Organized dog fighting is cruel, illegal and remains ‘rampant’ in the US

A group of maintenance workers in New Jersey discovered four dead dogs on the side of a highway last week that police said had injuries “consistent with dog fighting.” On the same day, 14 men in Georgia pleaded guilty to federal charges stemming from their participation in a “large-scale dog fighting event.”

In the second case, prosecutors said authorities rescued 27 dogs from the property, many with fresh wounds and one who was hurt so badly it died soon after police found it in the “pit” where fights were held. Some of the men – between the ages of 35 and 67 – had traveled across state lines for the secret tournament.

These incidents offer glimpses into the underground world of organized dog fighting. The illegal criminal enterprises gained international attention in 2007 when NFL star quarterback Michael Vick pled guilty to taking part in a dog fighting ring and served almost two years in prison. But nearly 20 years later, the practice remains prevalent across the country.

“Dog fighting is far more rampant than most people realize,” said Jessica Rock, Georgia’s leading prosecutor for animal crimes. She was recently involved in the dog fighting prosecution against Vincent Lemark Burrell, who was sentenced to 475 years in prison, the longest sentence ever imposed for such a case.

Dog fighting is defined by the federal government as an animal blood sport in which dogs are forced to fight one another for entertainment or profit.

Despite dog fighting being a felony crime in all 50 states, the Humane Society estimates more than 40,000 people in the U.S. participate in the illegal practice. It’s also big business, with fight purses running as high as $100,000.

Experts told USA TODAY that barbaric dog fights occur everywhere, from basement and alleyways in major cities to barns in the rural South. Those who participate in the criminal enterprise are also a diverse set. Some have lengthy criminal records while others include teachers, a school administrator and a former Pentagon official.

“There’s a whole intricate, underground world that just a lot of the general public is not aware of,” Rock said.

Dog fighting from the Civil War to the internet age

In the U.S., historical accounts of dog fighting date back to the 1750s. Professional pits, where the animals are brought to brawl, began cropping up in great numbers after the Civil War, according to a report from the Department of Justice.

By the mid-20th century, states had begun implementing laws banning dog fighting, though enforcement was lax and the practice steadily grew as it moved further into the shadows.

In 2007, most people were unaware of large-scale dog fighting rings when Vick was arrested, catapulting the criminal enterprises into the international spotlight. The same year, then-President George W. Bush signed into law the Animal Fighting Prohibition Enforcement Act, which made the trafficking of animals used in dog fighting a felony.

But as law enforcement increasingly began cracking down on dog fighting, the internet gave those involved in the practice a new way to communicate. Today, breeders and dog fighting enthusiasts take to platforms like Facebook, Telegram and WhatsApp to schedule fights and share tips on how to make dogs more aggressive or get them in fighting shape, experts said.

“The internet has revolutionized it,” said Virginia Maxwell, a forensic science professor at the University of New Haven who leads instructions on animal cruelty investigations. She said some dog fighters don’t even have to be in the room anymore and can watch the battles through a video live stream.

Nevertheless, investigators on the local, state and federal levels have made significant progress against the rampant criminal activity. Rock credits this to increased awareness among law enforcement officials and the general public about what dog fighting entails and how to identify it.

“The more people we have to work the cases, the more criminal cases you see,” she said, alluding to the prevalence of dog fighting around the country. “We’re trying to keep up with it all.”

The tortured lives of fighting dogs

From an early age, the owners of fighting dogs employ longstanding and widely used methods to make their dogs more aggressive. Dogs are often tied up with heavy logging chains and are positioned in sight of other canines, but not close enough to reach them.

Many are fed very little and are left out in the open air. Makeshift shelters, often small wooden boxes or overturned barrels, are also quite common.

“They will leave the dogs on the chains the whole time they’re in existence, except to either fight them or to breed them,” Rock said. “It’s torture.”

The average dog fight can last anywhere between one to three hours, Rock said. They go on until the dogs are too exhausted to continue or one of them dies. Dogs that win three fights in their lifetime are known as “Champions” and those that win five – which is very rare – are called “Grand Champions.”

Once a dog attains a reputation for winning, the owner will capitalize on its “bloodline,” breeding it to sell the offspring for thousands of dollars.

Meanwhile, dogs that lose fights or are seen as unaggressive are killed, oftentimes in heinous fashion, with many cases involving dogs being electrocuted, hung or beaten to death. Experts said it’s also routine for people to use these dogs as “bait” for other canines in training, sometimes removing their teeth so they can’t fight back.

After a dog fighting ring is broken up, the animals are evaluated and sent to shelters and rescue facilities. In the worst cases, authorities are forced to euthanize dogs because they are so underfed or have suffered severe injuries. Some are too aggressive to be safely released.

This, however, is not the case for most rescued dogs, especially the younger ones.

“What I see a lot of times is when we go and we take these dogs off these chains, and we get them into a new environment and they’re totally different dogs,” Rock said. “It’s like they realize they’ve been saved, and they say ‘OK, I’m not living that life anymore. I can be a dog now, right?'”

‘These dogs deserve a second chance’: Rehabilitation and rehoming

On Thursday, Ana Banana, a 3-year-old pit bull mix, walked down the isles of a Lowe’s, sniffing the ground and smiling joyously when customers and employees reached down to pet her.

What her adoring fans didn’t know was that Ana was one of several dogs seized by police in a recent dog fighting operation. Jen Deane, a dog behavior expert working to rehabilitate Ana, brought her to the store to get her used to the sight of crowds after a lifetime of cruel isolation.

“I wanted to see how she’d do in the real world, and she did amazing,” Deane said. “Everybody wanted to pet her.”

Deane, who works with law enforcement agencies across the U.S., helps dogs rescued from a fighting ring acclimate to normal life. When she meets them they are often “terrified” of being indoors, she said. Deane has seen them shutter at thresholds and cower when a dishwasher turns on.

It takes time, but gradually they begin to drop their guard and settle into their newfound safety.

But while most of these rescued canines can be rehabilitated, they are often victims of an enduring stigma.

“A lot of times when people find out a dog came from a dog fighting case, they say ‘We don’t want to have anything to do with them,'” Deane said. “It’s sad because they’re making a generalization instead of meeting the individual dog. When they do, they fall in love.”

Julie Castle, CEO of the nonprofit Best Friends Animal Society, said the situation has improved greatly since the Vick case as a larger segment of the population has become aware of the plight of these animals and their capacity to readapt into a healthy, happy home.

“There are a lot of people that come forward, raise their hand and say, ‘We, too, believe these dogs deserve a second chance in a loving home,” Castle said.

“They’re innocent creatures that end up in this remarkably cruel circumstance. They are not bred bad.”

How to spot dog fighting and report it

The historic case that Rock prosecuted against Burrell began with a well-intentioned tipster. On an average day at work in 2021, an Amazon delivery driver saw something that concerned him: Scores of dogs tied to fence posts with thick, heavy chains. He reported the sight to local police and soon so did other neighbors.

Investigators searched the property just outside Atlanta and discovered 107 dogs in horrifying conditions. Many of them were starving and left tied up to metal stakes and car axels. The heavy chains weighed on their necks and produced rashes. Some had their teeth “forcibly removed from their mouth,” police said.

Rock and other experts said the sight of chained up dogs kept intentionally away from each other is a telltale sign of dog fighting. These arrangements are so common that Maxwell sometimes has her students search backyards on Google Earth to find these so-called “dog yards.”

“Some of them are successful because if you know what you’re looking for it’s not too hard to see the signs, especially from the sky,” she said.

Other indicators of dog fighting include physical signs of abuse, such as scarring on a dog’s face or legs, lacerations or other untreated injuries.

Both Rock and Maxwell said people who have concerns of possible dog fighting should not intervene themselves and instead call the police. The Humane Society also has a tip line at 1-877-TIP-HSUS where people get up to $5,000 if their information leads to a dog fighting conviction.

Castle said another way people can help is by donating to local rescue groups or adopting a dog, whether it was a victim of a fighting ring or not.

“By adopting a dog that’s available and ready to go to a loving home, you create space for your local shelters,” she said. “Then they can take in these animals that are going to need a little extra attention, training and love.”

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