Kaanchon kai (cock fighting) is the name of a brutal blood sport that, although illegal, banned or restricted in most countries, is still widely practiced in Thailand, as well as in many other countries of Southeast Asia.

The cocks are pitted against each other and bets are made. Often the birds are injected with stimulants to heighten their aggression and when a bird is down and wounded during a fight, it is re-pitted until it is incapable of being revived and a winner can be declared.

King Naresuan the Great was a huge enthusiast of cock fighting and stone sculptures of cocks arer often found at shrines ans monuments devoted to him (fig.).