Cockfighting is not legal in Puerto Rico. A federal ban enacted in the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 made sponsoring, attending, or facilitating an animal fight a federal crime everywhere under U.S. jurisdiction, including Puerto Rico, and federal courts have upheld that ban against every challenge brought by the island’s cockfighting industry. Anyone involved risks up to five years in federal prison and fines reaching $250,000.
What the Federal Ban Covers
Before 2018, federal animal-fighting law contained a carve-out for jurisdictions where cockfighting was legal under local law. Puerto Rico fell inside that carve-out, along with the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands. Section 12616 of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 removed the exception language from the Animal Welfare Act, extending the federal prohibition to every U.S. state, territory, and commonwealth.1govinfo. Public Law 115-334 – Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018
Congress built in a one-year grace period, so the ban took full effect in Puerto Rico in late 2019. Since then, organizing a fight, exhibiting a bird, attending as a spectator, or supporting the industry through breeding, training, or transport has been a federal offense on the island.
Puerto Rico’s Own Law Does Not Protect You
In 2019, Puerto Rico’s legislature passed Act No. 178-2019, a statute that purported to authorize galleras, associated betting, and the wider cockfighting industry to keep operating under the Department of Sports and Recreation’s oversight. The law was framed as a defense of cultural and economic tradition. It has no legal force against federal prosecution.
Industry proponents sued to block the federal ban, arguing that Congress exceeded its Commerce Clause authority, that cockfighting was expressive conduct protected by the First Amendment, and that the ban violated due process. In January 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit rejected each argument. The court found that cockfighting is closely tied to commerce through wagering, entertainment, and the interstate movement of animals and spectators; that staging a fight would not “reasonably be understood by the viewer to be communicative” in a constitutional sense; and that there is no cognizable liberty interest in operating animal fights. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the case, leaving the First Circuit ruling in place.
Under the Supremacy Clause, federal law overrides conflicting local law.2Congress.gov. Constitution Annotated – ArtVI.C2.1 Overview of Supremacy Clause A permit or license issued under Puerto Rico’s Act No. 178-2019 provides no defense in federal court.
Federal Penalties by Role
Penalties are set out in 18 U.S.C. § 49 and scale with how someone is involved.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 49 – Penalties
- Sponsoring or exhibiting a fight, running an arena, or putting up a bird is a federal felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 per violation.4U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. Animal Fighting: AWA Provisions and Penalties
- Buying, selling, possessing, training, transporting, or delivering a rooster for use in a fight carries the same felony penalties: up to five years and up to $250,000.
- Attending a fight as a spectator is a federal offense carrying up to one year in prison and a fine of up to $100,000.
- Causing anyone under 16 to attend an animal fight is a separate, more serious offense carrying up to three years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
Each violation is charged separately. Someone who organizes an event, brings birds, and brings a minor can face multiple stacked counts.
Gaffs, Advertising, and Transport Are Also Crimes
Federal law reaches well beyond the fight itself. Under 7 U.S.C. § 2156(d), it is illegal to sell, buy, transport, or deliver in interstate or foreign commerce any knife, gaff, or other sharp instrument designed to be attached to a bird’s leg for use in a fight. Trafficking in this equipment carries the same five-year felony exposure as organizing a fight.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 7 USC 2156 – Animal Fighting Venture Prohibition
Using the U.S. Postal Service or any interstate communication to advertise fighting animals, fighting equipment, or cockfighting events is also a federal crime under the same statute. That covers social media posts promoting matches and online listings for gaffs. Moving roosters between jurisdictions for fighting purposes creates additional charges, with each bird potentially counted as a separate offense.
Seizure of Birds, Property, and Money
Federal agents can obtain warrants to search for and seize any animal believed to be involved in a fighting venture. Under 7 U.S.C. § 2156(e), seized animals are held by U.S. marshals or authorized investigators and must receive necessary veterinary care while in custody. If forfeited by the court, the animals can be sold for lawful purposes or disposed of humanely.
The cost of caring for seized roosters falls on the owner, recoverable in the forfeiture proceeding or through a separate civil action. For a large breeding operation, veterinary and housing costs alone can be financially punishing before any criminal sentence lands. Federal authorities can also pursue forfeiture of property used to facilitate a fighting venture, including vehicles, arena structures, and cash.
Enforcement in Puerto Rico
The ban is being actively enforced. A March 2025 operation in San Juan brought together ICE, the FBI, the DEA, U.S. Marshals, Customs and Border Protection, and the ATF, with support from the Puerto Rico Police Bureau, and produced dozens of arrests in a single raid. Agencies typically associated with drug and organized-crime work are treating cockfighting operations as targets.
Cockfighting has not disappeared. It moved underground, into unlicensed venues in rural areas and on private property. That shift raises the risk for everyone present. There is no regulatory oversight, no licensed veterinarian on site, and no legal protection of any kind. From the moment the first bird enters the ring, the organizer, the handlers, the bettors, and the spectators are all committing federal crimes.
The USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service accepts complaints about suspected animal fighting through its online complaint system, and federal agencies coordinate with Puerto Rico’s local police to work tips.6APHIS. File an Animal Welfare Complaint Investigations frequently build on transportation records and communications, both of which can expose participants long after any given event.