Here are 13 statements about dog fighting that I hope will inspire you to do something – anything, large or small – to help eradicate it.
Dog fighting in your community
1. Dog fighting increases dog attacks. Dogs that are trained to fight are notoriously hard to control and contain. This leads to innocent children suffering serious bites when a fighting dog escapes.
2. There’s a connection between dog fighting and gangs. People who fight animals are often involved with gangs and illegal activities. This means that, along with a blood sport, gambling, drugs and weapons are introduced into your town.
3. It’s more prevalent than we think. Or at least than I want to believe. According to the Anti-Cruelty Society, 1 in 6 Chicago schoolchildren have attended a dog fight.
4. It’s a danger to your pets. It’s a painful and horrifying thought, but cats, rabbits and smaller, docile dogs are stolen and used as bait to train fighters.
5. Dog fighting leads to disease and filth. People who fight animals do not want their dogs to be happy and healthy. A fighter is more effective if he’s aggressive and unhappy. Therefore they don’t provide the same comfortable environment for their dogs that petowners provide their companion animals. Urine, feces, spoiled food and carcasses can make these kennels a breeding ground for disease and a haven for vermin.
6. Fighters seldom become pets. These dogs are so battered, so ill from malnutrition, that they are simply too dangerous to be adopted.
7. Pit bulls are being demonized. In order to reduce dog bites and animals attacks, some communities have entertained “breed-specific legislation” that bans anyone from owning a pit bull. The problem is not the dog, it’s the inhumane asshole that torments and trains the dog to fight.
Protect yourself and your neighborhood
8. Abandoned houses and garages are often used as illegal kennels and fighting dens. If you suddenly hear loud music (often used to cover the barking and howling) or notice unpleasant odors emanating from a building you thought was empty, notify the authorities.
9. Report animal cruelty. Remember, people who use dogs as fighters or as bait don’t love them. And cruelty to animals is against the law. So if you see a dog tethered all day, or yelled at and yanked and hit excessively during a walk, let the police know.
10. Keep your dog on a leash. It’s easier to protect your dog from an encounter with a fighter if your dog is leashed.
11. Keep your cat indoors. When your cat is sitting on a windowsill, watching the world go by, you don’t have to worry about her being used as bait to teach a dog to kill.
12. Teach children to be respectful of dogs they don’t know.
13. Get involved! It’s a big problem, but there are things you can do to make a difference! Much of this information comes from Chicago's Anti-Cruelty Society, the ASPCA and the HSUS. These organizations provide strong voices for dogs and against this hideous bloodsport, and could use your financial support. Consider asking local law enforcement and your neighborhood animal shelter to discuss this problem in churches, schools and other gatherings. Information and action are power!
Links to other Thursday Thirteens!
1. Jennie Boo refers us to 13 of her blogging buddies (I've visited some of these blogs and they are very good)
2. Damozel revisits the best of HL Mencken
3. Candy Minx says she has the worst album covers, and she doesn't lie!
4. Help Nancy out by visiting her TT and taking a food quiz
5. Suprina shares her favorite board games (like Boggle)
6. Sue's TT is about a subject she is an expert on
7. Lori shares helpful home remedies
8. Nicholas introduces us to 13 men better known by their middle names
9. Visit Susan for a verbal snapshot of the typical Shapeshifter fan
10. MamaLee's TT is hysterical -- sick, but hysterical
11. Joyful Days applies what she's learned from Harry Potter
12. Crimson Wife tells us what NOT to get her for Christmas
13. L-squared shares some 13 random thoughts -- and an adorable puppy photo
14. Malcolm takes us along down memory lane for his favorite concerts and live performances
15. Marina shares what's on her desk right now
16. Jane's TT is verbal and witty
17. Dog-loving Terra has her iPod on for us
18. Robin's TT is filled with adventures planned for her & her daughter
19. Impworks takes us time traveling
20. Ed's Thread is his favorite old TV shows
21. Qtpies shares some of the delicacies kids have consumed
22. Like Oprah, Sparky Duck loves the color purple
23. Amy shares her many emotions and moods
24. Practical Chick returns to the TT with a fun list
24. Nancy's TT is about the month of August
25. Kelly shines the light on a problem she and I share: overindulging in retail therapy
26. Lara reminds us how our favorite TV series ended
27. Enter Nicole's lair and see what's in her TBR pile
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ReplyDelete#3 is quite frightening! I had no idea the stats were that high ... :( Just horrible.
ReplyDeleteThank you for listing this. It is a problem we are all responible for. Those pups can't fight for their rights!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing.
Happy TT!
An excellent if rather saddening post...thanks! I hear about this sort of thing happening, but I've never personally heard of a case. I'm against the death penalty period, end of story, but when I hear about deliberate cruelty to animals or the use of animals as entertainment, I feel quite aggressive.
ReplyDeleteHi, this gave me so many things to think about...I was very surprised at a lot of the information...very very interesting and how things are all connected. I am in shock that 1 out of 6 kids in chicago have seen a dogfight!
ReplyDeleteHere is my list, not as profound as yours, more in fun
http://gnosticminx.blogspot.com/2007/08/worst-album-covers.html
Holy Cow. This is why I love T13. You always find stuff that you did not know about. What is up with taking your kids to a dogfight?????
ReplyDeleteSo sad, awful,terrifing....
ReplyDeleteYou brought great awareness to the problem.
Awesome TT!
Thanks, everyone! After I saw the first flippant and completely unfunny comment, I thought I'd made a mistake in posting this. I appreciate you all taking it in the spirit in which it was intended.
ReplyDeleteI hate dog fighting....its just cruel:(
ReplyDeleteYou are very right to bring this to everyone's attention. It is far more widespread than most people know.
ReplyDeleteRegarding point 7: Yes, pit bulls are being demonized, and yes they have been made the way they are by assholes who breed them to fight. But the fact is, after all this breeding, the result is a very dangerous, unstable breed of dog. They can never be trusted and you can’t safely have a pit bull as a household pet. I saw many instances of what they are capable of when I was a police officer in England (where such dogs are now all but banned). “My dog wouldn’t hurt a fly.” says the owner, and it is absolutely true, right up to the moment the dog attacks someone – like the pit bull that turned on its owner when she switched on the vacuum cleaner and ripped her throat out. It is not their fault that they are that way, but because of being specially bred for fighting and aggression by assholes, they are untameable wild creatures and it would be best if the breed died out.
Yep, not a dog fighting fan over here. Scary stuff, and the cruelty involved is what nightmares are made of.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tips. Let's hope we can make a difference.
Nicholas, thanks for your thoughtful reply, but we're going to have to agree to disagree on this one. I've been studying this, too, and I don't think the information is there to allow an entire breed to die out. And it's more complicated than that, anyway. If a dog is 75% pit bull, should he be allowed to live? 80%? Oh well, we agree on dog fighting, and that's the important and IMMEDIATE issue.
ReplyDeleteSo sad.
ReplyDeleteImportant info, for sure.
Happy TT!
Good and informative, albeit terribly sad post. I cannot believe how cruel people are.
ReplyDeleteWell said.
This is just AWFUL. I also was surprised to read how prevalent this is!! People who are cruel to animals usually do not treat humans that are smaller & weaker than them much better either.
ReplyDeleteMy heart is breaking for all the poor animals involved in this vicious subculture :-(
ReplyDeleteI read somewhere that a pattern of cruelty to animals is one of the early warning signs of a sociopath.
Good for you for sharing this kind of information. I agree with you 100%, everyone needs to do their part of prevent dog fighting. It's just awful!
ReplyDeleteThanks for this very eye-opening post. The stat about 1 of 6 Chicago kids having attended a dogfight is scary.
ReplyDeleteVery nice theme this week, good to see some people doing timely posts (aside from Harry Potter!).
ReplyDeleteHappy T13!
Excellent tips. Very informative.
ReplyDeleteThis one touches my heart... I live in such a small area I don't think this actually happens here, but I love that you are throwing it out there for people to hear.
ReplyDeletePit bulls are not one specific type of dog, there are so many put in this "class" many people would loose their dogs that don't even know this is what their dogs would be classified as...
I have one that would be put in this class, she is the sweetest dog I have ever had... So much love to give...
Sorry I didn't mean to ramble! :)
I've never heard of dogfighting being an issue here in Israel, I certainly hope it isn't. What a cruel thing to do.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you entirely but I'd have to go with Nicholas on #7. If you've ever been bitten by a dog that would supposedly never bite anyone and was not provoked in any way other than walking past it makes you hard to persuade otherwise. Certain very specific breeds, which can be identified by qualified experts (I wouldn't know how to but thats why we have experts), have been bred to be vicious. As genetics is now revealing that some violent human behaviour has a genetic components as well as an environmental component is it really to hard to believe the same is true of dogs bred to fight for hundreds of years?
ReplyDeleteBut yes dog fighting (as with all other forms of animal fighting) is a nasty, vicious business that should be stamped out.
Oh, Impworks, I realize that you are sincere but I don't think you or Nicholas will ever get me over to your argument. Again, at what point does a pit mix become a dangerous pit bull? What about Rottweilers? German Shephards? I've known terriers to be little demons but because of their size they aren't as feared. Where does it stop? And bringing up human genetics in this context makes me queasy. So while I appreciate your thoughts, let's agree to concentrate our energies on the hideous topic at hand, which is the abuse of these dogs -- as well as cats and rabbits.
ReplyDeleteGreat tt about a problem that is too wide spread. We as a society and law enforcement must step up efforts to end this criminal abuse of animals and each other. This takes us back to the decadence that ended the Roman empire.
ReplyDeleteEd
I really can't imagine that happening in our neck of the woods! But it probably does.
ReplyDeleteWe used to live next door to pit bull breeders. They loved them and treated them well, but the could NOT let their male dogs be near each other, ever, one day it happened accidentally (thats what huge drinking/drug parties will do to you) and one killed the other, both nearly died.
I was always afraid for my kids. Even though the momma dog was always great with my kids and their kids.
A big reason that all my cats will always be indoor cats. And your right, its not just pit bulls, though hell they still scare me.
ReplyDeleteVery informative post. So sad though!
ReplyDeletebrilliant!
ReplyDeletewhat makes me so upset about this whole Michael Vick situation is that the media feels, in order to educate, it must show video of actual dogfights. I don't think that needs to be plastered all over television.
my TT are up!
I hope to high heaven they make a public example out of Michael Vick. If they sent Martha Stewart to the slammer and no one or no animal was injured - they should lock him up and throw away the key!!
ReplyDeleteI love that you did a TT with a cause! I think that Michael Vick has kind of made it come into the spotlight a little more, in an extremely horrible way.
ReplyDeleteThank you for posting this! I will link it from mine!
Hey Gal,
ReplyDeleteYou know how I feel about this. Animals are just little human beings to me and should be treated as such. Of course, you know what they say about society and how it treats its animals and children. Anyway, you were quite right and brave to post this and now I have to go get a tissue.
Your ol' pal
Eeek, eek! I don't want to think about it either... but I guess we must. Thanks for sharing it, and happy TT!
ReplyDeleteYou've got a good list here. It's a terrible sport that leads to abuse of people. My TT is up.
ReplyDeletehttp://collectingmythoughts.blogspot.com/2007/08/thursday-thirteen-13-things-to-check.html
Great reminders! My TT is up - 13 things about my vacation.
ReplyDeleteMichael Vick has sure brought this issue to the attention of the world. He's a spoiled rich jerk who deserves to go away for a very long time.
ReplyDeleteKarma is catching up with him though.