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The American Pit Bull Terrier was imported from Irish stock mostly and they were created by crossing bulldog and terrier to make the ultimate fighting dog.
ignorance is bliss
My mother warned the children’s parents, but they just smiled and shook their heads. They had never heard of a Staffordshire Bull Terrier. They didn’t care if he was a purebred dog. They just knew that Dumbo was the most loving dog anyone could have for children.
He chases other dogs out of his yard. His ancestors were bred to fight dogs and genetics can never be totally disregarded.
The first misconception is that “pit bull” is a breed. It is not. The definition of “pit bull” varies from person to person. At its most vague, “pit bull” may describe a short-haired dog of medium build. From a technical standpoint, “pit bull” encompasses at least three breeds—the American Pit Bull Terrier, the American Staffordshire Terrier, and the Staffordshire Bull Terrier—and may sometimes include Bull Terriers and American Bulldogs. However, many people will include even unrelated or historically removed dogs like Boxers, Presa Canarios, Dogo Argentinos, and English Bulldogs. “Pit bull” may also include all mixed breed dogs with a particular (“pit bull-like”) appearance, even though we have no reliable, scientific way to determine what breeds really make up that dog’s ancestry. Even animal shelter employees label a dog’s breed or mix based on a glance and a guess.
Aggression is, by definition, a behavior, and behavior is influenced by both genetics and environment.
Our nation should have a zero tolerance policy for any form of staged animal fighting.
Dogfighting is not only a problem of cruelty to animals; dogfighting is also part of a criminal subculture that can involve gang activity, illegal gambling, drug use, and drug dealing, and it contributes to the destruction of neighbourhoods. Illegal gambling is an inherent part of a dogfight, and because of the large amount of money that changes hands, weapons are common on the scene. Children are often present, and besides the inherent danger of the situation to a child, their witnessing such cruelty has been shown to lead to desensitization to violence. Neighbourhoods suffer for several reasons: among them, the presence of illegal kennels creates unsanitary and unsafe conditions as well as excessive noise from barking; dogfighters are prone to engage in other kinds of crime, such as assault, arson, and gang activity; and the general acceptance of dogfighting in a neighbourhood leads to threats against any who oppose it and promotes a culture of violence.
"They beat these animals," he said. "They feed them hot peppers. Feed them gunpowder. Lock them in small closets. They do everything they can to make these animals vicious and mean." Brownstein said trainers will starve dogs, then throw a piece of meat between them and have the dogs kill each other for it. They'll put heavy weights on the animals to build up their strength. When there is a dogfight, if the wounded dog does not die, they will throw it alive on a garbage dump or leave it in a vacant lot or apartment to die a slow death. |
People will set dogs on fire when they lose a fight, or something worse. "I've had dog fighters tell me, including teenagers, they're angry at a dog if it loses a fight, they want it to suffer, that's why they leave it locked in a closet to die a slow death of its injuries."
Brownstein has seen children snap the necks of puppies, and it is the dehumanizing effect that such violence has on children that worries him most. He remembers one 12-year-old boy, "Speedy," who he first met when he impounded the boy's dog for fighting, and next heard of after the boy had raped a 7-year-old girl. The two events are not unconnected in Brownstein's view.
"I think that when a child enjoys the suffering of an animal, has no empathy and compassion, it becomes very easy for that same child to grow into a teenager and adult who can inflict pain upon fellow humans and still have no empathy or compassion."
Despite his humanitarian zeal, Brownstein has made a lot of enemies. Top police brass work to undermine him and some of his fellow officers call him "Dogman" and "Gomer Pyle," for his awkward, flapping manner.
"There have been less than a handful of prosecuted cases," said Mueller. "Because animal welfare laws are contained within agricultural law--an archaic, infrequently used part of the code--the police officer on the street, the reviewing desk sergeant, the state's attorney at the district, didn't recognize the criminal code."
It is not that police are unsympathetic. Many officers in inner-city neighborhoods have stories of grim encounters with dogs abused by gangs.
"Before I was a lieutenant, I worked on a tactical team and went on narcotics raids," said Lt. Nick Rotti of the Calumet district on the Far South Side. "We'd come across dogs . . . it's heartbreaking to see the things that are done to them. I've seen dogs on raids, they leave them chained in these abandoned buildings or basements where they hide their drug stash. I've actually seen the skeleton of a dog chained to a pole in a basement. The dog just starved to death. They left it
"This is a child welfare issue," said Brownstein. "I do hear, from people, that this is about animals. `People are shooting each other and this is about dogs.' My response is that in addition to the fact that this is extremely cruel to the animals, it is a fact that when children and teenagers become desensitized and sometimes actually enjoy the sufferings of animals it then becomes a small step for them to commit violence toward their fellow human beings."
Mueller said he did not fully understand the impact of dog fighting on children until a chilling encounter as principal for a day at a West Side magnet school.
"I was in a fourth grade classroom--10-year-olds, 11-year-olds--and the subject came up," he said. "I said, `Let's talk about dog fighting. Who has seen dog fighting?' Every hand shot up. I said, `I don't mean Molly slipping out of the yard.' Every hand. It was unanimous. The kids said it happens all the time, in the alleys."
Mueller remembers in particular four boys in the class.
"These four little boys--10-year-old boys--said that this was so exciting, that there was nothing as exciting in their neighborhood. This is not a violent video game. These children are seeing in first person this incredible cruelty. . . . This is not the cause of violence, but we have this terrible, unrecognized poison in many neighborhoods in Chicago that our children are being exposed to."
"This is not something that exists solely in Steve Brownstein's head; I wish it was," said Mueller, who calls dogfighting "an epidemic." "The terrible reality, I can tell you, after being at Animal Control for many years, is this is a pervasive poison in almost all the wards in the city of Chicago. This is not a black issue, not a white issue, not a Hispanic issue. All types, all creeds, are fighting animals out there. They do it for gambling. They do it for fun. It's a terrible problem."
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