The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated.
-Mahatma Gandhi
#GetTough against dog fighting
In an alternate universe, Piper might not have made it into a safe shelter. She might not have been pulled by a pit bull rescue. She might not have made it to me to be fostered and socialized. Piper might not have become a permanent member of my family where she is safe and loved. Piper, because of her physique and her blocky head, and her terrier tenacity would likely have been used and abused by dog fighters.

Join the #GetTough Against Dog Fighting Campaign
April 8th is National Dog Fighting Awareness Day and the ASPCA has launched the #GetTough campaign to bring awareness to how we can join together as a national and global community to combat dog fighting.
Join the #GetTough Against Dog Fighting Campaign! 7 ways to help stop dog fighting! Click To TweetDog fighting is a disgusting practice that destroys dogs physically and mentally. The abuse dogs suffer at the hands of dog fighters to turn them into fighting dogs is appalling and as the famous quote above suggests, any society that tolerates such treatment of its animals is at risk of losing its soul. I will spare you images or videos of the physical and mental harm that dog fighting causes. You know the damage that is done.
If you’ve ever witnessed dogs attacking one another, you know how terrifying it is. Anyone who would intentionally incite such an interaction is beyond despicable. Sadly, bully breeds like Piper are used more often than other dogs for fighting which only feeds the myth that pit bull type dogs are inherently aggressive and dangerous. In reality, just like any other dogs, their behavior is a combination of environment, health, socialization, individual personality and genetics.
Unfortunately, the laws punishing dog fighters and animal abusers have been ineffective. Often lawmakers focus on breed-specific legislation rather than on punishing animal abusers or irresponsible owners. Following the infamous and widely publicized Michael Vick dog fighting bust there was hope that punishments and fines for dog fighters and animal abusers would be increased. Sadly, we still have a long way to go and there have been few high profile celebrities to join the cause.
Recently, Sir Patrick Stewart and his wife, Sunny Ozell fostered a pit bull named Ginger. Upon learning more about the inordinate use of pit bull type dogs in fighting rings and learning that they would not be able to adopt Ginger because of breed specific legislation in the UK where Stewart and Ozell spend much of their time, Stewart has, thankfully, become the face of the #GetTough against dog fighting campaign. (Those of you who know me know that I don’t fan girl often, but when I do it’s generally over someone who walks the talk when it comes to pit bull advocacy.)
7 Ways to Stop Dog Fighting
Learn about and watch for the signs of dog fighting
Don’t hesitate to report any suspicious activity or suspected animal cruelty to the proper authorities
Take a #GetTough Selfie and share it across social channels and sign the pledge to #GetTough on dog fighting
Join the effort to advocate for stronger penalties for those who abuse animals and fight dogs.
Volunteer to work with local rescues who work to rehabilitate abused dogs.
Donate to the ASPCA’s efforts to stop dog fighting
Join the ASPCA and learn more about how you can help
Getting Tough Takes a Team Effort
Our friends over at Fidose of Reality share our intense hatred for dog fighting. They are giving away an awesome #GetTough Against Dog Fighting Prize Pack from the ASPCA. Head over there and enter the giveaway and show your support for ending dog fighting in the US and worldwide.
For starters, thanks for the shout out. The more we can band together and stop dog fighting, the better. It needs to be a year round effort and people need to say “no more.” Thanks for being a voice for those without one.
Right back at you!! This is one of those efforts that will indeed take a global village effort and I am proud to be in your village! 🙂
Great post, and love your muscle selfie! We are also giving away one of the #GetTough gift packs… our post goes live tomorrow!
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I’m glad you liked the post and I look forward to reading yours and entering the giveaway.
You are such an amazing voice for our furry friends who cannot speak for themselves! Thank you for all you do!
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It is my absolute honor to be a voice in some way for the voiceless. Glad you liked the post 🙂
I worked in a child welfare agency in my twenties and was always shocked that kids who had been abused often wanted to return to the parents who abused them. A kind social worker explained to me that kids love and want to please their parents no matter what – even when they are abused and treated in horrible ways because they are still their parents.
When I watched The Champions last spring, the folks at Best Friends spoke of the dogs rescued from Michael Vick’s house of horrors in the same way. Dogs want to please people even if people do horrible things to them and make them in turn do horrible things. Not only do dog fighters abuse, starve, mutilate the dogs, but they also play on the very trait that makes dogs such amazing companions – their loyalty, love for and desire to please the people in their lives. I found this insight as devastating as the abusive itself.
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Champions was such a powerful portrait of how incredibly resilient dogs can be even after suffering such tremendous abuse. You make such a poignant point about the dog fighters exploiting the loyalty, love and desire to please that motivates dogs.
I’m writing about this, too, the time has gotten away from me. But I’m a huge proponent of education about breeds and the sad, horrific issues surrounding dog fighting. Thanks for sharing this passion and getting the word out. Piper landed in a lovely home!
I look forward to reading your post. The more voices that join together, the more effectively we can impact change. I feel pretty lucky to have found Piper. 🙂
Hey Alison! Thank you to you and Piper for being a voice and helping others get this out there! I love it when people unite to help our pibble babies. Maybe someday there will be no BSL. At least, Titan, Zue and I dream of that day!
Great read!
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We share that dream! It is an honor to be Piper’s voice and to join others in working to overturn BSL.
I tweeted this. You do not even want to know what I think should happen to people who dog fight. To me, this is worse than most crimes against humans because animals are helpless to do anything at all to stop it. This ranks up there with child and elderly abuse!
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Thank you for sharing the post! The more people who know that dog fighting is still an issue and who join the fight to stop it, the better! I have a pretty good idea of what you think should happen to dog fighters and I completely agree!
Dog fighting is despicable and I hope that punishment/enforcement becomes stricter and cultural norms change in that regard.
We completely agree!
Great post! We have friends with the sweetest pit bull and it is alarming to think what could have happened to him had they not adopted him!
So glad you liked the post! I think about what could have happened to Piper all the time. It’s pretty terrifying to think that there are people out there who would intentionally hurt dogs for profit.
Great article and insight. Thank you! Love the puppies!
Thanks! Glad you liked the article (and the puppies 😉 )
It really is high time to put a stop to dog fighting rings once for all.
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I completely agree. The practice is barbaric!
It’s great you are spreading the word about dog fighting and suggesting ways to help. I’ll be making a donation this weekend to ASPCA. Love the selfie by the way!
Glad you liked the post and thanks for supporting this effort of the ASCPA! (I much prefer to be on the other end of the camera ;-))
It makes me sick to think about dogs being exploited in such a vicious way! I hope that there will be stiffer penalties for people who are involved in dog fighting, as well as more education and awareness so people won’t want to be involved in it.
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It is truly disgusting and hard to think about. There is indeed so much to do in terms of education and advocacy.
Dog fighting is absolutely horrendous! I am so glad there is a campaign like this to bring awareness and education to communities. I would absolutely vote for more strict laws when it comes to this!
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Agreed on all counts! 🙂
We know a few rescue dogs that were from that horrible world. Some as fighting dogs and some … bait. It is horrible and must end.
It breaks my heart every time I think about it. Hoping campaigns like the #GetTough campaign will make a difference.
I hate that people use dogs (and other animals) for fighting! How wonderful Patrick Stewart is helping in the campaign to stop this.
As if Sir Patrick Stewart wasn’t already AWESOME! The fact that he and his wife, Sunny Ozell are getting involved in the #GetTough campaign and in effort sto overturn BSL is so encouraging.
Dog fighting makes me so angry! It is a big problem here in Metro Detroit. There are 3 cities covered by the Michigan Humane Society’s Animal Cruelty unit and in those 3 cities alone, there are more than 2,000 cases of dog fighting investigated every year. Dogs are not the only victims. Cats (especially outdoor pet cats) are stolen as bait animals. Why pet cats? They trust people and are easier to catch. We all need to do our part in ending this.
WOW! 2,000 cases in just three cities?!? That’s unbelievable and incredibly sad. What a disgusting practice. You raise an incredibly important point about cats being stolen and used for bait. It’s mind boggling that some people have such a blatant disregard for other living creatures. We do need to come together as an animal community to be a part of the solution.
It’s so important that people become more aware of this horrible practice. Thank you for being a voice for the voiceless victims. We tweeted and will share on our FB page. Great post!
Lola The Rescued Cat recently posted…Cats Helping Children with Autism
Thank you for helping to spread the word! 🙂 On a separate note, I LOVED your piece on cats helping children with autism!
I was so happy to see Patrick Stewart join this campaign! It gives a well known face to a terrible issue. Those that raise dogs to fight, AND those that attend dog fights rank right down there with puppy mill people. The dregs of the earth, in my opinion! I’m with you, let’s point legislation in the direction of eliminating dog fighting vs. BSL. We have BSL in the city where I live, I hate it!
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You raise such an important point about the people who attend dog fights for entertainment. I would love to see legislation that targets attendees as well as the people running the fights and abusing the dogs. Attendees are complicit in the abuse, in my opinion.
Dog fighting is one of the most horrific forms of animal cruelty. Many people don’t realize that there are also ties between dog fighting and other crimes such as drug and weapons trafficking. It MUST be stopped! I’ve signed the Pledge.
Love & Biscuits,
Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them
You are so right about the connections between organized animal cruelty and other crimes. Thank you for signing the pledge! The more awareness we can bring to our communities, the more likely it is that we can impact change.
Dog fighting is truly disgusting. I will never understand how anyone could be a part of it. I’m glad that there are some celebrities out there using their status to effect positive change, like what Patrick Stewart is doing. How unfortunate that he can’t adopt his foster dog, Ginger 🙁 Thanks for spreading the word about this and raising awareness! It’s important for people to understand that dog fighting happens everywhere, and they may be surprised how often is goes on in their own communities!
I have always been a big Patrick Stewart fan and this just makes me admire him even more!
It just horrifies me that people can be so cruel. Dog Fighting is just disgusting. I had no idea it was so prevalent still. We have big issues in Ontario with treatment of Pit Bulls. How wonderful that you and Piper found each other. Hoping #GetTough campaign helps.
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I feel pretty grateful that Piper and I found each other 🙂 and I share your disgust about the fact that dog fighting is still so prevalent.