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“Pal”
was once a star.
He
started out in “Buster Brown” before moving on
to “Our Gang.” He was beloved by both
audiences and his fellow actors alike.
He
was also a pit bull – the breed of dog that,
today, conjures images of a ruthless, and
sometimes lethal, fighting machine. A number of
recent local cases, including the infamous Michael
Vick affair, have once more focused attention on
the violent, shadowy world of dog fighting. But
beyond the tabloid angle to this story is one that
is as chilling and repugnant as any I’ve run
across in some time – a world that’s populated
by small time hoods, petty drug dealers, gamblers,
more celebrities… even children. It’s a world
that revolves around sadism, blood, and death. It
also seems to be growing.
The
Humane Society of the United States estimates that
as many as 40,000 people regularly attend dog
fighting matches. The numbers are small – a
single Redskins game will attract more spectators.
And while those who patronize fights can come from
any walk of life, the typical organizer or trainer
is not exactly squeaky clean, as a glance at the
Michigan State University’s Animal
Legal and Historical Center database
shows.
Aside
from the criminal element the “sport” draws,
what would bring other people, with no criminal
background, to such events?
In
part, the answer is in our genes. Pitting animals
against one another is an ancient, if bloody, past
time. The Romans, impressed by the savagery of the
Celtic war dogs they encountered during their
invasion of Britain, were early adopters of dog
fights. Dogs were used to bait bears and other
creatures for centuries, until the “sport"
was outlawed in England in 1835. But just because
a practice has been deemed illegal doesn’t mean
it will stop. Without bears to bait, the owners of
the dogs set them to fighting one another,
clandestinely, eventually breeding animals
specifically for their ability and willingness to
fight.
And
the fights proved popular. It’s not uncommon for
animals to have their bones broken, or even to
have their flesh torn from the bone itself in the
course of a match (for which there are even rules,
at least for purists). And death – the bloodier
the better, makes for a truly special show. Even
those dogs which survive might be better off
having lost, for their lives, such as they are,
are little more than ghastly routine of brutality,
deprivation and more death.
Dog
fighting was imported to the United States not
long before the Civil War. By the 1860s, most
states had banned the practice and today; it is a
felony offense in every state except Wyoming and
Idaho. In the wake of recent, high-profile, deadly
pit bull attacks, Virginia has taken more steps
than most to increase the penalties for dog
fighting. But as the Victorians learned, having
tough laws won’t end the practice. And that’s
especially so when new groups adopt fighting as a
means of social identity.
Veterinary
technician Karen Delise was recently quoted in a
CNN report on the Vick case as saying that it’s
not the breed’s fault for its image problems,
but that of the culture, specifically, hip hop:
"It's all tied into the hip hop culture, the
image and projection of a dog as an extension of
your manhood," she says. "The pit bull
is the ultimate accessory."
This
is a very difficult charge to make, but one that
has at least some anecdotal support. Rapper DMX
appears with a snarling pit bull on the cover of
his album, "Year of the Dog Again."
Among the lyrics: "Place your bets/You can
imagine what the bloodline is like," and
"All my pups is crazy, 'cause off the
leash/They can eat, stand a match for three hours
at least."
In
a Chicago Sun-Times column, Steve Malanga
also noted that big-name advertisers are in on the
glamorization, too:
Numerous
top athletes, including [Michael] Vick, released a
gritty-looking TV ad dubbed "The Battle"
which featured a brief glimpse of a growling pit
bull and Rottweiler about to face off. A Nike
representative denied that the ad encouraged dog
fighting, but explained, "People have to
understand the youth culture we cater to. Our
market is the urban, edgy, hip-hop culture."
Part
of this, too, can be seen on the website of
Pitfall Kennels, based in Atlanta, Ga. The kennel
is run by Outkast member Big Boi Patton, and
boasts a client list that includes recording
artists like Usher and 50 Cent, as well as sports
stars like Serena Williams and fellow Vick team
mate Jonathan Babineaux. The Kennel explicitly
distances itself from fighting, of course, and
there is no reason to assume that either it or any
of its clients engages in such illegal behavior.
But
poke around the kennel’s website.
The images make a clear inference: These dogs can
certainly buff-up your image.
Pro
boxer Roy Jones Jr., quoted in a Newsweek
piece on pit bulls, says he does not enter the pit
bulls he owns in fights, but likes studying their
moves. “I like the nature of the dogs and how
they are cool and calm until you mess with
them." But that is the heart of the problem
for pit bulls – their image has been messed with
to the point of unrecognizability.
On
the one hand, the dog is romanticized for its
power and loyalty. Pit bulls have both in
abundance and they have been prized and loved for
decades because they are so dedicated to their
owners. But this very power and loyalty makes them
targets for exploitation.
Pit
bulls are typically the most numerous breed found
in any animal shelter – 30 percent nationwide
but as high as 60 percent in some areas. Many are
abandoned, and not a few of those bear fighting
scars. As the breed has been demonized so
thoroughly, even those dogs that have not been
bred specifically to fight cannot easily placed
with new families. Many of those who are fighters
are euthanized – dying just as surely as they
would have in the ring.
It
will be difficult, if not impossible, for the
breed to overcome this mountain of bad press. Laws
banning fighting and punishing its enthusiasts may
help to some degree. But as long as the demand for
blood sport survives, so, too, will the practice
of perverting a breed of dogs to fill it… if not
pit bulls, then something else.
At
bottom, the only way to end the animal carnage is
to choke the human demand for blood. We’re
close. But as the Vick case shows, we’re not
close enough.
--
Sept. 3, 2007
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