Chinese bull trainer Wang Youxiu says he didn't realize Spanish bullfights end with the matador slaying the bull. Too cruel for Chinese bull owners, he says. 'We are too emotionally attached to our bulls,' he explains. 'Even when they get old, we don't kill them. We sell them to far-away places.'
中国驯牛师王优秀（音）说，他以前并不知道西班牙斗牛是以斗牛士将牛刺死而结束比赛的。他认为，对公牛的主人们而言，这样做太残忍了。王优秀说，“我们与牛有着难以割舍的感情。即使他们老了，我们也只会将他卖到远乡，绝不会屠杀他们。”
Though hardly a well known pastime, Chinese bullfighting has grown in tandem with the country's economy. Where farmers used to stage showdowns in fields for beer money, matches these days can involve purses as high as 50,000 yuan (nearly $8,000), and one town in Yunnan province - where the tradition was born - even has a new bullfighting arena.
中国式斗牛虽然算不上是一种广为人知的娱乐活动，但这项比赛随着经济的发展也变得颇具人气。过去，斗牛只是农民赚点零花钱的田间消遣，现如今，这项赛事的奖金已高达五万元（将近8000美元），而作为斗牛比赛发源地的云南某小镇甚至已专门为此新建了一座斗牛场。
But some animal-rights advocates think the Chinese sport ought to be halted because it's also cruel to pit bull against bull even if the bulls survive the fight. 'There shouldn't be any type of animal fighting or performing for human entertainment,' says Hua Ning, a Beijing manager for the International Fund for Animal Welfare. The bulls 'may hurt themselves during the fight and the noisy crowds who are watching the fighting make the animals very stressful.'
一些动物权利保护人士认为，即使参赛的公牛能够在比赛结束后幸存下来，但人们让牛在角斗场上互相厮杀、一决胜负的过程也很残忍，所以应该禁止这项运动。国际爱护动物基金会(International Fund for Animal Welfare)中国项目主任华宁说，不应该出于娱乐目的而进行任何形式的动物角斗或表演活动。她还表示，公牛可能在角斗中负伤，而观战的人群声音嘈杂，这会让角斗动物压力倍增。
Some bulls do die in the Chinese-style bullfighting. Bull trainers say that one dominant bull, Optimus Prime, has killed one or two opponents with his fierce charges and maimed perhaps a dozen others so severely that they can't fight again. His fans say that shows he is 'meng'-a Chinese word that translates roughly as scary-fierce. 'This is a pretty dangerous sport,' says Mr. Wang.
的确有公牛在比赛中毙命。驯牛师王优秀称，牛王擎天柱就曾用猛攻让一两位对手当场死亡，还曾使十几头公牛高度伤残，他们后来再也无法参加比赛。擎天柱的粉丝们认为，这恰恰彰显了他的“猛”。王优秀说，“中国的斗牛是非常危险的运动。”
University of Washington anthropologist Stevan Harrell explains that bullfighting has long been associated with Torch Festival, a harvest festival celebrated by China's Yi minority. The bull fights illustrate 'the spirit of sport and competition between and clans and communities and the importance of livestock in people's lives,' he says. There are also horse races and wrestling matches during the festival, he adds.
美国华盛顿大学(University of Washington)的人类学家郝瑞（Stevan Harrell）解释说，斗牛一直是中国彝族人民在庆丰节日“火把节”上的传统活动。斗牛比赛诠释了运动精神，展现了宗族、部落间的竞争关系，也凸显了牲畜在人们生活中的重要性。郝瑞补充说，在火把节上，除了斗牛，还有赛马、摔跤等活动。
The bull trainers say they take good care of the bulls, which sometimes get gored during the fights. The ground around the bull fights in Damogu was littered with empty boxes of lidocaine hydrochloride, a local anesthetic, used for wounds. The trainers say they don't give the animals drugs to make them act more fiercely and they need to keep the bulls healthy to fight again and to work as farm animals between matches.
驯牛师称，有时公牛在比赛中会被牛角划伤，但他们都受到了悉心的照料。在大莫古斗牛赛场周边，随处可见盐酸利多卡因的空盒子。盐酸利多卡因是一种局部麻醉剂，驯牛师用它来为公牛的伤口止痛。但驯牛师称，他们不会为了取得好成绩而使用兴奋剂，因为得保证公牛身体健康，这样他们才能多次参加比赛，也能在没有比赛的日子里干点农活。
In the past few years, promoters say they have tried to reduce violence. Trainers are forbidden from sharpening a bull's horns - though the rule didn't seem to stop some of them from doing just that at Damogu. A match is also called off after six minutes to stop the bulls from exhausting themselves. At that point, bull handlers tie a rope around a back leg of each bull. Then 10 men grab each rope and pull the bulls apart. Both bulls are declared winners and advance to the next round.
斗牛赛的组织人员说，过去几年里，他们一直在尝试降低比赛的暴力程度。比如，禁止驯牛师削尖牛角。尽管如此，在大莫古的斗牛赛上，还是有人无视禁令，为了胜利铤而走险。再比如，如果双方对峙了六分钟还未分出胜负，比赛就会终止。驯牛师这时会用绳索套住牛的一只后腿，10名男子一起用力拉绳子，强制将两头牛分开。这种情况下，双方都算胜出，晋级下一轮比赛。
That isn't sufficient, says Kitty Block, vice president for Humane Society International, who says 'traditions founded on animal cruelty need to evolve.' She suggests celebrating cultural history 'in dance and music where the animals are an element' in the performance. She points to England where hunting foxes with hounds was banned - though not completely - as an example of customs that change with the times.
但国际人道协会(Humane Society International)副总裁布洛克（Kitty Block）认为这些举措是不够的。她说，“这些基于动物虐待行为的传统需要改进了。”她建议将动物元素融入舞蹈和音乐中，通过表演的形式欢庆传统文化。她指出，英国已经禁止利用猎狗追捕狐狸的行为，虽然禁得不够彻底，但这也算是传统习俗与时俱进的例子。
Chinese Bull fight promoter Bi Jiangang, isn't convinced. 'We don't think it's a cruel sport,' he says. 'We really treat the bulls very well. The owners of the bulls even have a hard time sleeping if the bulls are sick.'
中国斗牛比赛的组织人员毕建刚并不赞同上述看法,“我们觉得这不是一项残忍的运动，大家都善待自家的牛。如果牛病了，主人们会彻夜难眠。”