How the ASPCA Helped Change the Response to Dogfighting
Throughout 2026, the ASPCA is sharing highlights from our organization’s rich and sometimes unexpected 160-year history.For 160 years, the ASPCA has worked to end one of the most brutal forms of animal cruelty: staged animal fighting, otherwise known as blood sports. These hidden crimes pit animals against one another for entertainment, gambling and profit, with dogs and roosters among the most common victims.Animal fighting was outlawed in New York under strengthened 19th-century anti-cruelty laws championed by our founder, Henry Bergh; early ASPCA agents pursued dogfights, cockfights, bear-baiting exhibitions and rat-baiting events. Bergh’s sustained campaign against what the New York World newspaper called “cruellists” underscored the scale of the problem, while ASPCA annual reports from the period describe these spectacles as “demoralizing exhibitions” and “a disgrace to our civilization.” In confronting notorious ringleader Kit Burns and others, the ASPCA worked not only to stop such practices but also to exert “a moral influence on the community at large,” helping foster a growing public sentiment around the welfare of animals. Images of dogs used for fighting from the ASPCA 29th Annual Report of 1894.At top, a dog rescued by the ASPCA in 2015 from a suspected dogfighting case in North Carolina.Over the next century, blood sports remained a low priority for federal agencies including the USDA and FBI. In 1981, the ASPCA issued “Dogfighting in America,” a 330-page report based on interviews with more than 11,000 law enforcement officials, concluding that dogfighting was a serious, violent crime thriving in part because many people believed it no longer existed.Pivotal cases and advances in investigation protocols, forensic science, animal behavior and legislation would eventually reshape the ASPCA’s role, showing both the progress made and the work still ahead.Landmark Cases That Rewrote the RulesBetween 2007-2013, the Michael Vick, Missouri 500 and Alabama 367 cases positioned the ASPCA as a leader in combating animal fighting. They also helped shift public understanding: Animals caught in these criminal enterprises are victims, and individual behavior evaluations can make placement possible.2007: Michael VickThe April 2007 arrests of National Football League quarterback Michael Vick and his associates exposed the brutal reality of dogfighting to the American public. The ASPCA aided the investigation of Vick’s Bad Newz Kennels in Virginia, where our forensic veterinarians helped analyze and collect evidence, including 51 living and nine dead dogs. The Michael Vick dogfighting case drew unprecedented media attention to the realities of animal fighting.Read MoreThe case changed expectations for dogs rescued from fighting. A U.S. District Court order required Vick to set aside 1 million for the rescue, care, treatment and rehabilitation of as many of his canine victims as possible, and the assistant U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia asked the ASPCA to assemble a team of behavior experts to evaluate the animals.Many of the Vick dogs displayed intense fear rather than aggression, likely due to a lack of socialization. At the recommendation of our behavior team, 47 were placed in sanctuaries or foster care with experienced dog owners, and more than half were later adopted into permanent homes.“Prior to the Vick case, dogs from fighting operations were designated as ‘dangerous’ and euthanized without question,” says Dr. Pamela Reid, vice president of the ASPCA Behavioral Sciences team. “But the public’s outrage at Michael Vick prompted the justice system to consider alternatives for those dogs.” Dr. Pamela Reid of the ASPCA with a puppy rescued from a suspected dogfighting operation in North Carolina.The Vick case drew unprecedented public and media attention to the realities of animal fighting, increasing awareness of both its prevalence and ties to broader criminal activity. That heightened scrutiny helped drive stronger law enforcement responses and reforms, the impact of which is still evident today. In the wake of the case, Congress passed the Animal Fighting Prohibition Enforcement Act of 2007, establishing felony penalties for interstate commerce in fighting animals, including fines as much as 250,000 and up to three years in prison (later increased to five years).In 2008, four ASPCA team members, including Dr. Reid, were recognized by the U.S. Attorney's Office for their work on the Vick investigation. That same year, Idaho and Wyoming became the final U.S. states to enact felony dogfighting laws.2009: The Missouri 500In July 2009, the historic “Missouri 500” dogfighting case — the largest dogfighting case on record — resulted from an 18-month investigation and a multistate collaboration among federal and state agencies. The operation yielded 26 federal search warrants, 532 dogs seized across seven states and 100 offenders convicted in federal and state courts.Read MoreFor the case, the ASPCA deployed our Animal Crime Scene Investigation unit, a mobile laboratory launched in 2007 to support evidence collection in the field, and assisted with animal removal, veterinary care, forensic exams, behavior assessments, sheltering and placement.“Very few undercover operations of this scale had ever been attempted,” says Terry Mills, a former Missouri state trooper who spent 18 months undercover for the Missouri 500 investigation. The case was the catalyst for the formation of the ASPCA’s Investigation division, with Terry Mills joining the ASPCA as director of Blood Sports Investigations. The ASPCA’s Terry Mills, director of Blood Sports Investigations, and Amanda Fitch, forensic analyst, examining bloodstains on a piece of wood from a fighting pit confiscated during a seizure in the Bronx, New York.2013: The Alabama 367The ASPCA’s response matured further in 2013 with a federal case spanning Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia and Texas. The operation rescued 367 dogs, resulted in 14 arrests and produced sentences ranging from supervised probation to eight years — then the longest prison term ever handed down in a federal dogfighting case.Fighting Back Against Blood SportsSince 2010, the ASPCA has assisted with more than 300 dogfighting cases in at least 24 states and has helped more than 6,000 dogfighting victims through rescue, investigations and consultations. Since January 2014, 28 of our caseload of responses to animal cruelty investigations has involved animals used in suspected fighting operations. The ASPCA removed dogs suspected of being used for fighting from this South Carolina property.The barbaric 19th-century spectacles, including bear-baiting and rat-baiting, have thankfully disappeared from the U.S. But dogfighting is not the only modern form of animal fighting. Cockfighting remains a brutal cycle of violence and suffering, even though it is now illegal in all 50 states. Roosters bred for aggression are placed beak-to-beak in a small ring and often forced to fight to the death, sometimes with sharp knives attached to their legs. Our organization combats cockfighting through investigations, law enforcement training, advocacy and legislation. We routinely advise law enforcement on investigative strategy, evidence identification and case development — including real-time guidance at active scenes — strengthening local investigations without deploying ASPCA personnel. Left: A dog from the Alabama 367 case chained to tire weights, which are often used to increase resistance during strength conditioning. Right: The ASPCA’s Terry Mills, left, removes a rooster from suspected cockfighting operations in Indiana.This work is supported by our two veterinary forensic labs in New York City and Gainesville, Florida, where teams examine live animals, conduct necropsies, analyze skeletal remains, process fingerprints and test biological and trace evidence. The ASPCA Veterinary Forensic Science Center in Gainesville also trains third- and fourth-year veterinary students through two- to four-week externships in forensic veterinary science, casework, necropsies, case discussions and mock cases from report to testimony. And in New York City, we offer externships and have hosted veterinary students and veterinarians from across the nation and around the world.From Fighting Victims to Family PetsDogs rescued from suspected fighting operations can and do thrive in loving homes. Rockstar is one recent example. Despite the stigma surrounding dogs with difficult pasts, many go on to become cherished family pets. Their experiences and recovery journeys vary, but their resilience is remarkable. Left: An ASPCA veterinarian examines a dog whose face is covered in bite marks from a suspected dogfighting case in Pennsylvania. Right: The ASPCA removed nearly 100 dogs, including this one, during a federal raid spanning Missouri, Kansas and Texas.“Since the Vick case, we’ve evaluated the behavior of literally thousands of dogs from organized dogfighting operations, and we’ve learned the importance of assessing each dog as an individual,” says Dr. Reid. “Yes, we make responsible decisions to humanely euthanize when necessary to protect our communities, but many victims of fighting aren’t aggressive and can go on to be safe, loving family pets. Our work saves dogs and puts dogfighters behind bars.”Collaboration remains key. In a recent Dallas case spanning 27 properties, more than 200 dogs were rescued. With every operation, every conviction and every survivor given a chance, we’re moving closer to a future without animal fighting. Ending this horrific cruelty isn’t just part of our mission; it’s central to who we are.Related stories in this ASPCA 160 series:160 Years On, Our Founder’s Mission Still Stands StrongChampioning Spay/Neuter Helped Define ASPCA in the 20th Century and BeyondThen and Now: How the ASPCA Protects Pets from Toxic DangersThe Law That Launched a Movement for AnimalsThe ASPCA Turns 160: Celebrating Our HistoryHorses Are at the Heart of Our HistoryNine Lives, One Calling: How the ASPCA Has Shaped Care for Cats Tags: ASPCA History Dogfighting Forensic Sciences NYC Cruelty Victims Rescue Work and Field Deployments
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