Cow fighting

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A cow fight in the amphitheatre at Martigny, Switzerland.

Cow fighting is a traditional Swiss event which determines the leader of the herd. Unlike bullfighting, wherein humans fight bulls, cow fighting pits cow against cow.

Each year, the Swiss state of Valais hosts a series of cow fights known as "Combats de reines" ("Combat of queens"), which began in the 1920's and has drawn as many as 50,000 spectators in a year. The winner is called "La Reine des Reines" ("the queen of queens") and increases dramatically in worth. At the end of the year, a grand final is held in Aproz, where the six best from seven districts do battle in six weight categories.

The cows come from the local Herens breed. Since females are generally less aggressive than bulls, the animals tend to be less inclined to fight. With their horns blunted, the fights often become nothing more than a pushing contest. Any cow that backs down from a fight is eliminated until one cow is left standing in the ring. It sometimes happens that the cows in a fight refuse to engage in physical contact with each other at all. Each fight can take up to 40 minutes.

Similar events take place in France, in Haute-Savoie, and also in the Aosta Valley of Italy.