Walking in the town our first day, I passed three men at the local tourist bureau standing around two cocks watching them stare down each other. A cock fight is a common blood sport between two roosters, known as gamecocks and it can be really messy and grotesque.

Unlike press accounts regarding cockfighting, these roosters did not wear razor blades or knives on their legs and in one foul swoop it’s over – gory. To the contrary, these combatants get injured from pecking each other on the top of the head during their fight and smashing body to body. The roosters fight to assert dominance and fight till the end.

This short video has no blood but gives you an idea of the tenacious nature of cocks. Cockfighting is now illegal throughout the United States and in most of Europe but in Asia is still popular. It appears that prestige, bragging rights, and pride were at stake this time.

After checking, gambling is legal in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic so there are plenty of heavy waging in plain view. For these bouts an arena is constructed of bamboo posts and cardboard walls from recycled refrigerator boxes.