By Jason Emerson

Editor

Roosters are some of the most abused animals on the planet. Even though cockfighting is illegal in all 50 states — and is a felony in 42 states — the bloody sport still exists. But what happens when cockfighting rings are broken up and the roosters rescued? Who wants to take in animals that are bred to fight to the death?

The people at The Haven at Skanda in Cazenovia believe it is not only ethical but absolutely possible to rehabilitate and re-home rescued roosters, and they have had a rooster sanctuary at their farm for the past two years. Recently, Skanda became an official partner with the ASPCA to take in rescued roosters.

“The common response is to euthanize them [after breaking up a cockfighting ring], but our personal experience is that you can rehabilitate them,” said Piama Gilbert, a volunteer and animal caregiver at The Haven at Skanda. “It takes enormous patience and being non-reactive. … They are so devalued. They have been used and bred for fighting since Roman times, but we have found they are deep, thoughtful, sensitive, caring creatures.”

According to the ASPCA, cockfighting is a blood sport in which two roosters specifically bred for aggression are placed beak to beak in a small ring and encouraged to fight to the death. In organized cockfights, the roosters’ natural fighting instincts are exaggerated through breeding, feeding, training, steroids and vitamins. Just before a fight, most of the bird’s feathers are plucked and the breeder cuts off the animal’s wattles—the combs below the beak—so that his opponent cannot tear them off.

Cockfighting is illegal in all 50 states and is a felony offense in 42 states and the District of Columbia. The possession of birds for fighting purposes is prohibited in 39 states and the District of Columbia, and being a spectator at a cockfighting event is illegal in 43 states and the District of Columbia.

In 2017, the ASPCA rescued nine roosters from a fighting ring in New York City and asked Skanda if they would take them in. The Haven at Skanda provides “a loving home to rescued and endangered animals where they can relax, live in their own natural rhythms of life, and emerge into who they really are,” according to the organization’s mission statement. The Haven started in 2013 after taking in and rehabilitating 14 wild ponies that were on the brink of death. Since then, the organization has expanded to include more animals, to educate children on animal care and to offer numerous community events and activities.

After receiving the first group of roosters, Skanda created the Skanda Rooster Sanctuary: a place where abused roosters can come to experience love, tenderness, joy, and freedom for the first time.

In addition to being bred for aggression and trained to fight, these roosters have been kept in cat carriers or small containers in windowless basements, never seeing the sun and never being in a community. “We help them relax, help them know they are safe and discover their natural behaviors,” said Skanda Executive Director Ellen Beckerman. Skanda volunteers play soothing music, hand-feed them, and give them healthy, delicious foods. They also keep them in larger enclosures where they can walk around, jump on a branch and perch and just stand in the sunshine.

“Our approach is that each animal is different and seen as totally unique. It’s all about seeing them for who they are” and “following their lead” during rehabilitation, Beckerman said.

The rescued roosters suffer basically from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTSD), just like a person would after being in war, suffering trauma, where danger lurks around every corner, Gilbert added.

Skanda is working to expand its rooster sanctuary to design more structures for the animals to live in, to continually develop the organization’s knowledge and education component about roosters and share that with the public, and to develop a public awareness campaign about such animal abuse. The slogan for the program, to be printed on T-shirts with the image of rooster, is “No one should be forced to fight.”

“We would love to put a dent in the issue of fear and misunderstanding of roosters,” Gilbert said. “It would be great to be part of a grassroots effort to improve this.”

“If people want to learn about roosters and adopt them, we absolutely welcome that,” Beckerman said. “We hope to become a real center in this region for taking care of animals.”

Of course, doing these things takes support, and The Haven at Skanda is always seeking volunteers (the organizations is 100 percent volunteer run) and monetary donations, as well as people interested in adopting rehabilitated animals.

For more information on The Haven at Skanda and all they do, visit thehavenatskanda.org.