Sheriff's deputies made what they called Santa Fe County's first cockfighting bust on Wednesday after finding dead and live roosters at a residence in La Cienega.

No one was at home in the dilapidated mobile home at 14 La Cumbre Lane, about 13 miles south of Santa Fe and three miles beyond The Downs at Santa Fe.

No arrests had been made, and deputies were still looking for the names of the people who rented the property. But late Wednesday, two people showed up at the home and were being questioned by deputies.

In addition to three dead roosters and about 20 live ones, ferrets, guinea pigs, dogs and baby turkeys also were found in homemade cages or wandering around the dirt yard.

Sheriff Greg Solano said his office received an anonymous call about 3 p.m. Wednesday that there were dead roosters in the yard and that cockfighting went on there Tuesday in a fenced area that now held two puppies.

By 5 p.m., a half-dozen deputies and animal-control officers were at the scene, taking photographs and looking for evidence.

Deputies found syringes that Solano said could have been used to inject steroids into the roosters. He said the roosters' natural spurs had been removed so metal spurs could be attached for fighting.

Solano said he would wait for a search warrant before going inside the mobile home, where he expected to find more animals. Animal-control officers planned to impound all the animals, none of which had any obvious signs of abuse.

Veterinarians would be called in to examine the live animals and the carcasses of the dead ones, Solano said.

"We have evidence across the field here of roosters that have been dumped," he said. "Maybe the animals took the carcasses, but the feathers are still there."

Solano said they're trying to determine who lived in the mobile home. He said he understands the owner lives elsewhere and was renting the place. Nearby neighbors said they did not know the names of the occupants, a couple with no children who kept to themselves and were seldom at home. The neighbors said they knew nothing of cockfighting there.

The sheriff said the people who rented the mobile home would likely be charged with cockfighting and animal abuse, both felonies. The Legislature outlawed cockfighting in 2007. Louisiana was the last state to ban the bloodsport in 2008.

Solano said this is the first cockfighting case he's seen in his nearly eight years as sheriff. "The closest have been up in the Edgewood area, but just outside of Santa Fe County," he said. "We haven't had any before in Santa Fe County. ...

"That was the first, but I was expecting to find one sooner or later. They happen throughout New Mexico. ... We've always heard rumors, but never had a specific address to go to."

Contact Tom Sharpe at 986-3080 or tsharpe@sfnewmexican.com.