BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) -- A ban on violent hog-baiting events, already passed by Louisiana's House, cleared a Senate committee Tuesday, with one senator saying event supporters themselves supplied the best evidence for enacting the restriction.

Although these events -- in which pit bulls are set loose on squealing pigs in pens -- are known to take place in only two Louisiana parishes, Washington and East Feliciana, the proposed ban has attracted widespread publicity.

Rural residents and some of their legislators have complained that city folk are picking on the country, a theme that emerged in Tuesday's Senate Judiciary "C" Committee.

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The ban's sponsor, Rep. Warren Triche, characterized it as a "cruelty to animals" effort, saying he was simply "trying to prevent something that is violent, cruel, inhumane, barbaric and downright sadistic." It was banned in Alabama following the broadcast of a graphic television report on one such event in a rural county.

Fans of the practice say it harmless and necessary for the training of hunting dogs who catch wild hogs. Tuesday, several appeared before the committee, and one, Becky Miley of Washington Parish, told the senators her family's livelihood would be affected if the state shut down its hog dog competition.

"We also find many things folks do in big cities distasteful," Miley said.

Her defense brought a sharp rejoinder from state Sen. Ken Hollis, R-Metairie, who told the committee that materials supplied by advocates of "hog dog" events were convincing evidence that the ban was necessary.

"You've given enough information here to make us all want to be co-authors" of the ban, Hollis said, citing "page after page of misspelled words" and photographs of small children watching the violent pig-baiting.

Hollis advised advocates to "teach them reading and writing," instead of bringing them to hog-dog events. That, in turn, brought an angry rejoinder from Miles, who said some of the material supplied to Hollis came from "our star football players" as well as "straight-A students."

The ban, House Bill 1244, protects hunters who train dogs to catch wild hogs. It passed unanimously, and now moves to the full Senate.