EUNICE, La. — It’s a Mardi Gras tradition that dates back to the late 1800s.
In Cajun Country, just a few hours west of New Orleans, participants go from house to house on horseback asking for food “donations” to make a community pot of gumbo.
Then, they chase the chickens that will go into the gumbo, and the revelry continues all day.
According to the St. Landry Parish tourism website, the courir was abandoned for a few years during WWII, but it was revived in 1946.
Today, more than 2,000 people participate in the courir, or the “chicken run.”
See video of the annual tradition above, courtesy KATC in Lafayette.