Dog Fighting Justice

Where are Michael Vick's Dogs Today?

Sep 8, 2008 Whitney Moore

In 2007 former NFL Quarterback Michael Vick was sentenced to 23 months in prison for dog fighting but today we see this story does have a happy ending for his dogs.

Not everyone is a fan of Pit Bulls but we all want to see justice done on behalf of the abused. In 2007 pet lovers, animal welfare activists and animal rights activists saw this kind of justice in action when NFL Quarterback Michael Vick was sentenced to 23 months in jail for running an illegal dog fighting ring in Surrey, Virginia.

Justice for Many

The operation was conducted on his 15-acre property and involved 48 surviving dogs. Not only did Vick conduct test fights and evaluate how well dogs performed in fighting but he helped kill dogs that did not do well and conducted illegal gambling on the property also.

Many who saw the dogs thought that they would never be rehabilitated but 22 of the dogs were rescued by Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Kanab, UT and some there are up for adoption. Others have already been adopted and Michael Vick was also sentenced to pay out $950,000 for rehabilitation and evaluation of the dogs.

Happy Endings

While some of the dogs have had to make their final homes in the sanctuaries that took them in for aggression not all of them were unadoptable. In fact, only two of the dogs had to be euthanized one for aggression and one for the pain it still was suffering from the trauma of dog fighting. Some of the dogs who are up for adoption were used as “bait dogs” meaning that they were used as targets for the more aggressive dogs to be trained with because they had the most gentle personalities.

Four of the dogs rescued by Best Friends Sanctuary are profiled at the website Whiotv.com. These four dogs were also featured on National Geographic’s special “Dog Town: Saving the Michael Vick Dogs.” Two of the dogs in this case have become therapy dogs bringing joy, hope and loving attention to adults and children with terminal illnesses.

Dog Fighting and Society

The Humane Society of the US reports that there are 40,000+ formal dog fighters around the country and over 100,000 people involved in dog fighting informally. These people are also more likely to become violent toward people after being involved in this type of crime. Dog fighting is also found to harbor illegal drugs, firearms and gambling activities.

For those who wanted to see how this case developed over time and involving such a well known sports figure Animal Planet produced a special episode of their show “Animal Witness” called “The Michael Vick Case.” “Animal Witness” airs Wednesdays at 9pm and you can read about the special at their website.

The copyright of the article Dog Fighting Justice in Law, Crime & Justice is owned by Whitney Moore. Permission to republish Dog Fighting Justice in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Michael Vick was sentenced for fighting pit bulls