[ SHOWGSD-L ] from yesterday's Fresno Bee.........Michael Vick
- From: Peggy <pmick12@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: gsd list <Showgsd-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 23 Jul 2007 12:28:38 -0400
Hooray for Bill McEwen!!!!
Quarterback's case outs secretive world of dogfighting
By Bill McEwen / The Fresno Bee
07/22/07 05:49:20
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The federal indictment of Michael Vick, star Atlanta Falcons quarterback
and Nike endorser, in one fell swoosh has dragged dogfighting into the
national spotlight.
Pick a subjective word for this blood sport. Vicious. Gruesome.
Inhumane. Some sick souls would say it's honorable.
Whatever you choose, know this: Dogfighting is illegal in all 50 states.
It's a federal crime. And it's happening in the San Joaquin Valley,
where another barbaric excuse to gamble -- cockfighting -- is big business.
You can check out video of a dogfight at CNN.com., or allow me to spare
you the horror.
Dogs bred and trained to fight, most often American pit bull terriers,
attack each other in a confined space until one can't continue.
Death can be quick, such as when a dog rips out an opponent's jugular.
Or it comes later, the result of shock, lost blood or bad doctoring by
the dog's owner. Court documents in the Vick case allege that losing
dogs were killed by drowning, strangulation, gun shots and electrocution.
About 40,000 people are involved in organized dogfighting in our
country, according to the Humane Society of the United States. The
society estimates 100,000 more, many of them gang members, match dogs in
impromptu street fights.
"Dogfighting exists here for sure," says Kirsten Gross, animal-control
officer for Madera County. "A lot of dogs come in with serious bites."
Or worse.
"We see deceased animals and animals that are really torn up in our
[night] drop cages," Gross says. "We don't know where they come from."
Injured dogs are brought in because they're worthless to owners.
Fighting revolves around gambling, and the prospect of money and
bragging rights.
An incapacitated dog is a drag on the owner's wallet -- dog food costs
money -- and a reminder of defeat.
Until federal investigators, with help from the Humane Society, zeroed
in on Vick and three co-defendants, dogfighting largely had remained
underground as it spread from the rural South to other parts of the country.
Thanks to the Internet, enthusiasts easily can buy dogs and equipment,
learn the cruel training techniques and talk with one another. How
exciting it must be for them to exchange e-mails about cattle prods,
steroid injections, bait animals and toughening up dogs with regular
beatings.
"The Internet has brought two groups to prominence, and that's the
pedophiles and the dogfighters," Mark Kumpf, director of an Ohio animal
shelter, told The Virginian-Pilot newspaper of Norfolk, Va.
Still, the fights remain cloaked in secrecy, a frustration to law
enforcement. Prospective dogfighters are checked out thoroughly by
participants before they're allowed into the twisted society.
Fresno County sheriff's spokesman Chris Curtice says that while deputies
have broken up cockfighting rings, he can't recall dogfighting arrests.
A Fresno police representative says gang officers see dogs trained for
fighting, but not actual fights, because most matches are in rural
locations.
"I'm sure it goes on because pit bulls are everywhere in this county,"
Curtice says. "You go out on a call, and you can tell which ones have
been involved in fights."
Curtice says the Vick case might yield tips that help local authorities
crack down on dogfighting: "Every time we have something big in the
news, people tend to notice things more."
Here's a bonus: Tips about suspected dogfighting might lead to arrests
for other crimes. "Along with dogfighting comes all kind of ugliness,"
Gross says.
"Illegal activities balloon. Someone capable of doing that to an animal
won't have any qualms about doing something to a person."
Vick's indictment, in the least, should squelch the dogfighting
subculture in professional sports. Other athletes linked to dogfighting
include basketball player Qyntel Woods -- arrested for fighting his pit
bull "Hollywood" in 2004 -- and former Dallas Cowboy Nate Newton.
A few months ago, when asked about dogfighting, Washington Redskins
running back Clinton Portis said, "It can't be too bad of a crime."
I doubt he'd say that now.
The columnist can be reached at bmcewen@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
<mailto:bmcewen@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> or (559) 441-6632. Check out his blog at
fresnobeehive.com.
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