Michael Vick’s Dogs Find Kindness
22 of the pit bulls seized from Michael Vick’s compound last year have been given a second chance at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Kanab, Utah. Animals that were forced to fight in the illegal dogfighting ring are, probably for the first time, learning to trust people and live out the rest of their lives in peace. The 25 other dogs were split up between seven other facilities.
Most of the dogs are scarred, a few mutilated (this poor girl had all her teeth removed, probably so she couldn’t attack during forced breeding), and some emotionally needy, but slowly and surely they are being rehabilitated with patience and lots of love. The majority of the dogs will stay at the facility for 6-12 months before being reevaluated for adoption.
The Humane Society of the United States and PETA recommended that the dogs be euthanized immediately, but many animal rescue organizations urged the prosecutors to let the dogs live, and the government gave the go ahead after Vick agreed to pay $928,073 for their continuing care and evaluation. The dogs were then split up between eight rescue facilities, were spayed and neutered, and are in the process of being rehabilitated and evaluated. Only one dog from the group had to be put down after displaying aggression against people, and another is not adoptable and by court order will remain in Best Friends’ care for the duration of his life.
Vick, once the highest-paid player in the N.F.L., is serving a 23-month sentence in a federal prison in Leavenworth, Kansas, for bankrolling his Bad Newz Kennels dogfighting operation and helping execute dogs that were not good fighters. Dogs were electrocuted, hanged, drowned, shot or slammed to the ground, according to court records. Two mass graves with the remains of eight pit bulls were found on Vick’s property in rural Virginia.
[image: new york times]
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