Are you missing a rooster?
If so, the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office may have a lead on it for you.
The owners of 18 roosters are being sought after sheriff’s deputies broke up a suspected cockfighting event in Lodi over the weekend.
After receiving a report that cockfights might be underway near Kettleman Lane/Highway 12, deputies launched a drone that spied about 150 vehicles parked in an orchard, the office said Wednesday. Many onlookers fled as deputies arrived to investigate.
It isn’t the first time the Sheriff’s Office has been called to investigate reports of cockfighting. In January 2025, deputies found a cockfighting ring on north Atkins Road, east of Lodi. They discovered five dead roosters and several live ones, along with paraphernalia associated with cockfighting. Two people were arrested.
Cockfights, popular in Mexico, are widely banned in the U.S. because of the animal cruelty involved. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals describes the events as “a blood sport in which roosters are placed in a ring and forced to fight to the death for the ‘amusement’ of onlookers.”
In the Lodi incident on Sunday, authorities said they found 18 roosters inside one of the vehicles at the scene. The birds were taken into the care of county Animal Services officers. The search is on for their owners.
“If any of these roosters belong to you, please contact the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office,” deputies said on social media.