Michael Vick's Abused Pit Bulls Are Given A New Leash On Life
If there's anything that upsets me as much as the abuse of innocent children or the elderly, it is the abuse of innocent animals. I've done many posts here dealing with the outrages of pet/animal abuse, and it is my opinion that anyone who treats a poor creature in this manner doesn't deserve to walk the streets free.
That is why it is nice to see an article such as the one I read this morning, on the pit bulls owned by former Atlanta Falcon Michael Vick. Michael, if you recall, was the starring QB of the team, who's star was rising and who had everything in the world at his fingertips...yet he chose to live a secret life that centered around dogfighting, and who's actions either directly or indirectly contributed to the abuse, torture, and death of his animals and those of other kennels. Discovery of his secret life ultimately led to his arrest and incarceration at Leavenworth for twenty-three months on Federal charges, not to mention an upcoming trial on two state charges which could merit him a ten-year sentence.
Forty-seven pit bulls were found at his property, most of whom were in such bad shape physically and psychologically that it was thought there was no hope for them to ever be rehabilitated. Traditionally, dogs rescued from dogfighting kennels are put down, but in this case more than half were sent to various rescue organizations and shelters. The twenty-two worst cases were sent to Best Friends Sanctuary in Utah, a center which attempts to remold the dogs from fighting animals to loving pets, or at least give them a comfortable place free of pain and fear in which to live out their days. For the past two years, the show DogTown on National Geographic Network has followed the animals as they attempt to, for once, have a real life:
There's Cherry, an animal so terrified of people he cannot even walk when a human is around. His perpetually cowering stance convinces assistant dog care manager John Garcia and veterinarian Patti Iampietro that he must have been used as a "bait dog" to train the champions. Denzel is anemic and ill, and no one can figure out what's wrong. Meryl is so hyper-aggressive toward humans that the court has ordered she must always stay at Dogtown, while Georgia cannot be around other dogs without attacking. And no wonder. Her scars indicate she was possibly a "championship" fighter, which explains why she has been bred repeatedly and abusively — at some point, all her teeth were removed to make, as Iampietro surmises, the forced breeding less dangerous to the other dog. Continued on the next page
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