Mountaintop Natural Pets

Source: ShawangunkJournal.com, October 29, 2009

BULLVILLE – The shocking October 7 discovery of four dead pit bulls, tossed in a dumpster at Ron’s Auto Electric on Route 17k, was the first indication of an unpleasant probability.

Now, with the autopsies conducted on the animals by Cornell University College of Veterinarian Medicine in Ithaca, early suspicions have been confirmed. The four dogs, two female and two male, were fighting dogs. Lieutenant Dominick Blasko of the Town of Crawford police had said that, “The tearing of flesh, the bite marks, could only be caused by dog fighting.”

The autopsies concluded that the pit bulls died of blood loss from their wounds.

“I expect that these were the losing animals,” said Kristin DeJournett of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).

As for the callous way their bodies were disposed of, she said, “This is how we commonly see these animals dumped.”

Lieutenant Blasko said the dogs had been dead for a few days by the time they were found. Since they were found on a Wednesday, that suggests the dog fights took place on the previous weekend, October 3 and 4.

“Four bodies like this is indicative of more than a backyard fight,” said DeJournett. “This would be a larger, more organized fighting ring.”

Worse yet, it could well be that the fights are being staged in Bullville.

“Dogfighters are very underground,” said DeJournett. “They pick remote locations, the more remote, the more desirable. People will drive from other cities, even from other states, transporting dogs for dogfights.”

In that case, what would people look for?

“If you see a lot of cars show up on a weekend night at a place where that is really unusual, and you also hear dogs barking where there usually isn’t barking, that’s a good tip off.”

DeJournett warned that, “There may well be drug running and weapon exchanges going on, because those activities are commonly found in the dog fighting world.”

She also noted that more and more people are reporting instances of dog fighting. “The Michael Vick case was important that way,” she said, referring to the infamous case from a few years ago when former professional football player Michael Vick was convicted and sentenced to prison for dog fighting crimes. “Before that case, most people thought dog fighting had died out. Now they know better.”

She also explained that prosecutions for dog fighting are difficult to obtain, because in many states and jurisdictions, police must actually witness the fights. However, prosecutions for owning wounded animals and fighting paraphernalia are more common.

“It can happen anywhere,” said DeJournett, “from the richest neighborhood to the poorest ghettos.”

PETA is offering a $2,500 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of anyone involved in dog fighting; call 757 622 PETA.

Meanwhile, Lieutenant Blasko asks that anyone with any information about this investigation, please contact the Town of Crawford Police at 744-3300.

Source: Associated Press

A Bay Area pit bull advocacy group says Michael Vick has declined an invitation to visit eight of his former dogs this weekend when the Philadelphia Eagles are in town to play the Oakland Raiders.

The group BAD RAP (Bay Area Doglovers Responsible About Pitbulls) told The Associated Press on Wednesday that it extended the invitation through the Eagles to Vick last week to view his former dogs that were part of the dog fighting operation at Bad Newz Kennels in southeastern Virginia.

BAD RAP co-founder Tim Racer said the group picked a location that would have allowed Vick to view the dogs from behind a window at a distance that satisfied the conditions of his parole that bar him from being near animals.

Racer said the Eagles informed him Wednesday that Vick would decline the offer. An e-mail sent to an Eagles spokesman was not immediately returned.

“We understand Vick is trying to right his wrongs and is very interested in redemption, but you can’t find redemption without acknowledging your victims,” Racer said. “Making amends to the dogs themselves would have helped to create some closure for many of us, especially those people who worked so hard to keep them from being destroyed. It seems that Vick is not ready to go there.”

Oakland-based BAD RAP absorbed 10 of Vick’s dogs into its foster program after being given permission from the federal government to evaluate and rescue as many of the dogs as possible.

Sunday’s game against the Raiders is the first road game for Vick since being reinstated to the NFL following an 18-month prison sentence for his involvement in a dogfighting ring. A spokesman for the animal rights group, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, said it has no plans to protest the game.

Source: OpposingViews.com, September 21, 2009

Dogfighting is against the law in the United States, and the great majority of people, except for a small number of individuals involved in illegal dogfighting, consider it morally wrong.

But what about videos of dogfighting?

It’s not something most people would want to watch, but should those videos be protected as free speech under the First Amendment? It’s a question the U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to answer.

The case in question involves a man named Robert Stevens. He did not participate in actual dogfighting, yet he compiled and sold videos of the actual fighting. That act alone got him convicted under a 1999 law that bans trafficking in “depictions of animal cruelty.” He was sentenced to 37 months in prison. But last year a federal appeals court overturned the conviction on First Amendment grounds.

The bill was originally designed to address what a U.S. House report called “a very specific sexual fetish” — videos of women crushing small animals. Even when President Clinton signed the bill, he expressed reservations prompted by the First Amendment and instructed the Justice Department to limit prosecutions to “wanton cruelty to animals designed to appeal to a prurient interest in sex.” But the Bush Justice Department pursued at least three prosecutions for the sale of dogfighting videos, including Stevens.

At his trial, experts for the defense said the videos had educational and historical value, noting that much of the footage came from Japan, where dogfighting is legal. A veterinarian who testified for the prosecution disputed that, saying the videos depicted terrible suffering, including scenes of dogs that were “bitten, ripped and torn” and “screaming in pain.”

Another video shows pit bulls being trained to attack hogs and then hunting wild boar. Stevens participated in the hunting and filmed parts of that video. The encounters are brutal and bloody. But so are some encounters between animals and their prey shown on nature documentaries that air regularly on television.

Stevens’ brief for the Court says:

“While acts of animal cruelty have long been outlawed, there have never been any laws against speech depicting the killing or wounding of animals from the time of the First Amendment’s adoption through the intervening two centuries.”

The brief also points out Stevens’ sentence was 14 months longer than Michael Vick’s, who actually ran a dogfighting ring.

The Supreme Court will hear the case on October 6. The Court is in a position to rule that a particular type of expression is so vile, that it doesn’t deserve protection under the First Amendment. The last time it did that was in 1982, when it outlawed child pornography.

Stevens would not comment for a story by The New York Times. But his son told the newspaper his father has had a longtime fascination with pit bulls. “You couldn’t treat a dog any better,” Michael Stevens said, “than my father treats pit bull dogs.”

Source: PRWeb.com, September 10, 2009

Sports Blitz, a Lehigh Valley licensed sportswear, novelty and memorabilia merchandiser presents Second Chance Sundays. During Second Chance Sundays Sports Blitz teams up with local fans to gang tackle animal cruelty by donating 10 percent of its proceeds the second Sunday of every month during the upcoming professional football season to the Pennsylvania SPCA to help give homeless and abused dogs a second chance.

We’re thrilled to see compassionate sports fans step up to help tackle dog fighting and other animal abuse in Pennsylvania

Second Chance Sundays are a great way for people to support their favorite team and at the same time do something positive for dogs in need.

We hope that increasing public awareness of the efforts of the Pennsylvania SPCA and supporting the work they do will help bring an end to animal cruelty and provide homes for abandoned and abused pets

Allentown, Pennsylvania (PRWEB) September 10, 2009 — Sports Blitz, a Lehigh Valley licensed sportswear, novelty and memorabilia merchandiser, is teaming up with local fans to gang tackle animal cruelty by donating 10 percent of its proceeds the second Sunday of every month during the upcoming professional football season to the Pennsylvania SPCA to help give homeless and abused dogs a second chance.

Second Chance Sundays will feature sales and promotions of Sports Blitz’s array of authentic, licensed, on-field apparel and collectibles at their family-owned stores in Easton, PA, at 3071 William Penn Plaza, and in Whitehall, PA at 2544 MacArthur Road at the MacArthur Towne Center.

The Pennsylvania SPCA will attend the kickoff events for Second Chance Sundays on September 13 from 12:00 noon to 4:00 pm at both Sports Blitz locations with adoptable Second Chance Dogs.

The Second Chance Dogs of the Pennsylvania SPCA are Pit Bulls who have been rescued and rehabilitated from fighting rings and other abuses. They arrive at the Pennsylvania SPCA suffering from severe neglect, starvation, cruelty and injury, often as victims of illegal dog fighting operations. Pit Bulls also carry the added stigma from negative and erroneous media characterizations. Given a second chance, these dogs make loyal and loving companions.

“We’re thrilled to see compassionate sports fans step up to help tackle dog fighting and other animal abuse in Pennsylvania,” said Pennsylvania SPCA Chief Executive Officer Sue Cosby. “Second Chance Sundays are a great way for people to support their favorite team and at the same time do something positive for dogs in need.”

“We hope that increasing public awareness of the efforts of the Pennsylvania SPCA and supporting the work they do will help bring an end to animal cruelty and provide homes for abandoned and abused pets,” said Justin Madaus, Sports Blitz Chief Operating Officer.

Second Chance Sundays begin September 13, week-one of the 2009 professional football season, and return every second Sunday of each month throughout the 2009 season.

Sports Blitz is family owned and operated. Its mission is to provide passionate sports fans of a variety of leagues and teams with a selection of authentic, licensed, on-field apparel and collectibles. Visit them at www.spblitz.com and click on the Second Chance Sundays button to donate online.

Source: Philly.com, September 9, 2009

Five sacks of dog food for every sack?

A heap of chow for each kapow?

Today, Main Line Animal Rescue, in an ad in the Washington Post, has put a pledge behind its distaste for Michael Vick, the convicted Bad Newz Kennels conspirator.

Each time the Eagles new gadget guy / backup quarterback is tackled during the Oct. 26 away game against the Redskins, five bags of dog food will be donated to a D.C. animal shelter.

“Because there are no second chances on an empty stomach,” the ad says.

It also encourages people to volunteer at a shelter on game day, perhaps even “hugging a homeless Pit Bull.”

Vick served 18 months in prison for funding a dog-fighting operation where pit bulls were killed.

In signing Vick to a two-year deal, the Eagles said he’d served his time and deserved a second chance.

“I think we’re all getting tired of the ‘Does he deserve a second chance?’ kind of thing,” said Bill Smith, founder and CEO of the shelter, which is near Valley Forge. “… Maybe it’s about time that the million pit bulls euthanized every year got their second chance.”

“It’s such a misunderstood breed. … They’re great dogs,” he said, adding they’ve gotten a terrible stigma “because of people like Michael Vick.”

The ad’s main aim is to bring attention back to the needs of dogs, he said.

“I think we just need to raise public awareness and this is a good way to do that,” he said.

“It may be funny. It may be clever. It may not,” he said.

The ad will probably also run in other cities where the Eagles play, including San Diego, Chicago and New York, he said. Washington was first simply because the Post was running a special football preview section.

Smith, skeptical of Vicks’ newfound concern for pets, said that “if he had any sense of humor all” and really wanted to help dogs, he could stand on the field before the Oct. 26 game and let players tackle him, so even more dogs will get fed.

“He should thank us” for the opportunity, he said.

For more on Main Line Animal Rescue, go to www.mlar.org.