Dogfighting Continues by Maleah Stringer The Hereald Bulletin
Dog fighting in Indiana is a felony. But that doesn’t seem to deter people from engaging in this blood sport. Most people would be shocked to realize that there is a rip-roaring dog fighting business going on right in their own communities across the country. This in not just a minority issue as many would like to believe. This is definitely a street fighter’s sport but it is alive and well with white “good ole boys” in rural America. It doesn’t help that popular rappers promote dog fighting in their videos. Or that they commit animal cruelty. One example is Rapper DMX who pleaded guilty to animal cruelty concerning his 13 pit bulls. So, we have music promoting animal cruelty, rappers committing animal cruelty and our children are listening to this music and watching their videos. Isn’t this nice? “Dog fighting is a crime that acts as a barometer for other societal ills, including gambling, trafficking of illegal guns and drugs and violence against people,” Jill Dolon, president of Unconditional Love Foundation, an organization dedicated to battling animal fighting in Delaware County. They found another mauled pit bull in a dumpster in Muncie on Sept. 5. The dog’s body was covered with cut and puncture wounds but it probably died from a broken neck. Well, at least this dog’s mouth wasn’t duct taped shut like the pit bull found in a Muncie dumpster last year. I suppose that is something to be thankful for. Maybe this little guy got a few bites in before the other probably larger dog broke its neck. Mayor Mark Peterson of Indianapolis said, “One of the real scourges of our community is dog fighting. Violent people are involved in dog fighting, people you don’t want in your neighborhood.” Indianapolis city officials are promoting an ad campaign which asks the public to call in tips concerning possible dog fighting in neighborhoods. People have reported in Anderson, on various occasions seeing pit bulls hooked to the bumpers of cars and being forced to run behind the car. This is to build their endurance so they can fight longer. Other reports include a man who teases his chained pit bull with a stuffed rabbit. He torments the dog with the stuffed toy to the point that the dog goes into a frenzy and destroys the toy. He then has to pry the toy out of the dog’s mouth with a stick. Two small children live in this home — both have been seen carrying stuffed animals. Sounds like an accident waiting to happen. Also in Anderson a small pit bull with its mouth taped shut was seen floating in Aqua Gardens. That didn’t do much for my walk that day. Anyone familiar with the breed of pit bulls knows that they are wonderful animals. It’s not the dogs that are the problem; it is when these poor dogs end up in the hands of people who are evil that the problems start. Many people tend to want to do what is easiest — blame the animal, prohibit the animal, kill the animal. But that still leaves us with the people who abused these animals. And these people will find another breed of animal or human to abuse. So, why don’t we punish the people? Now there’s an idea. As a matter of fact the two men who were responsible for the dog with its mouth taped shut last year were convicted of a felony. The first time in Delaware county. So maybe there is some hope in the battle of stopping dog fighting. Information courtesy of Nick Werner of the Muncie Star Press and Animal Advocacy Network of Indiana.
Maleah Stringer, president of the Animal Protection League, is an animal massage therapist specializing in esoteric healing. She can be reached at Maleahstringer@aol.com.
