While U.S. Customs and Border Protections is used to seizing drugs (or even black market Botox) at Cincinnati’s Port of Entry, a recent package revealed sporting equipment for fowl play.
According to a CBP press release, the questionable package – arriving from Mexico and headed to a residence in Corsica, Texas – arrived at the Cincinnati Port of Entry on May 3. CBP inspected the package and discovered 10 pairs of leather cockspur covers and 10 cockfighting knife sheaths.
According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, cockfighting is a “blood sport” in which two roosters are placed in a small ring and encouraged to fight to the death.
“During a cockfight, the birds are placed in a pen face-to-face and commonly use these spurs to kill or incapacitate their opponent,” reads the CBP press release. “Spurs are so dangerous that handlers are often slashed by their own bird.”
CBP said handlers are able to protect themselves from injury by using these sheaths and coverings. The covers and sheaths are illegal under the Animal Welfare Act (AWA), which was signed into law in 1966. It’s the only law that regulates the treatment of animals in exhibition. The Farm Act banned cockfighting in all 16 U.S. territories in 2018. Cockfighting is also a felony offense in 42 states and the District of Columbia.
Buying, selling, delivering, or transporting instruments to use in animal fighting is illegal under Title 7 U.S. Code 2156, according to CBP.
“The improper manifesting of contraband as a harmless or legitimate commodity is a common tactic used by some ill-intended reporters to elude further examination,” said LaFonda Sutton-Burke, director of CBP Chicago field operations. “However, CBP officers are trained and vigilant in the detection of those types of tricks and work hard to make sure these prohibited items stay out of our communities.”
This article appears in Apr 30 – May 13, 2025.