attaching sharpened blades: Curnutt, J., Animals and the Law: A Sourcebook (Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2001), 276.
Themistocles even staged cockfights: Ibid., 277.
elephants, bison, lions: Ibid., 231.
hundreds of thousands of animals: Ibid.
In A.D. 1050, Edward the Confessor: Ibid., 283.
During her reign, Queen Elizabeth I: Birley, D., Land of Sport and Glory: Sport and British Society 1887–1910 (Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 1995), 62–64.
but both times to no avail: Gardiner, S., Sports Law (London: Routledge Cavendish, 2006), 120.
Three pits stood in the city: Shevelow, K., For the Love of Animals: The Rise of the Animal Protection Movement (New York: Henry Holt and Co., 2008), 43–46.
what one author has called “Bulldog Nation”: Russell, Edmund, “The Michael Vicks of Yore,” Washington Post, September 2, 2007, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/
content/article/2007/08/31/AR2007083101466.html.
to create the modern bull terrier: Encyclopedia Britannica Online, “Pit Bull Terrier,” 2009, http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1309178/pit-bull-terrier.
a monkey named Jacco Macacco: Russell, “The Michael Vicks of Yore.”
Britain’s Parliament considered eleven bills: Malcolmson, R. W., Popular Recreations in English Society 1700–1850 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Archive, 1979), 124.
secured fifty-two petitions of support: Shevelow, For the Love of Animals, 266–272.
1835 and 1849 passed bills: Malcolmson, Popular Recreations, 124.
brought cockfighting, dogfighting, bull baiting, gander pulling: Fischer, David H., Albion’s Seed: Four British Folkways in America (New York: Oxford University Press, 1989), 148, 360–364, 552–555; and Isaac, Rhys, The Transformation of Virginia (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1982), 101–103.
The 1641 Massachusetts “Body of Liberties”: Unti, Bernard, “Colonial Era Blood Sports,” in The Quality of Mercy: Organized Animal Protection in the United States 1865–1930 (Ann Arbor, MI: Proquest/UMI Dissertation Services, 2002).
“great inhumanity, and a scandalous…”: Mather, Increase, A Testimony Against Several Prophane and Superstitious Customs Now Practised by Some in New-England (London: n.p., 1687), http://www.covenanter.org/IMather/increasemathertestimony.htm.
“rude and riotous sports”: Unti, “Colonial Era Blood Sports.”
temporarily banned blood sports: Withington, Ann, Toward a More Perfect Union: Virtue and the Formation of American Republics (New York: Oxford University Press, 1991), 185–216, 246–248.
even before the founding: Lane and Zawistowski, Heritage of Care.
Cockfighting had even been an issue: Curnutt, Animals and the Law, 278; and Sharon MacPherson, letter to Eric Sakach, May 12, 1993. In the author’s possession.
The first state prohibitions: Unti, Quality of Mercy.
New York prohibited all forms: Ibid.
pit bull debuted in America: Bulldogbreeds.com, http://www.bulldogbreeds.com/americanpitbullterrier.html.
the Ohio and Mississippi railroads: Gibson, Hanna, “Dog Fighting Detailed Discussion,” Animal Legal and Historical Center, Michigan State University, 2005, http://www.animallaw.info/articles/ddusdogfighting.htm#s2.
United Kennel Club (which had previously sanctioned dogfighting): Ibid.
no felony cockfighting laws: Curnutt, Animals and the Law, 281.
among Amazon’s 150 top-selling periodicals: HSUS, “Amazon.com Faces Lawsuit for Illegal Cockfighting Magazines,” July 18, 2006, http://www.hsus.org/acf/news/
amazon_cockfighting_magazines.html.
thousands of gamefowl breeders: HSUS, “New Federal Law Will Help Crack Down on Illegal Cockfighting,” May 13, 2004, http://www.hsus.org/acf/news/new_federal_law_will_help.html.
David Mitchell of Rattlesnake Game Farm: The Feathered Warrior, November 2001, p. 3.
“Pure Aggression” was advertised: Kilborn, Peter T., “In Enclaves of Rural America, a Cockfighting Industry Thrives,” June 5, 2000, http://www.mangossubic.com/cock_fighting.htm; The Feathered Warrior, November 2001, p. 3.
Florida banned cockfighting in 1986: Animal Protection of New Mexico, “Cockfighting Ban Dates by State,” 2003, http://www.apnm.org/campaigns/cockfighting/ban_dates.html.
Kentucky Court of Appeals in 1994: Munn v. Com., 889 S.W.2d 49 (Ky. App. 1994) (defendant could be prosecuted for second-degree cruelty to animals for engaging in cockfighting).
Traditionally, the people involved: Gibson, D., “Vick Dog Fighting Case Gives Ugly Glimpse into the Black Community,” American Daily, August 24, 2007, http://www.americandaily.com/article/2004.
international markets for the dogs: Campisi, G., “Pit Bulls Are New Export: Dogfighting Gains Popularity in Europe,” Philadelphia Daily News, July 10, 2000.
street fighting that emerged in the 1980s: Malanga, S., “The Sick Hipness of Dog Fighting,” Chicago Sun-Times, June 17, 2007.
John Goodwin called the “cockfighting corridor”: John Goodwin, quoted in Stabley, Matthew, “Suspected Cockfighting Operation Busted in Virginia,” April 20, 2010, http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local-beat/Suspected-Cockfighting-Operation-Busted-in-Virginia–91653074.html.
In Alabama, the maximum penalty: HSUS, “Ranking of State Cockfighting Laws,” September 31, 2009, http://www.hsus.org/acf/fighting/cockfight/
state_cockfighting_laws_ranked.html.
In Ohio, it was $250: Ibid.
the nation’s largest cockfighting pit: HSUS, “More Than 140 Arrested in Tennessee as FBI Raids One of the Nation’s Largest Illegal Cockfighting Pits,” June 12, 2005, http://www.hsus.org/press_and_publications/press_releases/
fbi_raids_cockfighting_pit_in_cocke_county_tennessee.html.
State authorities raided Del Rio: Avent, Jan, “Hundreds Are Cited at Cockfight,” Knoxville News Sentinel, June 12, 1988.
led a successful campaign to reduce the penalty: Humphrey, Tom, “Agent Claims Payoff Taken,” Knoxville News Sentinel, April 10, 2008.
When the FBI raided: HSUS, “More Than 140 Arrested.”
they arrested not only the pit’s owners: HSUS, “Congress Urged to Crack Down on Animal Fighting,” February 6, 2007, http://www.hsus.org/press_and_publications/
press_releases/congress_urged_to_crack_down.html.
crowds of six hundred to seven hundred people: U.S. Government Printing Office, “Native American Methamphetamine Enforcement and Treatment Act of 2007, the Animal Fighting Prohibition Enforcement Act of 2007, and the Preventing Harassment through Outbound Number Enforcement (Phone) Act of 2007,” Hearing before the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security of the Committee on the Judiciary House of Representatives. 110 Congress, First Session. H.R. 545, H.R. 137, and H.R. 740. Serial No. 110–5, February 6, 2007, p. 51.
“approximately 182 cock fights at the Del Rio cockfight pit”: Ibid.
“cooperating witness observed a girl…”: Ibid.
cockfighting contributed to its spread: HSUS, “Cockfighting and the Spread of Bird Flu,” August 17, 2006, http://www.hsus.org/farm/news/ournews/cockfighting_bird_flu.html.
thirty million fighting cocks: Chunsuttiwat, S., “Response to Avian Influenza and Preparedness for Pandemic,” Respirology 13, Suppl. 1 (2008): S36.
Oklahoma alone had: Kilborn, P. T., “In Enclaves of Rural America, A Cockfighting Industry Thrives,” June 5, 2000, http://www.mangossubic.com/cock_fighting.htm.
estimated the state had 2.8 million: Associated Press, “Senator Shurden Announces Plans to Lower Cockfighting Penalty,” Okmulgee Daily Times, November 8, 2002; and Campbell, Jim, “Cockfighting Battle Predictions Aired,” Oklahoma Press Association—Capitol Newsbureau, November 2002.
In 1976, Congress had passed a law: USDA, “Public Law 94–279, Animal Welfare Act Amendments of 1976,” April 22, 1976, http://awic.nal.usda.gov/nal_display/index.php?info_center=3%20&tax_level=4&tax_subject=182& topic_id=1118&level3_id=6735&l
evel4_id=11094&
level5_id=0&placement_default=0.
Senator Ford succeeded in amending: Ibid.
authorities hadn’t prosecuted: Hearing Before the Committee on Agriculture, Prohibition of Interstate Movement of Live Birds for Animal Fighting, September 13, 2000, Serial No. 106–59.
Allard and Peterson agreed: HSUS, “Victory against Cockfighting in New Mexico,” March 12, 2007, http://www.hsus.org/acf/news/
victory_new_mexico_cockfighting.html.
Symms of Idaho and J. Bennett Johnston of Louisiana: Simon, Rich, “Settling the Dog Fight Over Chickens,” Los Angeles Times, National section, May 5, 2002.
“The purpose of this amendment,…”: C-SPAN Video Library, E. Blumenauer Farm Security Act of 2001, House Session, http://www.cspanvideo.org/videoLibrary/clip.php?appid=596276456.
Combest and Stenholm took to the floor: Ibid.
Blumenauer’s amendment succeeded: Ibid.
John had been the cockfighters’ point man: Markarian, M., “Soft on Crime, Soft on Cruelty,” Huffington Post, October 3, 2009, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-markarian/soft-on-crime-soft-on-cru_b_302186.html.
“I strongly support the cockfighting industry in Louisiana”: Congressman Chris John, Hearing Before the Committee on Agriculture, Prohibition of Interstate Movement of Live Birds for Animal Fighting, September 13, 2000, Serial No. 106–59.
“cockfighting is a cultural, family-type thing”: Baton Rouge Advocate, December 12, 2001.
Vitter, on the other hand, had been an opponent: HSUS, “The Humane Society of the United States and U.S. Senator David Vitter Urge Swift End to Cockfighting in Louisiana,” June 21, 2007, http://www.hsus.org/press_and_publications/press_releases/
hsus_senator_vitter_louisiana_cockfighting.html.
Humane USA, a political action committee I founded: Humane USA, http://www.humaneusa.org/.
the first Republican to win: McGill, K., “David Vitter Faces Untainted GOP Challenger,” July 18, 2010, http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2010/07/18/us_louisiana_senate.
A postelection poll showed: Markarian, M., “Soft on Crime, Soft on Cruelty,” Huffington Post, October 3, 2009, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-markarian/soft-on-crime-soft-on-cru_b_302186.html.
Governor Bill Richardson finally: Associated Press, “Gov. Bill Richardson Signs Bill Outlawing Cockfighting in New Mexico,” USA Today, March 12, 2007, http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007–03–12-cockfighting-nm_N.htm.
proposed phasing out cockfighting: HSUS, “Louisiana Considers Immediate Ban on Cockfighting,” May 3, 2007, http://www.hsus.org/acf/news/
louisiana_considers_ban_cockfighting.html.
a one-year phaseout was negotiated: Anderson, E., “Cockfighting Ban Awaits Blanco’s Signature,” June 27, 2007, http://blog.nola.com/updates/2007/06/
cockfighting_ban_awaits_blanco.html.
At the same time he introduced: HSUS, “Cockfighting Is History in the United States,” July 12, 2007, http://www.hsus.org/acf/news/cockfighting_louisiana_50th.html.
several of the state’s major pits shut down: Ibid.
Cockfighting was now illegal: HSUS, “State Cockfighting Laws,” May 2009, http://www.hsus.org/acf/fighting/
cockfight/state_cockfighting_laws.html.
His reform, prohibiting the training”: July 29, 2009, http://www.johnkerry.com.
the House had already approved: House Agriculture Committee, Farm Bill, H.R. 2419, June 18, 2009, http://agriculture.house.gov/inside/2007FarmBill.html.
John Conyers of Michigan broadened: HSUS, “Congress Enacts Key Animal Protection Measures in Farm Bill,” May 22, 2008, http://www.hsus.org/press_and_publications/
press_releases/congress_enacts_key_animal_protection_
measures_in_farm_bill_052208.html.
He was serving the sixty-day: Bryant, H., “Vick’s Reality: Life as an Ex-Con,” ESPN.com, May 19, 2009, http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/story?columnist=bryant_howard&id=4180017.
“Virginia O”—Oscar Allen—indicted in October of 2007: Associated Press, “Man Who Sold Dog to Vick Is Sentenced,” January 25, 2008; CBS News, January 24, 2008, http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/
2008/01/25/sports/main3752885.shtml.
Vick had paid $1 million: Orange County Register, “No Duh: Vick Voted Most-Hated Athlete,” http://ocpets.ocregister.com/2010/09/16/no-duh-vick-voted-most-hated-athlete/67030.
we did our first event with him: HSUS, “The Road Back from Ruin,” September 30, 2009, http://www.humanesociety.org/
news/news/2009/09/vick_dc_093009.html; and CBS News, 60 Minutes, “Michael Vick Vows to Help End Dogfighting,” August 16, 2009, http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=5245553n&tag=mncol;lst;5.
Chapter Five—For the Love of Pets
America’s largest emergency animal shelter: Halligan, Karen, “Hurricane Katrina: The Animals and the Aftermath,” 2006, http://www.dochalligan.com/katrina/katrina.shtml.
the world saw that helping animals: Anderson, Allen, and Linda Anderson, Rescued: Saving Animals from Disaster (Novato, CA: New World Library, 2006), 8.
thousands of rescued animals: Merrit, Clifton, “Hurricane Katrina and Rita Rescuers Shift Gears from Rescue & Reunion to Rehoming,” Animal People, December 2005, 6.
many people had fled their homes: Anderson and Anderson, Rescued, 83–86.
rising waters overwhelmed: CBC News Online, “Hurricane Katrina Timeline,” September 4, 2005, http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/katrina/katrina_timeline.html.
The Louisiana SPCA: Louisiana SPCA, “Hurricane Katrina,” 2010, http://la-spca.org/Page.aspx?pid=297.
twenty-three dogs and cats: Manning, Anita, “Animal Welfare Groups Rescue Abandoned Pets,” September 3, 2005, http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005–09–03-katrinapetrescues_x.htm.
the largest animal-rescue mission: “Katrina’s Animal Rescue,” PBS, November 20, 2005, http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/katrinas-animal-rescue/introduction/2561/.
There were veterinary teams—VMATs: American Veterinary Medical Association, “AVMA Veterinary Medical Assistance Teams (VMAT),” 2010, http://www.avma.org/vmat/default.asp.
billions given for the response: ABC News, “Billions of Dollars in Donations Post-Katrina, Yet Very Little Relief,” August 3, 2006, http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2006/08/billions_of_dol.html.
seven thousand phone calls: 2005 HSUS Annual Report, “Responding to Katrina: Meeting the Challenge,” 2005, www.humanesociety.org/assets/pdfs/2005_annual_report.pdf, pp. 12–13.
National Guard troops had walled it off: Goldblatt, Jeff, Steve Harrigan, Rick Leventhal, Liza Porteus, and the Associated Press, “Official: Astrodome Can’t Take More Refugees,” September 2, 2005, http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,168112,00.html.
large-lettered markings on the front: Shiley, Mike, “Dark Water Rising: Survival Stories of Hurricane Katrina Animal Rescues,” Smithsonian Permanent Archive Material, 2006–07–01; 75 minutes.
some 70 percent of households: U.S. Pet Ownership Statistics 2005, Compiled from the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association (APPMA) 2003–2004 National Pet Owners Survey, accessed March 1, 2005, http://www.hsus.org/pets/issues_affecting_our_pets/
pet_overpopulation_and_ownership_statistics/
us_pet_ownership_statistics.html.
One was reserved for horses: Anderson and Anderson, Rescued, 113.
cap of two thousand dogs: Ibid.
Among them was John Wallman: Chad Sisneros, Gonzales, Louisiana, interviews from video shot by HSUS at the Lamar-Dixon Center, September 2005.
Jeremy Campbell, a man in his late twenties: Ibid.
That’s how it was for Richard Colar: Personal communication with Corey Smith, HSUS staffer; and “After the Storm,” All Animals 8, no. 3 (Summer 2006).
rescue the shivering, growling terrier: Law, Steve, “Oregon Soldiers Face Adversity in Bid to Help New Orleans,” Salem Statesman Journal, September 8, 2005.
a Japanese professor and his faithful Aki
ta: Tremain, Ruthven, The Animals’ Who’s Who: 1,146 Celebrated Animals in History, Popular Culture, Literature, & Lore (New York: Scribner, 1984), 105.
a little boy and his dog Snowball: Associated Press, “Has Snowball Finally Been Found?,” MSNBC, September 9, 2005, http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9255741/.
Pet Evacuation and Transportation Standards (PETS) Act: Simmons, Rebecca, “No Pet Left Behind: The PETS Act Calls for Disaster Plans to Include Animals,” April 20, 2006, http://www.hsus.org/pets/pets_related_news_and_events/
no_pet_left_behind_the_pets.html.
Tom Lantos, a Democrat of California: U.S. Congressional Record, House of Representatives H6806, September 20, 2006.
had told a reporter that: Associated Press, “President Bush Signs Bill to Leave No Pet Behind in Disaster Planning and Evacuation,” October 6, 2006, http://www.hsus.org/press_and_publications/press_releases/
president_bush_signs_pets_Act.html.
sixteen states also enacted: Allen, Laura, “Are Government Officials Ready to Evacuate and Shelter Animals in Disasters?,” August 29, 2008, http://www.animallawcoalition.com/animals-and-politics/article/580.
“I promised them…”: Chad Sisneros, HSUS video interview shot in Miami, Florida, January 2010.
As Paul later told a reporter: Bryan, Susannah, “Two Dogs Taking the Long Way Home,” Sun Sentinel, January 28, 2010, http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2010–01–28/features/fl-katrina-haiti-dogs–20100128_1_paul-fowler-dogs-long-way-home.
Animal Planet in recent years: Animal Cops, 2010, http://animal.discovery.com/tv/animal-cops/.
highest-rated show on the network: Whale Wars, 2010, http://animal.discovery.com/tv/whale-wars/.
American Sportsman, which aired on ABC: Amory, Cleveland, Mankind? Our Incredible War on Wildlife (New York: Harper and Row, 1974).
Discovery Channel introduced: Wikipedia, “Animal Planet,” 2010, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal_Planet.
like the popular Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom: Wikipedia, “Wild Kingdom,” 2010, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_Kingdom.
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