One of the birds rescued from a cockfighting ring on Feb. 6, 2011.

EL DORADO COUNTY (CBS13) – Two men are under arrest and nearly 250 birds euthanized in connection with a large cockfighting operation, according to El Dorado County officials.

The operation was discovered after a routine traffic stop on Sunday in Diamond Springs. El Dorado County Sheriff’s deputies pulled over a pick up truck and noticed a suspicious box in the back of the truck.

When deputies opened the box, they found two roosters with injuries consistent with cockfighting. They also found several metal blades known as “slashers” that are typically strapped to the legs of fighting roosters.

Deputies arrested the driver, Saul Cuevas Ayala, and passenger, Rogelio Reyes-Higareda, on charges associated with cockfighting.

Later that day, deputies and Animal Service Officers served a search warrant at Ayala’s Grass Valley home and uncovered what officials are calling a fairly large scale cockfighting operation. They found nearly 250 game birds and fighting implements.

Unfortunately, none of the birds connected with the raid over the weekend in El Dorado County could be saved. “The birds were humanely euthanized because they were either in bad shape physically or their behavior was too aggressive for them to be rehabilitated,” said Henry Brzezinski, Chief of Animal Services. The investigation is ongoing.

According to Brzezinski, hidden cockfighting operations in El Dorado County communities and other rural areas of the Sacramento region are more common than most people realize.

States surrounding California consider cockfighting to be a felony offense, California considers it a misdemeanor. “This may be one of the reasons why we are seeing more cockfighting operations here,” said Brzezinski.