Marty
06-05-2005, 11:25 AM
Rock Island, IL -- By Brian Krans, bkrans@qconline.com
Steroids, weights and treadmills aren't just for human athletes. They're also what serious dog fighters use to train their dogs to kill each other.
Dogs bred for fighting are trained for years to withstand the pain of sometimes hour-long fights to the death. The well-organized matches are held underground, where thousands of dollars exchange hands among dog handlers.
In the Quad-Cities, illegal dog fighting -Cities is the equivalent of an elementary-school shoving match, officials said. "It's more 'my dog can beat your dog,'" said Byron Reynolds, a community service officer with the Rock Island Police Department.
"Primarily, we have street fighters, wannabes that think they're tough and don't know what they are doing," he said. "It's not a deal for money. In the bigger rings it is. The street thing is just a game."
Local matches take place inside abandoned houses or in parking lots when two people pit their dogs against each other, sometimes to the death.
While local matches don't come close to the dog fights held in larger cities across of the country, the outcome sometimes is the same for dog and owner.
On May 15, Jalon Thomas, 25, of Davenport died after being shot in the back. Witnesses to the slaying said he was arguing with Ambus Ray Davis III, 28, about a dog that died weeks before in an illegal fight when Mr. Davis allegedly shot him.
Robyn Dobernecker, senior animal control officer with the Humane Society of Scott County, fingers through photos of animals found roaming the streets with marks that tell her they were used for fighting.
Brutus, a brown and white pitbull, had bite marks on his face, and ears cut very short so other dogs couldn't latch onto them during a fight. Officer Dobernecker guessed he was dumped by his owner in 2002 after he lost a fight.
"It costs too much to fix them and when they lose, they are no good to their owner anyway," she said.
The Humane Society gets four or five dogs a year suspected of being used in dog fights. The animals are not made available for adoption for safety reasons, Officer Dobernecker said.
"We don't know what the command is to make them fight," she said. "Most of them are really good, believe it or not. Their temperament just changes when they see another dog or animal."
Mike Crow, a community service officer with the Rock Island Police Department, said most dogs with injuries get them from dogs just being dogs. "It's not very often, but occasionally, we will find one that has some injuries that can't be explained," he said.
In the fighting world, pit bulls are considered the dog of choice because of their incredibly strong jaws and ability to withstand large amounts of pain. But it isn't the breed that makes the dogs violent, it's how they're trained, Officer Dobernecker said. "It's why they (pit bulls) have such a bad reputation, because people use them for bad things."
Dogs as young as 6 weeks old are trained to kill, with owners using different methods. Sometimes, they use smaller dogs or cats to train them. A common sign of dog training is a rope hanging from a tree. Owners will make the dogs bite the rope and hang by their mouths until they are told to let go.
"That is what neighbors should be looking for," Officer Dobernecker said.
In April, Iowa lawmakers p***ed a law to upgrade animal fighting from a serious misdemeanor to a Cl*** "D" felony, punishable by five years in prison. The law also broadened the scope of what is punishable for owners of "contest animals" and made watching a fight punishable by a year in jail.
But Officer Dobernecker hasn't used the new law yet. She said investigating fighting rings is difficult because witnesses won't talk. "These people are also involved with gangs, guns and drugs. People are afraid to testify against them."
Officer Reynolds said Rock Island ordinances help cut down on the smaller street-level fighting. Dogs must have visible tags and be on a leash at all times.
While Officer Dobernecker believes organized dog fights could be happening almost every weekend in the Quad-Cities, Officer Reynolds doubts it.
"If it's going on, they're doing it better than we can tell," he said. "I have never actually found a house or a ring where there has been dog fighting."
Signs of a home with dog fights:
- People coming and going often with large dogs
- Owners with multiple or different dogs
- Ropes hanging from trees
- Dogs with ears trimmed close to the head
Source: Robyn Dobernecker, senior animal control officer with the Humane Society of Scott County.
Staff writer Brian Krans can be reached at (309) 786-6441, ext. 271.
Steroids, weights and treadmills aren't just for human athletes. They're also what serious dog fighters use to train their dogs to kill each other.
Dogs bred for fighting are trained for years to withstand the pain of sometimes hour-long fights to the death. The well-organized matches are held underground, where thousands of dollars exchange hands among dog handlers.
In the Quad-Cities, illegal dog fighting -Cities is the equivalent of an elementary-school shoving match, officials said. "It's more 'my dog can beat your dog,'" said Byron Reynolds, a community service officer with the Rock Island Police Department.
"Primarily, we have street fighters, wannabes that think they're tough and don't know what they are doing," he said. "It's not a deal for money. In the bigger rings it is. The street thing is just a game."
Local matches take place inside abandoned houses or in parking lots when two people pit their dogs against each other, sometimes to the death.
While local matches don't come close to the dog fights held in larger cities across of the country, the outcome sometimes is the same for dog and owner.
On May 15, Jalon Thomas, 25, of Davenport died after being shot in the back. Witnesses to the slaying said he was arguing with Ambus Ray Davis III, 28, about a dog that died weeks before in an illegal fight when Mr. Davis allegedly shot him.
Robyn Dobernecker, senior animal control officer with the Humane Society of Scott County, fingers through photos of animals found roaming the streets with marks that tell her they were used for fighting.
Brutus, a brown and white pitbull, had bite marks on his face, and ears cut very short so other dogs couldn't latch onto them during a fight. Officer Dobernecker guessed he was dumped by his owner in 2002 after he lost a fight.
"It costs too much to fix them and when they lose, they are no good to their owner anyway," she said.
The Humane Society gets four or five dogs a year suspected of being used in dog fights. The animals are not made available for adoption for safety reasons, Officer Dobernecker said.
"We don't know what the command is to make them fight," she said. "Most of them are really good, believe it or not. Their temperament just changes when they see another dog or animal."
Mike Crow, a community service officer with the Rock Island Police Department, said most dogs with injuries get them from dogs just being dogs. "It's not very often, but occasionally, we will find one that has some injuries that can't be explained," he said.
In the fighting world, pit bulls are considered the dog of choice because of their incredibly strong jaws and ability to withstand large amounts of pain. But it isn't the breed that makes the dogs violent, it's how they're trained, Officer Dobernecker said. "It's why they (pit bulls) have such a bad reputation, because people use them for bad things."
Dogs as young as 6 weeks old are trained to kill, with owners using different methods. Sometimes, they use smaller dogs or cats to train them. A common sign of dog training is a rope hanging from a tree. Owners will make the dogs bite the rope and hang by their mouths until they are told to let go.
"That is what neighbors should be looking for," Officer Dobernecker said.
In April, Iowa lawmakers p***ed a law to upgrade animal fighting from a serious misdemeanor to a Cl*** "D" felony, punishable by five years in prison. The law also broadened the scope of what is punishable for owners of "contest animals" and made watching a fight punishable by a year in jail.
But Officer Dobernecker hasn't used the new law yet. She said investigating fighting rings is difficult because witnesses won't talk. "These people are also involved with gangs, guns and drugs. People are afraid to testify against them."
Officer Reynolds said Rock Island ordinances help cut down on the smaller street-level fighting. Dogs must have visible tags and be on a leash at all times.
While Officer Dobernecker believes organized dog fights could be happening almost every weekend in the Quad-Cities, Officer Reynolds doubts it.
"If it's going on, they're doing it better than we can tell," he said. "I have never actually found a house or a ring where there has been dog fighting."
Signs of a home with dog fights:
- People coming and going often with large dogs
- Owners with multiple or different dogs
- Ropes hanging from trees
- Dogs with ears trimmed close to the head
Source: Robyn Dobernecker, senior animal control officer with the Humane Society of Scott County.
Staff writer Brian Krans can be reached at (309) 786-6441, ext. 271.