Call me a hopeless dreamer, but I really thought we were going to get a bit of a break from hearing news about professional athletes taking part in vicious blood sports. The latest is that New York Mets all-star Pedro Martinez was videotaped taking part in a cockfighting event in the Dominican Republic. Cockfighting is still legal in the Dominican Republic, so Pedro wasn’t actually breaking any laws, but there’s a reason that it’s illegal in this country: It’s a hideously cruel, barbaric practice that’s nothing short of torture for the animals involved. I know the guy has a reputation for being a headhunter, but this is taking it a bit far, don’t you think? The damage is done now, sadly, but we’re asking Pedro Martinez and Hall of Famer Juan Marichal (who was also present at the event) to take part in our ”Developing Empathy For Animals” training seminar, which Michael Vick voluntarily attended after being charged, so hopefully some good will come of it. We’re also calling on the league to offer animal-sensitivity training for MLB players.

You can read our letter to Pedro Martinez here, and there’s a great post on the story by Deadspin’s Rick Chandler here.

Finally! Yesterday afternoon, four months after similar legislation passed in New Mexico, Louisiana's governor, Kathleen Blanco, signed a bill that will make hers the final American state to ban cockfighting, effective next August. Just to hammer this one home, that means that cockfighting will be outlawed throughout the United States by next year. Yes, there are a couple of nagging questions, like "Why do we have to wait until next August?" and "Why the hell was cockfighting ever legal first place?" but this is really, really good news for roosters, and for everyone who has been working so hard to protect them from this horrible abuse.

mnwelldir/Creative Commons

Props in particular go to Rep. Harold Ritchie, D-Bogalusa, who worked on this bill for more than a year to push it past the numerous people who stand to lose money if cockfighting is outlawed. And congratulations, of course, are due to all the activists who have given their precious time over the years to make this a reality. Go team!

After literally decades of work by concerned citizens and celebrities like Rue McClanahan and Bill Maher and the relentless dedication of Senator Mary Jane Garcia, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson has signed a bill to ban cockfighting in the state. This was Garcia's 20th year introducing the bill to ban the vicious bloodsport, so this is a massive victory for her, for everyone who worked to raise awareness about this issue, and of course for the countless birds who are forced to fight to the death for the amusement of onlookers every year.

I'd love to say that this means that cockfighting is illegal throughout the United States, but unfortunately there's still one holdout: Everybody's looking at you, Louisiana.

Needless to say, this is pretty huge, and a lot of people have been working really hard to make this happen. If you'd like to take a moment to thank Sen. Garcia for her dedication to helping birds in New Mexico and Gov. Richardson for his compassion in signing this bill into law, their contact info is below. And if you live in Louisiana, you can click here to contact your legislators and ask them (politely) what's the big holdup.

The Honorable Mary Jane M. Garcia
New Mexico Senate
Box 22
Dona Ana, NM 88032
maryjane.garcia@nmlegis.gov

The Honorable Bill Richardson
Office of the Governor
490 Old Santa Fe Trl., Rm. 400
Santa Fe, NM 87501
E-mail