Forced to fight to the death

• Dogfights organised in northern China to celebrate end of Spring Festival
• Outraged animal rights activists call for new laws to protect dogs
• But organisers defend brutal bloodsport as simple 'entertainment' 
• WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT 
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Gathered in their hundreds, spectators crowd round to watch as two dogs are forced to fight to the death in barbaric cages.

These shocking scenes from northern China drew outrage from animal rights activists in the country, who have called for a change in the law to protect the canines.

But the local villagers who organised the event have defended the dogfights as necessary 'entertainment' in an isolated part of the country.

Barbaric: These shocking scenes from northern China drew outrage from animal rights activists in the country

Bloody: The competition was open to anyone who brought a dog along and the winner of each bout was rewarded with a pack of cigarettes and a china mug

Spectacle: Hundreds of people turn up to watch the dogfights in northern China, which are held to mark the finale of the Spring Festival celebrations in the region

The dogfights, which lasted over several days, were organised by six villagers in Sanjiao village in Jishan county in northern China's Shanxi province to mark the finale of the Spring Festival celebrations. 

The competition was open to anyone who brought a dog along, and the winner of each bout was rewarded with a pack of cigarettes and a china mug.

One of the organisers, Shi Pan, 45, protested that because the village was in a poor rural area, the locals had to resort to creating their own entertainment.

He said: 'People in the city criticise our dogfights but they have all sorts of money to pay for entertainments which we don't have access to. We have to organise things to entertain ourselves.'

While banned in some countries, dogfights are a common attraction in northern China which hosts more than 100 festivals each year attracting visitors from neighboring provinces and tourists alike.

Police have said the event did not breach any laws and that there have been no official complaints.

They added that some of the people who who turned up had allegedly grabbed stray dogs off the street, and claimed they were their pets. 

Attraction: While banned in some countries, dog fights are a common attraction in northern China

Violent: Despite the vicious scenes sparking outrage, organisers have insisted that the dogfights are part of the traditional 'entertainment' in the area

Brutal: The dogs are forced to fight to the death in cages, leading to calls from animal rights activists for new cruelty laws

Rural: Organiser Shi Pan declared the dogfights as a 'great success' and added: 'We plan to do the same thing next year'

China has no animal cruelty laws, and a person who damages a dog or another animal can only be prosecuted for damaging property if the animal belongs to somebody. 

Dogfighting is illegal, but only if it involves bets. Simply allowing the animals to fight purely for entertainment comes into a grey area where it is difficult to prosecute anyone involved.

Chung Lu, an animal rights activist in the country said, said: 'Events like these are exactly why we need a functioning animal cruelty law in China, because people do that they want and get away with it unless they know the law can stop them.' 

But a defiant Shi Pan said: 'It was a great success, we plan to do the same thing again next year. And we don't care what the people in the city say.'