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Coalition Urges HSUS To Revise Fighting-dog Policy

February 19, 2009, 4:22PM MT

By Cheri Moon

Current policy states dogs should automatically be destroyed if seized from dog-fighting bust

Current policy states dogs should automatically be destroyed if seized from dog-fighting bust

By Best Friends Staff

The court-ordered destruction Monday of 145 dogs, including about 75 puppies, which were seized from a fighting dog breeding operation in December, was based on the faulty assumption that all dogs seized in dog-fighting related busts should arbitrarily be deemed dangerous and euthanized.

Current HSUS Policy is 20 years old
The decision to kill the dogs was supported by the largest animal welfare organization in the country, the Humane Society of the United States. Representatives of HSUS testified in Wilkes County Superior Court that the dogs had to be destroyed because they had been “bred for generations to be aggressive.” HSUS reasserted its outdated policy, written more than 20 years ago: “Any dog who has been specifically bred or conditioned for fighting, or for which there is evidence that the dog has been used for fighting should not be placed for adoption by an animal shelter but humanely euthanized as soon as legally possible.”

A Best Friends Animals Society-led coalition offered resources to the county for evaluation, spay/neuter, and support in finding homes for qualified dogs. These animal welfare organizations, which have extensive experience with rescued fighting dogs, urged Wilkes County to accept their offer of support for an alternative approach, such as was used in the Michael Vick case. The coalition includes BAD RAP (Bay Area Doglovers Responsible About Pit Bulls), Animal Farm Foundation, Villa Lobos Rescue Center, Downtown Dog Rescue, The Sula Foundation and Our Pack.

Michael Vick Dogs Prove HSUS Policy Antiquated
“We are disheartened and shocked that HSUS, a leader in the animal welfare community, would testify in court for the automatic destruction of puppies and dogs, who had not been given the opportunity to be evaluated as individuals, based on this policy. The Michael Vick dogs have proven how antiquated this approach is,” said Ledy VanKavage, an attorney with Best Friends Animal Society.

In 2006, HSUS advocated that all of the dogs from the Michael Vick dog fighting case be put down for the same reasons they used when recommending the killing of the Wilkes County pit bulls. In that case a federal court appointed a Special Master to oversee the evaluation of Vick’s dogs, all of which were adults. Many of the Vick dogs are now in adoptive homes, and at least two of the so-called “aggressive fighting dogs” are therapy dogs that visit hospitals to cheer up ailing patients.

“The coalition members and their supporters are urging HSUS to revaluate this policy and apply a more progressive approach that reflects the lessons learned by the animal welfare groups in the coalition, as well as other organizations that work directly with dogs,” VanKavage said.

Coalition Contacts:

? Best Friends Animal Society bestfriends.org
Barbara Williamson (435) 689-0200 (cell) (or) barbara@bestfriends.org

John Polis (435) 644-2001, ext. 4858 or johnp@bestfriends.org

? Animal Farm Foundation animalfarmfoundation.org
Stacey Coleman (845) 868-7559 (or) scoleman@animalfarmfoundation.org

? BAD RAP badrap.org
Donna Reynolds (510) 441-6461 (or) donna@badrap.org

? Downtown Dog Rescue downtowndogrescue.org
Lori Weise (213) 448-9961 (or) lori@modernica.net

? Our Pack www.ourpack.org
Marthina McClay (408) 460-4244 (or) marthina@ourpack.org

? The Sula Foundation sulafoundation.org
Ken Foster (504) 613-7370 (or) kenfoster@gmail.com

? Villa Lobos Rescue Center vrcpitbull.com/home.htm
Tia Maria Torres (661) 268-0555 (or) tiamaria@vrcpitbull.com

For More Information:
Read more about the dog fighting bust in North Carolina.

How You Can Help
Residents of North Carolina are urged to contact your state Senator, Representatives, and Senator Stan Bingham to request a redraft of North Carolina Statute NC 67-1 - 4.1 (a)(1).

Ask that the law be made stronger; however, insist on striking "b" from the definition of “Dangerous Dog” (remove “Any dog owned or harbored primarily or in part for the purpose of dog fighting, or any dog trained for dog fighting”).

Remember, all dogs are individuals and should be evaluated as such, not lumped together by group or breed.

Senator Stan Bingham
16 W. Jones Street, Room 2117
Raleigh, NC 27601-2808
Phone: 919-733-5665
E-mail: Stan.Bingham@ncleg.net

Find out who your state legislators are here, by inputting your zip code + 4 (scroll down page, right hand column).

Stock Photo by Clay Myers, Best Friends Staff
Posted by Cheri Moon, Best Friends Staff

Comments

Posted February 21, 2009, 9:59AM by sharkster

When will people realize that the HSUS is not out for the best intrest of dogs. Yes they do,do good things but people give them way too much power. I'd rather see people like best friends or anyone of those mentioned on this post to get the funds needed to make change. People please donate to those orginaztions and not HSUS.

Posted February 19, 2009, 6:25PM by Georgebailey47

So much for the "humane" part of their name.

The HSUS says one thing, while doing another. If that isnt a definition of "politics", I dont know what is.

Posted February 21, 2009, 10:43PM by Kelly4cats

Who will be next on the governments hit list once pits are killed off or have to be hidden by their owners? How about any dog over ten pounds? Sound impossible? Maybe not.

Posted February 20, 2009, 8:1AM by dixiesherman

I have signed both petitions, and also sent a letter to Ms. DeGeneres in ref to the award while also including web sites that will have further information on HSUS. Hopefully with all of us pulling together some good will come of it.

Posted February 20, 2009, 3:38PM by AndiT117

This is all so confusing to me. I volunteer with an organization that helps to rehabilitate pit bulls bred AND used for fighting and their owners as well as at-risk youth that may engage in dogfightig activities. We don't support euthanasia and we've never turned away a dog as too dangerous or hopeless. The program has been very successful and is being rolled out to other cities - including Atlanta, GA and Charlotte, NC. The confusing part: we are COMPLETELY funded by the HSUS. I don't understand how on one hand they can make our work possible and then on the other hand be so contradictory by supporting the deaths of these dogs. I'm hoping that the success of our End Dogfighting campaign is the start of a crack in their policies.

Posted February 20, 2009, 8:42AM by southerndogmom

Long gone are the days when I believed that either the HSUS or the ASPCA truly spoke for the best interests of all animals. Because they are the most recognized names in our society, however, people tend to support them more than they probably should. While continuing to bang my drum about BFAS being the one and only large animal welfare organization which talks the talk and walks the walk, I wholeheartedly hope that the HSUS will change this antiquated position.

If municipalities across are country are ever going to cease the summary killing of former fighting dogs, we need the HSUS on board with BFAS. I work in an area which has a history of dog fighting and knowing that dogs seized by LEOs will be put down just because they were objectified by people hurts my heart.

Posted February 19, 2009, 11:57PM by nicol

We have to stop this senseless, brutal murder by HSUS.

Ellen is to receive an award from HSUS at end the end of March. The very same HSUS who has just slaughtered 146 pit bulls (about half were puppies, some just a few weeks old) in Wilkes County, North Carolina. We need Ellen's help in getting HSUS to stop this senseless killing.

PLEASE SIGN the following 2 petitions The first is targeted at Ellen and the second at the officials of Wilkes County and HSUS.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/stop-hsus-from-killing-pitbulls

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/hsus----wilkes-county-animal-control-senator-stan-bingham16-w-jones-street-room-2117-raleigh-nc

Posted February 21, 2009, 12:19PM by dionie

Only through educating the public will this murder of Pitt Bulls stop. If we make Pitt Bulls extinct then which dog breed will these fighting gambling organizations turn to next? Will it be the Chinese Shar Pei who also had a history of fighting in China, Rottis, Mastifs, or any other big strong dog?? We have to stop the humans who are doing this not hurt the dogs who are their innocent victims. HSUS is a contradictory in terms. What is wrong with this organization? Maybe their time has come to bow out of taking care of animals if this is how they want to treat these dogs.

Posted March 09, 2009, 11:24PM by nicol

In order to fight BSL (banning of pit bulls) - please click on the following link. The message goes direct to President Obama and your elected officials.

http://www.rallycongress.com/stop-breed-banning-/1584/stop-breed-banning-now/

Posted February 19, 2009, 7:54PM by BeckyDodge

Very very glad to see this happen. It's past the time when HSUS should have changed their position about dogs like these. I really hope very soon they will admit there are much better solutions than just killing all the dogs. That simply continues to victimize the victims of this horrid practice.

I've already emailed the NC senator whose name was listed. Here's hoping that they can make a change in the state laws.

Posted March 04, 2009, 1:44PM by dixiesherman

dionie:
Where did you hear about the Rotties in Gates County? I haven't heard or seen anything, and I live in NC. Please let me know. Also, I know there are more than 1200 BF sponsors, but that is all that signed the following petitions posted here by nicol. I wish people would follow through on signing these petitions instead of just giving lip service to what is happening.

Posted March 05, 2009, 12:57PM by champa

now that HSUS has revised their policy and you have WON what about working on PETA next which I understand has a similar policy re fighting dogs.

Posted March 01, 2009, 1:7PM by dionie

We are going to stop the slaughter of innocent lives we just have to stick together and keep putting pressure on legislators to repeal breed specific legislation, looks like some folks in the great state of Michigan just did. HSUS will be overwhelmed with emails from us. We will never give up the fight for Man's Best Friend.

Posted March 01, 2009, 1:36PM by dionie

Looks like more dogs siezed in NC Gates Co and just as I predicted they have turned to Rottis. So these poor dogs are drugged and then blamed for being vicious. It has certainly become clear to me that human beings are blaming dogs for behaviours that are drug induced and training to be vicious. I am ashamed to be a human being. Please see the story of Oogy the pitt bull that was used as a bait dog and appeared on the Oprah show Feb 13th. Dogs don't deserve this. What is wrong with human beings?? What is wrong with us??