National Dog Fighting Awareness Day (NDFAD) April 8th, 2014
National Dog Fighting Awareness Day: Spread the Word!
By Danielle Sullivan | April 4th, 2014 at 10:45 am
National Dog Fighting Awareness Day: How You Can Help!Dog fighting is a horrendous, money-making system, and the ASPCA is bringing awareness to this insidious crime by dedicating a day to helping stop it: National Dog Fighting Awareness Day takes place on April 8th, 2014. This day was created to get people talking about this severe form of animal cruelty and help put an end to it. It is estimated that dog fighting has been going on since the late 1800s and now takes place throughout the country and in all economic brackets.
When offenders, particularly famous offenders, such as NFL football player Michael Vick, are overlooked for having instituting and profiting from this horrific cruelty and go on to secure million dollar sporting and endorsement contracts, it only makes it worse. (Terrible move, NY Jets, for signing him this year. Visit Boycott the NY Jets and Michael Vick). People say he made a mistake, but intentionally killing, torturing, and maiming dogs over several years is NOT a mistake. This statement from Matthew Bershadker, President of the ASPCA, stresses exactly why we must not forget what Vick and others like him do:
“It became clear over the course of the investigation that this was not a crime of passion or a case of obliviousness. Michael Vick was fully involved in a six-year pattern of illegal activity that included dogs being savagely electrocuted, drowned, and beaten to death.”
This was a multi-million dollar ring. Profits were high and greed was underlying, as is the case in nearly all dog fighting operations.
Sadly, this is just one high profile case, there are so many more underground operations that no one hears about. According to the ASPCA, there are profitable dog fighting rings located in cities, rural, and suburban areas:
“Fighters were traditionally attracted to states with weaker penalties for dog fighting and animal cruelty, many in the South — but laws continue to be made stronger throughout the country. As a result, this activity is no longer limited to any single area, but it is more likely to thrive wherever enforcement of anti-fighting laws is weak.”
This is exactly why we need to work together to help create stricter laws and enforce the animal cruelty laws already enacted. On April 8th, the ASPCA is hosting a Google+ Hangout with national experts to discuss the underground world of dog fighting. The panel will be moderated by ABC News anchor Dan Harris, and the goal is to raise awareness about dog fighting brutality, including little-known truths about the blood sport and its continuing prevalence in America. They will also be doing live social media event with Q&A’s across Facebook, Twitter and Google+ in which experts will answer user questions about dog fighting with hashtag #NDFAD. A never-before-seen short documentary will premiere with undercover footage of dogfights and the rescue activity at dog fighting raids.
If you would like to help in this endeavor, please check out the ASPCA’s website and help support National Dog Fighting Awareness Day. I’ll be at the Google+ Hangout on Tuesday night, please stop by!
http://www.babble.com/pets/national-...-you-can-help/ <------ Go to the website for the links to the live social event, the need some opposition!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COWmLD6Eo9Y
