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 wild elephant that strayed into the town moves through the streets as people follow at Siliguri in West Bengal state, India, Wednesday, February 10, 2016. The elephant had wandered from the Baikunthapur forest on Wednesday, crossing roads and a small river before entering the town. The panicked elephant ran amok, trampling parked cars and motorbikes before it was tranquilized. (Photo by AP Photo)

Women stand on a street ahead of the Lunar New Year celebration at the Chinatown in Bangkok, Thailand, February 10, 2021. (Photo by Chalinee Thirasupa/Reuters)

(L-R) Poppy Delevingne, Model of the Year Cara Delevingne, Joan Smalls and Karlie Kloss pose in the winners room at the British Fashion Awards at London Coliseum on December 1, 2014 in London, England. (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)

A man rides a horse through a bonfire as part of a ritual in honor of Saint Anthony, the patron saint of animals, in San Bartolome de Pinares, about 100 km west of Madrid, Spain on Thursday, January 16, 2014. On the eve of Saint Anthony's Day, hundreds ride their horses through the narrow cobblestone streets of the small village of San Bartolome during the “Luminarias”, a tradition that dates back 500 years and is meant to purify the animals with the smoke of the bonfires and protect them for the year to come. (Photo by Emilio Morenatti/AP Photo)

Fishermen jump into a small river to catch trout as they celebrate Fischertag (Fisherman's Day) in downtown Memmingen, southern Germany, July 25, 2015. The annual Fisherman's Day (Fischertag) tradition goes back to the year of 1465 where every fisherman who were born in Memmingen tries to catch trout from the river. The participant who catches the biggest trout will be named the “Fisher King” for one year. (Photo by Michaela Rehle/Reuters)

Lítla Dímun is a small island between the islands of Suðuroy and Stóra Dímun in the Faroe Islands of Denmark. It is the smallest of the main 18 islands, being less than 100 hectares (250 acres) in area, and is the only uninhabited one. The island can be seen from the villages Hvalba and Sandvík.

People in traditional Chinese costumes attend a parade to celebrate the upcoming Year of the Dragon on January 28, 2024 in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province of China. The Spring Festival, or the Chinese Lunar New Year, falls on February 10 this year. (Photo by Yang Bo/China News Service/VCG via Getty Images)