Ahead of cockfighting season, Viagra, Shilajit to boost roosters in Andhra Pradesh

The onlookers take part in the celebration by placing bets on the winning bird, and hundreds of crores are wagered during these spirited competitions.

As the fervour surrounding cockfighting intensifies in Andhra Pradesh with Makar Sankranti being around the corner, breeders are administering Viagra doses and other steroid-laced food to roosters to "enhance" their performance.

For the unversed, cockfights are considered an integral part of Sankranti celebrations and witnessed in rural Andhra across regions such as undivided Guntur, Krishna and the two Godavari districts, reported The Times of India. Illegal cockfight arenas come up in these regions ahead of Sankranti festivities, which falls between January 14-16 this year.

The onlookers take part in the celebration by placing bets on the fighting birds, and hundreds of crores are wagered during these spirited competitions. Roosters are trained to engage in "fights to the death" spectacles.

What led to the need for administering hormone-boosting drugs?

According to TOI, a viral disease 'Ranikhet' has left the roosters weak and not fit enough to engage in cockfights. With Sankranti approaching, breeders are resorting to feeding the birds with hormone-boosting drugs -- Shilajit, Viagra 100, and vitamins.

The trend has worried veterinary experts who are of the opinion that while the dose will give the birds a high in the short run, but the effects of the drugs can cripple them in the long run. It can result in mutations and render them harmful for humans when they consume such poultry.

The publication further pointed out that for the first time, aphrodisiacs are being administered to the birds, even though their efficacy on roosters remains unclear.

One such breeder explaining why they have resorted to drugs, told the publication, "We spent a fortune on saving the fighting breed of birds from the disease. But what we found was that the birds are now lacking in strength. This is the short-cut to make the birds ready for Sankranti."

"The drugs are fed just before the fight for better results. We have been conducting tests and so far the results have been encouraging," he added.