People in Mexico wave at U.S. Border Patrol agents on horseback patrolling the U.S.-Mexico border fence near San Diego, California, U.S., November 10, 2016. (Photo by Mike Blake/Reuters)

Participants wrestle while riding yaks during Kyrgyz national horse games and festival near the Tulpar-Kul in the Chon Alai range, some 3500 metres (11483 feet) above sea level, Osh region, Kyrgyzstan, July 25, 2015. (Photo by Vladimir Pirogov/Reuters)

In this June 29, 2018 photo, a wild horse shakes off dust near a watering hole outside Salt Lake City. Harsh drought conditions in parts of the American West are pushing wild horses to the brink and forcing extreme measures to protect them. (Photo by Rick Bowmer/AP Photo)

An old locomotive train that was used for transporting coal is preserved as a monument at Ny-Alesund, in Svalbard, Norway, October 11, 2015. A Norwegian chain of islands just 1,200 km (750 miles) from the North Pole is trying to promote new technologies, tourism and scientific research in a shift from high-polluting coal mining that has been a backbone of the remote economy for decades. (Photo by Anna Filipova/Reuters)

A Syrian youth Khaled from Raqqa walks on snow wearing slippers in the Bekaa Valley refugee camp in Lebanon after the first heavy snow storm hit Lebanon, January 3, 2016. (Photo by Jamal Saidi/Reuters)

Workers polish a snow sculpture ahead of the 16th Harbin Ice and Snow World in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, December 22, 2014. The 16th Harbin Ice and Snow World will be officially opened on January 5, 2015. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

It’s a tradition that dates back hundreds of years, where two stallions fight over a female to ring the Chinese new year. And when it’s the Year of the Horse, the fights are considered to be even more significant. They’re held in small villages across southern China and have been condemned by animal rights groups, including Hong-Kong based Animals Asia. But those who participate in the events defend the fights and insist they take care of the animals.

A horse smiles at the camera. See the beautiful images of horses gleefully playing in Iceland mountain ranges. The horses have been spotted smiling and cuddling in remote locations across the nation. (Photo by Bragi J. Ingibergsson/Caters News)