What is a dog fight

You may have heard of illegal dog fighting rings but thought it mostly happened in other countries, not here in Australia. 

While dog fighting is illegal in most countries, enforcement varies and underground dog fighting still happens far too often, with devastating results for the dogs. 

Even the dogs that aren’t killed are kept in appalling conditions with no access to food, water or shelter, and many dogs suffer horrific injuries and are left to die. 

It’s estimated there are at least 150 illegal dog fighting rings in Australia, and that number could be much higher. 

What is Dog Fighting? 

Dog fighting occurs in secret locations around the country and pits one dog against another, usually to the death, for entertainment and betting purposes. 

The fighting dogs are generally a type of Staffordshire terrier or pit bull terrier, and they’re starved, tortured, beaten and abused to make them highly aggressive.  

Often other animals, usually smaller dogs and cats, are used as bait to ‘train’ the fighting dogs and as a ‘reward’ if the dog does well. 

Stolen Pets 

To ensure a ready supply of dogs for ‘training’ purposes, or as opponents for the fighting dogs, people’s beloved companion pets are stolen and forced to fight.  

Once the fight is over, the pet is left to die in agony, shot, drowned, beaten to death, or even burned. 

Many classified advertisement websites such as Gumtree are updating their policies to ban ads offering free dogs or cats to good homes because the animals are being used for dog fighting rings. 

The Rise of Homeless Animals 

When animals that have been used in dog fighting are dumped, it increases the number of homeless animals wandering the streets and puts people at risk because the dogs are injured and in pain, and could easily attack, especially young children.  

It also strains our animal shelters and other resources which are already at full capacity in most cases and rely on donations and volunteer help. 

How to Protect your Pet 

Any animal is a potential target to these cruel and malicious people who have no qualms about taking an unattended pet. 

Keep your pets safe by always supervising their outdoor activities and keeping cats indoors if possible. If you own a breed of dog that’s favoured by dog fighting organisers, be extra vigilant and keep him close whenever you go out walking. 

If you have an unwanted dog or cat, or kittens and puppies, please don’t advertise them as free to a good home. You don’t know where they might end up or what terrible fate might await them. 

Sydney Animal Hospital and Specialist Vet 

Sydney Vet Specialists is dedicated to providing quality 24 hour veterinary care for your pets, as well as specialist services for a wide range of conditions. 

To speak to one of caring, professional team members, call us on 02 9197 5800, or contact us online.  

Book an appointment for your pet between Monday and Friday 8:30am-6pm or call us for emergency veterinarian services and after hours care. 

When former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick was convicted on federal charges related to dogfighting in 2007, this cruel underground blood sport was thrust into the public spotlight. Vick’s indictment revealed the sickening abuse of dogs who are pitted against one another and encouraged to rip each other to shreds in a fight to the death while spectators cheer and gamble on a “winner.” When dogs on Vick’s property were not being forced to fight, they were kept penned and chained to buried car axles. When they were no longer useful to fight organizers, they were wet down and electrocuted, hanged, beaten, drowned, shot, slammed against the ground, or killed in some other atrocious manner.

Vick’s case is one among many—experts estimate that tens of thousands of people are involved in professional dogfighting, while hundreds of thousands might be participating in so-called “streetfighting,” or informal dogfights. All 50 states now consider participating in dogfighting to be a felony offense.

Forced to Fight and Left to Die

The dogs who are most commonly bred for fighting are generally known as “pit bulls”: Staffordshire terriers, American Staffordshire terriers, American bulldogs, and American pit bull terriers. Dogs who are used for fighting are usually kept penned or chained (often with heavy logging chains), and many are taunted and starved in order to trigger extreme survival instincts and encourage aggression.

Some dogfighters train dogs by forcing them to tread water in pools; run on a treadmill while a caged rabbit, cat, chicken, or other terrified animal is dangled in front of them; or hang on with their jaws while dangling from a chain baited with meat. Many dogs are injected with steroids, and some dogfighters even sharpen their dogs’ teeth, cut off their ears (to prevent another dog from latching on), and add roach poison to their food so that their fur might taste bad to other dogs.

Dogs who “win” fights are forced to fight again and again and are used to breed puppies for profit. One dog who was described as a particularly successful fighter generated $100,000 in stud fees in a single year. Female dogs are strapped down on “rape stands” to prevent fighting while males impregnate them. Many of the dogs who do not fight or who lose fights are used as “bait” animals.

What Happens at Dogfights

The “pit” where these bloody events take place usually consists of a dirt or carpeted floor measuring 8 to 16 square feet, surrounded by a wooden enclosure that is about 3 feet high. Dogs are taken to either end of the ring and released at the “face your dogs” command. Sticks are used to pry apart the dogs, who clamp down so fiercely that it is not uncommon for dogs to “fang” themselves (i.e., bite through their own lips). Dogs are encouraged to fight to the death, and the fight can go on for hours—until both dogs are exhausted and at least one is seriously injured or dead.

A federal prosecutor recalls a case in which one of 18 dogs found in a raid had 70 open wounds and was missing half a jaw, while another dog’s body was 75 percent covered in scar tissue. A Louisiana state police officer who conducts dogfighting investigations says, “When you go to where these fights have happened, you’ll find a couple of dog corpses or a pit full of blood.”

The Tip of a Criminal Iceberg

Like other forms of cruelty to animals, dogfighting is often linked to other crimes, including illegal gambling, drug activity, and murder. In a Texas home, three intruders bound the wife and children of a well-known pit-bull breeder and killed him for the $100,000 that he had won at a fight. Another infamous breeder planted “directional mines” on his property in an attempt to keep people away; a land surveyor was injured when one of these devices exploded.

A detective told the New York Daily News that “you can get more drugs and guns off the street by breaking up dog rings than you would breaking up drug rings.” An Ohio sheriff says that “just about every dogfighting search warrant we’ve done, we’ve found drugs.”

Young children are sometimes present at dogfights. Baltimore’s health department lists dogfighting as a child welfare issue on its Web site and cautions parents that “[c]hildren are exposed to exhibits of extreme brutality, illegal gambling, drugs, and guns associated with these cruel events.”

What You Can Do

• If you suspect that dogfighting is happening in your neighborhood, contact local law enforcement authorities.
• Since dogfighters typically keep their dogs chained, you can help deter dogfighters by pushing for an anti-chaining ordinance in your community.

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Help
• Subscribe