The Associated Press has begun the countdown to the cockfighting ban in Louisiana, the last state where the blood sport is still legal. On Friday, cockfighting in Louisiana becomes illegal; gambling on cockfights became illegal last year.
"The culture, the custom of the Cajun people, it's gone," said Chris Daughdrill, who breeds fighting roosters in Loranger (lor-AHN-zher), a community about 50 miles north of New Orleans. "It's another one of the rights that big government has taken away from the people."
Maybe so, but supporters and opponents agree that the blood sport won't be wiped out entirely. Like bootlegging, cockfights will continue on the sly in remote areas, and getting caught could mean fines or even prison.
First-time offenders face fines of up to $1,000 and six months in prison.