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Published: August 7th 2007
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My last stop in Ecudaor before heading off into Colombia was the market town of Otavalo. A bustling and colourful affair, Otavalo´s Saturday market is one of Ecuador´s finest. Great for people watching. My favourite sight was a women walking around with twenty fluffy duckings waddling behind her, ready for sale!
The indoor meat market was also interesting. It seems that NO part of any animal goes to waste. I saw sheets of stomach lining and coils of intestine being sliced into managable chunks. There were boxes of chicken heads and chicken feet, and great vats of animal bits being rendered down into blocks of fat to sell. But the prize specimen had to be a bucket of beef pieces with part of a cow´s lip on top, complete with hairs, gums and a couple of teeth!
In the evening we sampled some local "entertainment" with a difference. We walked down a dark and deserted side street and entered a non-descript doorway. Inside were a crowd of local men, lined up with their cocks on a table. Some of the men were stroking theirs, and some of the cocks were puffing themselves up to look bigger. Yes, that´s right,
we were at a cockfight!
Most people regard cockfighting and other bloodsports as cruel, immoral and barbaric. I do myself actually, but I was also intrigued by the whole event. Do they just give each other a damn good pecking, or is it a savage beakfight to the death? And just how do you turn a normally placid chicken into a lethal feathered killing machine? Also, how can anyone truly rant and rave about the cruelty of it unless they have actually experienced it firsthand? I had to see it for myself.
Anyway, we saw the cock lineup, watched the weigh-ins, then went into the cockfighting arena. It was a walled circle about 6 metres in diameter, covered in red carpet, surrounded by 4 concentric rows of seating. There were men and women of all ages, and for some it seemed to be a family outing. (Possibly followed by a visit to KFC for a bargain bucket, courtesy of the losers). There was a stack of cages at the back, and the air was filled with cries of "cock-a-doodle-doo" from our feathered friends.
The first contender was brought into the ring, and then the "fluffer" came in.
The job of the fluffer is to get the cock enraged, get him in a flap. Or you could say ruffle his feathers. The fluffer held another chicken, sneaked up behind the fighting cock and lowered the other. The held chicken lashed out and pecked the cock firmly on the head! The cock turned around in suprise and lunged at the other chicken, only to find an empty space as the fluffer lifted it clear. It was brought down again for another peck then lifted away again before the cock could attack. This continued for a while, with the fluffing chicken being swung around everywhere while the cock tried to rush it. The cock was then held while the process was repeated with the second contender.
It was soon time to begin. The two cocks were placed down and there was a "ding-ding" bell just like in boxing. The two cocks charged at each other in a blur of feet and feathers. Some savage pecking ensued,'punctuated by fluttering leaps in the air and kicking of feet. Each cock has a shapr spike attached to the back of each foot, and they would swing it down to try and wound
the other. Feathers were flying everywhere, and it was like a fight in a pillow factory.
Suddenly, one cock was down and the other one jumped on top, got in a pecking frenzy and had to be pulled off. Eventually, the second cock was exhausted and wounded. There was no blood, but it could hardly get up and showed no interest in fighting back. the first cock was declared the winner.
To be honest I´d rather have seen cock-wrestling than cock-fighting. That would have been a much more gentlemanly affair, with the cocks getting each other in headlocks and half-nelsons, and doing drop-kicks and body slams. This was quite savage. I didn´t bet on the fight, and in fact I didn´t even have a favourite that I was egging on (no pun intended). An interesting experience, but we left after the first fight, and I don´t think I´ll be returning
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Francoise
non-member comment
Gosh.
I think you had great courage to go and see this...This the men that we should make fight and bet on them...Like the Gladiators.would be more funny..... I am like you,i am against this kind of this...but after all ..... Take care.