Animal World Newsflash!

Don't miss the upcoming episodes of Animal World talk radio which will be devoted to the aftermath of the ongoing national news story on the Michael Vick Dogs.

The backstory….

On the January 17th episode of Animal World we focused on the aftermath of the Michael Vick case concerning the physical disposition of the 47 surviving pit bulls that were seized from his Smithville Virginia property in the 2008 landmark case against illegal dog fighting. In August 2008 Michael Vick was sentenced to 23 months in Federal prison and ordered to pay $928,000 toward the disposition and care of the surviving dogs.

Originally there was a lot of pressure from PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) and the HSUS (Humane Society of the United States) to destroy the dogs which they deemed permanently unfit for any sort of meaningful rehabilitation. The dogs were quickly dubbed "the most vicious dogs in America." Public outcry to the judge in the case and the assistant attorney general's office in Virginia from across the nation persuaded officials to allow the dogs to be evaluated.

A team comprised of SPCA, certified animal behaviorists and representatives from a pit bull evaluation and placement program called BAD RAP was put together to evaluate the dogs' level of socialization and aggressiveness. In stark contrast to the recommendations of PETA and HSUS, the determination of those evaluations were that only one dog was euthanized for violent behavior and "no more than a dozen were seasoned fighters." The dogs were then placed in various sanctuaries and foster care where their progress was tracked.

In their December 2008 issue, Sports Illustrated featured a comprehensive and very informative 6 page article chronicling the dogs' lives in the aftermath of their rescue, "The Good News Out of the Bad Newz Kennels." Written by Senior Editor Jim Gorant, the article includes a full cover photo of Sweet Jasmine, one of the rescued dogs, as well as portraits of nine of the dogs with their new families, and progress of those still awaiting adoption. It also contains information about dogs that will remain in lifetime sanctuary situations because of the depth of their trauma at the hands of Michael Vick and his codefendants. (Click here for the full article, it is a worthy read.) 

However, despite the steady improvement reported by caretakers and new owners, PETA staunchly maintains that the fate of the dogs remains uncertain and that humane euthanasia would still have been the best course of action for all the dogs concerned.

The persons that will appear on these upcoming episodes of Animal World welcome the opportunity to share with you their very different perspectives and opinions on this very controversial issue and we all hope that you will tune in with us on the above dates.