COLUMNS
July 11, 2009 It seems hard to believe that it has been two years since Michael Vick was indicted for dogfighting.
That indictment came just a couple of months after President Bush signed into law the Animal Fighting Prohibition Enforcement Act making dogfighting a felony in all fifty states.
The press coverage that preceded Vick's arrest helped to fuel the strong bi-partisan support for passage of the landmark legislation.
Now two years later, federal, state and local law enforcement authorities launched the largest multi-state dogfighting raid in U.S. history, as this week over 400 dogs were seized and more than 25 people arrested.
Simultaneous raids were conducted in Missouri, Illinois, Iowa, Mississippi, Arkansas, Nebraska, Texas and Oklahoma, coordinated by the Humane Society of the United States and the Humane Society of Missouri, which has been investigating dogfighting operations in the area for the past year.
Just planning the logistics of the raids took more than a month, to make sure all the people were in place at the right time and support services to transport, house and treat the hundreds of rescued animals were ready and available.
It took the cooperation of the FBI, the USDA, and Federal Marshalls to pull it off, and the help of the ASPCA, PetSmart Charities and United Animal Nations to provide shelter and care for the dogs.
The fate of those poor animals will depend on evaluations of their physical and psychological condition by experts – lessons learned two years ago in the aftermath of the dogs seized in the Michael Vick case.
Many of those animals have been successfully rehabilitated to new homes as pets.
This week is a stunning example of what can happen when animal welfare organizations and law enforcement all work together to stop the horrendously abusive, barbaric and illegal bloodsport of dogfighting.
It gives hope to all of us who try to "speak for those who cannot speak for themselves," when we're speaking of pets.
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