Although combat between horses occurs naturally in the wild, death or serious injury in naturally occurring animal fights is almost always avoided by ritualized behaviours or the withdrawal of one of the combatants.[2]
Fights often take place in a fenced ring, which prevents the more submissive stallion from retreating, as it would do in a naturally occurring contest. Two stallions and amarein heat are brought into the ring by human handlers. The mare is then removed, but kept in the vicinity so that herscent lingers, although in some fights she is tethered to a pole at the center of the ring. At this point, the stallions will often spontaneously attack each other. Those who do not are whipped or startled with loud noises to provoke them into a frenzy. Horse fights may be staged in rounds, or as one-off bouts. These fights often result in significant injuries, or death, of the stallions, because the combatants have no ability to withdraw.[3] Horse fights may last between 15 minutes to three hours and have been criticized for their brutality and violence.[4] Defenders of organized horse fighting have claimed that the death of horses in organized horse fighting is rare or non-existent, and implied that this makes fighting bans unnecessary.[5]
Organized horse fighting is a traditional observance ofChinese New Year among theMiao people that has occurred for more than 500 years.[1] Though illegal according to national law,[6] it is also widely practiced in the island ofMindanao in thePhilippines where, as of 2008, approximately 1,000 horses were being bred annually for horse fights.[7] Organized horse fighting has also been recorded inThailand, inSouth Korea'sJeju Province, onMuna Island inIndonesia, and among medieval Norse settlers inIceland, where it was known ashestavíg.[8][9]