Thefts May Be Tied to Dog Fighting Rings

[Marty]

Evansville, IN -- A warning to dog owners in western Kentucky: Precious pets are disappearing right out of your yards.

Many in the area think dog fighters are stealing them, and using them as bait to help train their dogs to get in the ring. Law enforcement officials say dog fighting is big business in rural areas, and on the rise.

They're cute and sweet ... And they're like members of our family. But to some, they're dollar signs. Patty Leggett with the Hopkins County Humane Society says, "No purpose other than money for something so cruel ..."

Major Keith Stine with the Providence Police Department says, "It's very profitable, $350-500 per dog."

In the past three weeks alone, dozens of dogs around the Madisonville area have gone missing. Belinda Adcock, co-founder of the group Pet Lovers uses a web site to try to locate missing pets. But she fears most of them will never be returned.

Major Stine was a victim himself, when his dog was taken last summer, during a rash of dog thefts. Stine says, "About 40 to 45 dogs in the Clay, Wheatcroft area."

He says it's on the rise again. And he says, what's being done with those stolen pets is nothing short of cruel. "They put them inside a ring, basically let them chew on these defenseless dogs."

At the Hopkins County Humane Society, Patty Leggett sees the effects of the fights. "They come in with bite marks, scarring." Belinda Adcock says, "They use these small animals for bait. The animal is literally torn apart."

Major Stine has several leads on dog fighting rings. He says, if the suspects are caught, he'll have no mercy. "They'll be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."

There are currently two vehicles that have been spotted taking dogs. One is a red and white pick-up seen in Hopkins County. The other is a late model Dodge Caravan in Nortonville.

Dog fighting is a felony. If you have any information about these dog fighting rings, call your local police department and report it.

[blueboyky]

yes I know. Pitbulls are really big right now in ky. Bad press especially. we must have had 6 attacks that i know of in the last 4 months.real pits????????

[Crash97]

These are terrible acts perpetrated by ignorant people who's only knowledge comes from the idiots in the media and local humane organizations. They put out these "blooding" and "bait" stories and then act horrified when some idiot does these things. The first step in eradicating this bullshit is to stop putting the bullshit info. out to the public as truth.

[rocksteady]

"Major Keith Stine with the Providence Police Department says, "It's very profitable, $350-500 per dog." "

LOL I guess no one introduced them into the world of $2000 blue dogs ...

[Moesmomma]

I understand the horror these 'bait' dogs must feel along with their precious owners when they find out their dog has been taken. I wouldn't want anything to happen to my dogs. I especially wouldn't want to be used as bait.

But one must understand, that judging a Pitbull just because it's a pitbull is simply wrong. There ARE responsible, caring owners out there who care deeply for their pits, who consider them family members, who keep their pits inside as a house dog. These dogs are couch potatoes. These dogs are not what the media has made them out to be.

Just here in Madisonville, 2... I repeat... 2 Chow Chow attacks occured a few months back. One victim was seen at the ER, the other victim was a small child whom by the grace of God, did not sustain any permanent damage.

Nothing was ever mentioned in the news. If it had been a Pitbull... I guarantee you it would have been splashed all over our local newspaper.

Pits definitely get the raw end of the deal, as my brother's dog did just this last Sunday, 1/8/2006. She was shot by his neighbor simply because she was a Pitbull. She was shot directly in her chest, leaving a 4-5" wound. The way she was shot she was probably sitting or standing there looking at the man who shot her. He actually had time to go inside his house, get his shotgun, come back outside, aim and kill her.

I AM FURIOUS!!!! My brother had just let her out of her kennel to feed her & let her get some exercise. He was outside with her. He turned his back, within seconds she was not in the yard. 10 minutes later he heard a gunshot but didn't realize Cheyenne was killed until 2 Sheriff's pulled into our driveway.

My entire family has lived on Stagecoach Rd for 36 years. Out of those 36 years, we have NEVER experienced such a horrific act of violence. So cruel! But some authority figures want to justify it because "it was a pitbull."

Is it right to shoot every Chow in Hopkins Co?Is it right to shoot every breed of dog that has bitten a human being? If that's the case, let's just wipe out the entire canine breed. Because from Pom Poms, Cocker Spaniels, Chow Chows to Great Danes (A dog I was bitten by when I was a child) and every dog in between. Because I promise you, somewhere in the past, most every breed of dog has bitten a human.

If it's any other breed, IT DOES NOT MAKE THE NEWS!!!! Everybody hears the bad stories about Pits. Nobody wants to hear the good these dogs bring. They are just dogs and not a spawn of satan. The one-teeth baring Pit you see on the news, is the image everyone has in their mind when you hear the Pitbull term.

Sorry I'm venting.

Moe's Momma
Stagecoach Rd
Hanson, KY

[Crash97]

I understand the horror these 'bait' dogs must feel along with their precious owners when they find out their dog has been taken. I wouldn't want anything to happen to my dogs. I especially wouldn't want to be used as bait.

But one must understand, that judging a Pitbull just because it's a pitbull is simply wrong. There ARE responsible, caring owners out there who care deeply for their pits, who consider them family members, who keep their pits inside as a house dog. These dogs are couch potatoes. These dogs are not what the media has made them out to be.

Just here in Madisonville, 2... I repeat... 2 Chow Chow attacks occured a few months back. One victim was seen at the ER, the other victim was a small child whom by the grace of God, did not sustain any permanent damage.

Nothing was ever mentioned in the news. If it had been a Pitbull... I guarantee you it would have been splashed all over our local newspaper.

Pits definitely get the raw end of the deal, as my brother's dog did just this last Sunday, 1/8/2006. She was shot by his neighbor simply because she was a Pitbull. She was shot directly in her chest, leaving a 4-5" wound. The way she was shot she was probably sitting or standing there looking at the man who shot her. He actually had time to go inside his house, get his shotgun, come back outside, aim and kill her.

I AM FURIOUS!!!! My brother had just let her out of her kennel to feed her & let her get some exercise. He was outside with her. He turned his back, within seconds she was not in the yard. 10 minutes later he heard a gunshot but didn't realize Cheyenne was killed until 2 Sheriff's pulled into our driveway.

My entire family has lived on Stagecoach Rd for 36 years. Out of those 36 years, we have NEVER experienced such a horrific act of violence. So cruel! But some authority figures want to justify it because "it was a pitbull."

Is it right to shoot every Chow in Hopkins Co?Is it right to shoot every breed of dog that has bitten a human being? If that's the case, let's just wipe out the entire canine breed. Because from Pom Poms, Cocker Spaniels, Chow Chows to Great Danes (A dog I was bitten by when I was a child) and every dog in between. Because I promise you, somewhere in the past, most every breed of dog has bitten a human.

If it's any other breed, IT DOES NOT MAKE THE NEWS!!!! Everybody hears the bad stories about Pits. Nobody wants to hear the good these dogs bring. They are just dogs and not a spawn of satan. The one-teeth baring Pit you see on the news, is the image everyone has in their mind when you hear the Pitbull term.

Sorry I'm venting.

Moe's Momma
Stagecoach Rd
Hanson, KYWTF.....between opening up year old threads and posting the same message several times about "bait dogs", I have to ask what in the hell is your motive? Are you some kinda Animal Rights nut looking to start crap with all this "bait dog" shit or what?

[Unregistered]

Crash97,
Excuse me!!!
Did you just cuss me when the agreement "I" read stated this wasn't allowed?

I am sorry for your anger. I didn't mean to anger anybody.
I opened this thread because I am from the area these threads mentioned (Western Ky). I entered "Madisonville, KY Pitbull" in the search engine & this is the forum I got. I only wanted to vent my frustrations.

Are you the owner of this site? If you are, I'm sorry I offended you. If you are not, then I don't think you had any right cussing me or being angry with me.

No I am not an "Animal Rights nut."
So you agree with what this man did to my brother's dog?
I just am a lover of this breed and what this man done to my brother's dog was simply wrong.
This thread had NOTHING to do w/ Bait dogs and the why I posted my thread. Again, I posted it because this site IS a Pitbull site and I am furious.

Are you from this area? If you are, that would explain your insensitivity to the entire situation?

MoesMomma

[Moesmomma]

Crash97,
Excuse me!!!
Did you just cuss me when the agreement "I" read stated this wasn't allowed?

I am sorry for your anger. I didn't mean to anger anybody.
I opened this thread because I am from the area these threads mentioned (Western Ky). I entered "Madisonville, KY Pitbull" in the search engine & this is the forum I got. I only wanted to vent my frustrations.

Are you the owner of this site? If you are, I'm sorry I offended you. If you are not, then I don't think you had any right cussing me or being angry with me.

No I am not an "Animal Rights nut."
So you agree with what this man did to my brother's dog?
I just am a lover of this breed and what this man done to my brother's dog was simply wrong.
This thread had NOTHING to do w/ Bait dogs and the why I posted my thread. Again, I posted it because this site IS a Pitbull site and I am furious.

Are you from this area? If you are, that would explain your insensitivity to the entire situation?

MoesMomma

[simms]

Crash97,
Excuse me!!!
Did you just cuss me when the agreement "I" read stated this wasn't allowed?

I am sorry for your anger. I didn't mean to anger anybody.
I opened this thread because I am from the area these threads mentioned (Western Ky). I entered "Madisonville, KY Pitbull" in the search engine & this is the forum I got. I only wanted to vent my frustrations.

Are you the owner of this site? If you are, I'm sorry I offended you. If you are not, then I don't think you had any right cussing me or being angry with me.

No I am not an "Animal Rights nut."
So you agree with what this man did to my brother's dog?
I just am a lover of this breed and what this man done to my brother's dog was simply wrong.
This thread had NOTHING to do w/ Bait dogs and the why I posted my thread. Again, I posted it because this site IS a Pitbull site and I am furious.

Are you from this area? If you are, that would explain your insensitivity to the entire situation?

MoesMommaWell, there is not much you can do for the loss of your brother's dog....
Your brother may be a good guy....but the truth be known, he shouldn't have owned that pitbull to begin with.

Why you may ask?

Well, your brother has become one of the many statistics that plague the breed today.....sad as it may be for you and familly, it is the truth. I hope that dog didn't suffer.

I do not beleive that the general public should own or breed the APBT or that of type dogs. I do not beleive that they should have the opption of adoption or rescue. As the general public can not get passed what the APBT is or what it was developed for.

And as the original topic does use the term "baitdog" in this artical.... it is the public and the AR groups, that perpetuate this cruelty and Ideas of this breed.

[catcher T]

you can all sit and blame the media for all of this all the time,,I am here to tell you that this is all very real,,I don't know how exaggerated this story is,,but, rest assured that this all happens,,there are "bait dogs" there is "corner dog fighting" ,,the media dosen't just always pull these stories out of their @ss,,and when there is a dog fighting ring,,the whole story can not be told to the media. alot of animal control, law enforcement do not know what they are talking about,,I will give ya that. but on the other hand,,there are plenty of "pit" owners that do the most hainous things to these animals all in the name of game.

[Moesmomma]

become one of the many statistics that plague the breed today.....sad as it may be for you and familly, it is the truth. I hope that dog didn't suffer.

I do not beleive that the general public should own or breed the APBT or that of type dogs. I do not beleive that they should have the opption of adoption or rescue. As the general public can not get passed what the APBT is or what it was developed for.


I do understand what this breed for developed for. I totally understand that & I am not saying if your choose to stay closer to their roots, that doesn't make YOU a bad person. Afterall, that's where Moe came from. But to say that I nor anybody else, other than dog-people, should own these dogs, I totally disagree. Do you agree that some of these dogs lack gameness? If that's the case, where should that particular dog go?

there are plenty of "pit" owners that do the most hainous things to these animals
Oops. I just answered my own question.

But everyone here have their own opinions......... you disagree with me having a Pit as a Pet. I disagree with what some of these dogs endure. Oh, and I'm not an Animal Rights nut, just someone who has compassion.

I am not the general public owner that's going to freak out if my Pit kills a squirrel. I am not the general public owner that's going to freak out if my Pit scraps with another dog, severly injures it or kills it. I know where it's roots are & the reason it came into existence. There are MANY MANY dogs that were breed for a particular sport many years ago...(herding, guard, retrieving, etc) and just because that particular owner doesn't participate in that dog's 'history' doesn't mean that owner should not own that breed.

We can go all day debating this subject. You can disagree with me and vice versa.

Thanks for letting me vent, even though I angered some. That was not my intentions. I just wanted to vent to people who own Pits. When I vent to someone who owns a Border Collie or a Poodle, they just don't quit grasp what all the hype is about and why someone would want to own a APBT.
.......... Because............
Those who have one, can't explain
Those who don't, can't understand.

Moe's Momma

[ABK]

Truth be told these dogs that are being stolen are probably being sold to research labs. I know for a fact that ppl will steal pets to sell to labs, b/c it occurs in my area. Most dogfighter do not use "bait dogs." That was a myth made up by PETA.

[WWII]

Well, I hope over the course of 1 year, they caught these thieves...

[simms]

you can all sit and blame the media for all of this all the time,,I am here to tell you that this is all very real,,I don't know how exaggerated this story is,,but, rest assured that this all happens,,there are "bait dogs" there is "corner dog fighting" ,,the media dosen't just always pull these stories out of their @ss,,and when there is a dog fighting ring,,the whole story can not be told to the media. alot of animal control, law enforcement do not know what they are talking about,,I will give ya that. but on the other hand,,there are plenty of "pit" owners that do the most hainous things to these animals all in the name of game.
I dont blame the media on a whole..... However most accidents come from the general public....mauling's of children and pets.

I don't think I said that it doesnt happen, however it doesn't happen within my circle of folks....the practice is not condoned. Further more I do beleive the term "baitdog" is used loosely.

Do you think I'm making excuses for these fucks that practice that? I don't think so....However again, I do not beleive this breed is for just anyone and that means the general public on the whole.

This breed can not afford any more mistakes, and if that means theres one less petbull, than so be it.....

[14rock]

Yes, "Baitdog" does now happen so the media isnt ALWAYS pulling these things out their ass. But you need to look at the first ones who started the popularity of this and caused it to happen, which is the media pulling something out of its ass. If you make false claims long enough, some idiot will fall for it and do it, then you have "proof" that is happens, even though it wouldnt of happened if you wouldnt of made up BS!

[rpk]

Negative Press!! This article causes more harm than good. It is not based on research or facts. This article will bring more prejudice to the apbt and its responsible owners. BSL groups will use this as justification to extict the apbt.

[catcher T]

I am not talking about all you guys here,,I am just talking now and then with the bait dog discussions,the articles, and the punk dog fighting,,yes, I think I stated not all dogs that are chewed up a little are dog fighters and not all dogs that go missing are linked to "bait dog" nappers,,I want ya to know it happens more then you might be willing to admit,,come to the sewers of Detroit and I will take ya on a tour,,they all want big killer dogs to watch their yard,,these are ppl that do not touch these dogs,,they just watch the yard and food is thrown to them,,and then there are the young guys whose family dosen't even know that their teenage boy owns a dog cause he keeps it in an abandon house until it is time to corner fight him,,then their are the guys that want to game test their dogs and they face them off in a basement,,and they fight to the death,,with this mentality these are the very same ppl that get bait dogs cause they think they need them,,"to let my big killer dog to get the taste of blood" These are the same ppl that hot brand them on top of their heads,,and when they won't fight they sick two on it to finish it off,,,the education is so important and that is what we are all doing here,,these ppl I'm talking about are not on this forum,,
Simms-I totally agree with most things you say,,I wasen't referring to you specifically,,I was just talking to everyone, I agree with these dogs are not for everyone,,and yes the media runs with this crap,,so I can only say educat,educate,educate, the only problem is we are already educated just being here,,we need the ones that aren't here

[Crash97]

Crash97,
Excuse me!!!
Did you just cuss me when the agreement "I" read stated this wasn't allowed?
I hardly feel that was a cussing out.
I am sorry for your anger. I didn't mean to anger anybody.
I opened this thread because I am from the area these threads mentioned (Western Ky). I entered "Madisonville, KY Pitbull" in the search engine & this is the forum I got. I only wanted to vent my frustrations.
The reason I got angered is becausein three seperate threads you posted the same story with the same "bait dog" intro. Now I'm sure sure some lil' lowlife who heard about "bait dogs" in a Humaniac press release actually uses "bait dogs", but most active dog people see that for what it is HSUS propaganda and nonsense. But many of the ones reading this board are newbies and those looking for info., ones who are ready fodder for this "bait dog" hype. So that was why I got irate. I apologize if I misread your intentions.
Are you the owner of this site? If you are, I'm sorry I offended you. If you are not, then I don't think you had any right cussing me or being angry with me.
I am not the owner or in any way affiliated with this site other than being a member. But that doesn't preclude me from being angry or speaking my mind just like any other member.
No I am not an "Animal Rights nut."
So you agree with what this man did to my brother's dog?
Hell no. I am completely aware of the trigger happy, pitbull hating police.
I just am a lover of this breed and what this man done to my brother's dog was simply wrong.
I agree, it was wrong. But also that the dog should have been better contained also.
This thread had NOTHING to do w/ Bait dogs and the why I posted my thread. Again, I posted it because this site IS a Pitbull site and I am furious.

Are you from this area? If you are, that would explain your insensitivity to the entire situation?
No, I'm not from that area. And don't exactly see how that is relevant to my supposed "insensitivity"?

MoesMommaAgain, my apologies if I misread your intentions as I too have become weary from all the anti-pitbull rhetoric.

[simms]

Sounds as if the Dogmen and clubs up there need to do a sweep and get these animals out of the hands of these ppl.

Agree or not....at some point we need to take this breed back or our Gov will do it for us.

Yes what I'm implying may be hard to stomache, but tell me what other solution do you folks have?

[simms]

Do you agree that some of these dogs lack gameness? If that's the case, where should that particular dog go?
Like I've said this breed can not afford any other mistakes....Cull them.

[ghost 1]

Like I've said this breed can not afford any other mistakes....Cull them.

lol ,,,u could BUT there just gonna breed some more or steal some more,they are stealing them around here all the time,, and there are no research labs here,so what are they doing with them,,, the media has made these punk fighters think this is how u train a game dog,,and thus, this is why it,s as bad as it is,,,and why it,s happening more and more,,,,when they have no clue,,,

[Crash97]

lol ,,,u could BUT there just gonna breed some more or steal some more,they are stealing them around here all the time,, and there are no research labs here,so what are they doing with them,,, the media has made these punk fighters think this is how u train a game dog,,and thus, this is why it,s as bad as it is,,,and why it,s happening more and more,,,,when they have no clue,,,Mentor....