My TN Pet Peeve--Dog Fighting! (Hohenwald: real estate, 2009, crime)

[Pocketplayer]

Since moving to TN from CA, I really only have one pet peeve...dog fighting!

I cannot believe Hickman Co still has dog fighting and bird fighting going on.
Lyles was the scene of one of the worst puppy mills in the US from the witch
Pam Adkisson.

There was a huge bird fight bust this past week in Hohenwald.

Other pet rescue people speak of the backward ways in their smaller towns.

This has to STOP!

Michael Vick who was involved in dog fighting, quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons
is getting out of jail and the NFL will be after him again, so this topic will be in the
general news shortly again.

I am asking for locals to suggest ways to contact city officials and let them know
citizens are sick of their laid back attitude.

It would be wonderful if people were motivated by the moral argument--dog fighting
is just WRONG--but the way to create change quick is economical...get them where
it hurts their POCKETS!

Here is how I have been trying to communicate to city officials.
1. Speak to locals to get the "real story".
I do this by responding to those selling homes in the area online. I can gather a lot of
real time info this way.

2. Any type of fighting or animal abuse is a stain on real estate.
Who wants to move into a community like this?

3. Exposure.
We live in the age of instant capture. Assume you are being recorded. With the
technology today, there is NO excuse for a neighbor to not contact or record the fighting.
This is what a neighbor did with the bird fighting bust in Hohenwald last week. There was
over 250 people attending these weekend fights. Bird bodies found decimated all over by
officials.

4. Contact local news and TV/Radio stations, as well as big name talk shows like Ellen DeGeneres,
Oprah and the like who are all animal lovers. Getting the word out can make for a story for an
investigative team. Again, it is the threat of such exposure to put their town under the microscope.
Do they really want THAT type of attention?

What do you suggest?

I rescued and fostered dogs, one of which was George, a former bait dog. I just had to
put him down and it was all because he was so abused. He had an unpredictable trigger
towards other dogs and I finally had to let him go. Saddest day of my life! We did everything
together--drove to work with him... See my profile for my website if interested.

That said, this is personal with me. How about you?

[Psychop1]

I don't like it any more than you do, but you don't know what you're getting yourself into if you are thinking about taking such a proactive position, such as the talk of video recording. There are sometimes millions of dollars on the line in these fights. It would be best not to put your own life at risk. Just keep your eyes and ears open and report to the correct authorities i.e. federal, not local.

[2mares]

Pocketplayer

I hate it to, but psychop1 makes a good point. I would also be leary about too much public exposure on dog fighting. There has been too much bad publicity and BLS legislation going on in TN to bring negative light to certain breeds right now. I have 3 pits and would rather not have attention drawn to them.
I have found there is a very wide spectrum of beliefs on what animal abuse is so for the most part I mind my own business and only report any blantant abuse I know of.

[Pocketplayer]

Sounds like the Southern Mafia!

Millions of dollars seems steep from the hillbilly boys I've seen coming out of Hickman County.

Does say a lot about the area however if the local view is, "don't look and don't tell...Shhhhhhh"
which reflects the LAW in these areas making it more than a violation of merely lazy people saturated
with their own comfort to do anything, or better yet, their own fear of retaliation if the LAW will do
nothing. I mean, why report a crime to the authorities if you feel it will bite you in the butt right?
Kinda puts the area back about 50 years in an age where the President is black and the Speaker
of the House a female.

My idea are not so far off from the below...

From various sites;
What can I do to help stop dogfighting? If you live in one of the states where dogfighting is
still only a misdemeanor, please write to your state legislators and urge them to make it a felony.
To find out how your state treats dogfighting, visit our page on State Dogfighting Laws.

We encourage you also to write letters to the media to increase public awareness of the dangers
of dogfighting and to law enforcement officials or prosecutors and judges to urge them to take the
issue seriously. You may want to display our dogfighting poster in your community.

If you suspect that dogfighting is going on in your own neighborhood, alert your local law enforcement
agency and urge agency officials to contact The HSUS for practical tools, advice and assistance.


This site offers a $5000 reward and suggests much of what I did...I guess I should have looked here first right.
Taking Action to End Dogfighting: How to Spot the Signs and What You Can Do


Sample Letters

[b]Sample Letters 2

Bottom line...

‘All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good people do
nothing by pretending everything is OK, then turn and look the other way’

[Psychop1]

Nobody is saying to do nothing, but don't be naive. Fighting dogs is a felony in Tennessee. These pit fights wouldn't happen unless there was either big money involved, or big money to be won later. I've worked in animal rescue as well for a non-profit organization. This is something we saw from time to time rescuing dogs that survived the pits... barely. All I am saying is it may be a good idea not to get too involved with the pits themselves. What do you think a group of pit-fighters that raise dogs to be efficient killers would do to you if they found out you were recording them???

[Pocketplayer]

I hear ya Psychop1

I'm not stupid and this is a "measure twice, cut once" kinda thing...but folks getting involved that are NOT directly involved is where the power comes from. Politicians are motivated by money and ego--usually they work together. The key is to get involved BEFORE an incident takes place.

Thanks for your efforts with dog rescue and I know you understand firsthand the horror of seeing these dogs mangled. As a male involved in dog rescue and dog fostering (my experience is 90% are female) I've realized we all have different stress levels regarding conflict. My levels are low meaning I can take a lot of stress. This is a good example of developing survival skills in a family that argued a lot. I also rescued/fostered pits and had a former bait dog so I know the damage produced on their psyches. I had to break up many pit fights and it is as intense as it gets, so I have been in the fire here. I will leave the personalities of those involved in this activity to another thread.

My main framework here is to develop community. Usually if one leads, others follow. Many people really want to do something, they just don't know what to do or are afraid...maybe both. There is power in numbers when we band together. We just gotta believe/feel it is worth the sacrifice.

[mrs1885]

The entire attitude toward animals in TN sucks. It's been the only hard adjustment I've had since moving her.

Going beyond the fighting - look at the way the pets are treated. Few people in the rural areas bother to spay / neuter their pets. They just let them continue to breed over and over. I see little puppies smooshed in the road all the time and it kills me. And as much as I hate to see dogs chained in a yard, it's better than the ones I see chasing cars and running in front of them. I've seen more dead dogs on the side of the highways.

Or how about the ones that are just skin and bones? Or the ones that are sick and get no vet care? Or my all time favorite, the thousands of back yard breeders here? That just burns me up. I've even seen an ad on a local on line site that someone is selling a male pit bull and the ad says 'he's not good with children or other dogs but is a great stud dog and produces gorgeous puppies'. Seriously?? Are people really that irresponsible that they'd breed a dog with obvious temperament issues?? When are people in this area going to wake the **** up? It just makes me so angry. I think some people need to take a trip to the local shelter's back room and see all the dead puppies waiting to be burned. Then tell me we need more puppies here.

TN - or at least my rural area of TN - is the most horrid place to be a pet.

[Pocketplayer]

Yeah...my neighbor is like this...never takes care of his dog but wants more. Looser comes to mind. This is not a TN issue, it is a character issue. Irresponsibility is a character issue, not a location issue. Much has to do with the mindset over generation. This is why it is hard to penetrate.

I believe it stems with the mentality that they are just an animal. Therefore, there needs to be awareness of conscience and it starts with the kids and works the way up.