Dogfighting is illegal in Louisiana, yet the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals said the frequency of suspected fights has increased in the state. Hilton Cole, East Baton Rouge Parish Animal Control Center director, said the center receives reports of dogfighting activity weekly in lower income areas and older areas of Baton Rouge. Kathryn Destreza, LA/SPCA’s humane law enforcement director, said dogfighting originated as a sport in England in the 1800s and spread to the United States. “It transcends race and gender,” Destreza said. “You have upper-class, wealthy people doing it all the way down the line.” Destreza said dogfights are held in garages, abandoned buildings, backyards and other secluded places like the woods in rural areas. She said all dogfights are not staged or planned and some people may engage in an impromptu fight for smaller amounts of money. Cole said he has no doubt the abuse of pit bulls in Louisiana is increasing. He said most dogfights involve pit bulls. He said most people participate in dogfighting for money, self-gratification and entertainment. Destreza said the LA/SPCA sees some cases that involve other dog breeds with fights organized by children and young adults and are used as “bait dogs” to train the fighting breed. Destreza said most dogs, including pit bulls, will not engage in a fight with other dogs without a reason like food or territory. She said breeding for pit bulls goes back for thousands of years. “The way they were bred was so they were a lot more animal aggressive but people-friendly,” she said. Cole said people abuse their pets to fuel the dog’s aggression. He said they taunt the dogs, build up the strength in their jaws by having them hang from tires roped to a tree, inject them with steroids and exercise them on treadmills. He said the main goal is to make the dogs “efficient killing machines.” Dogfighting can result in death or permanent injury depending on the time frame and severity of the fight. Cole said dogfighting is a felony at the state level. Destreza said dogfighters may expect up to 10 years in jail with or without hard labor or up to $25,000 in fines. She said each animal involved counts for a felony. Destreza said people who watch dogfights may also be charged with a misdemeanor. Cole and Destreza said they rely heavily on the public to report cases. Citizens can report cases anonymously to the center and the police. Cole said about 15 percent of the dogs in the center are pit bulls. He said stray dogs stay in the kennel for less than a week before they go up for adoption or are euthanized. He said 80 percent of the dogs are euthanized. The LA/SPCA is one of the few animal organizations in the state that allows people to adopt pit bulls. Destreza said pit bulls are not inherently bad animals, but they are born strong and people should do their research before adopting or buying a pit bull. “The SPCA will not adopt out a dog that has been fought or shows any signs of fighting or is from a known dogfighter,” she said.
—–Contact Angelle Barbazon [email protected]