Welcome to Pit bull New Mexico, updated every Wednesday & Saturday, comments and suggestions are encouraged.

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Saturday, October 25, 2008

Family Feud (Pt. 2)

Since I posted the first part of the Family Feud series (Pt. 1) many "dogfighting busts" have taken place, and at least one case (The Patrick Case) has run it's course; and it could not have come to an end at a more flammable time.

Note: there were many defendants in The Patrick Case: Pat Patrick and Emily Dennis were acquitted, at least one defendant took a plea-bargain, and the other defendants are still wrapped-up in court.

In the first installment of Family Feud, I gave a brief description of the two main points of view with concerns to the Boudreux Case, which, for the most part, represents the situation as a whole.

I cite this scenario because, like the Patrick Case, it caused many to "choose sides."

That is, these types of cases have caused some to become weary of the HSUS (and similar groups)



or,



caused others to feel that justice has not been served in some of the cases brought against these "dogmen."



(See Part 1 for the complete run-down of these camps.)


I feel that I need to note that the mis-trust of the HSUS is not limited to the Pit bull fancy. In fact, there are many interests that take issue with the organization.

For the most part, the folks that take issue with the HSUS investigating dog fighting claim that the organization is only looking to eradicate the breed.

This argument is based heavily on the belief that the HSUS is an animal rights group at heart and is using the Pit bull community as the spring board to chip away at animal ownership.


So when it comes to "busting" dog breeders like Patrick and Boudreux, both of whom have well documented histories in dog fighting, it is believed the HSUS is going after easy targets. And for two reasons: 1) to show it's effectiveness in taking on dog fighters, and thus vindicating it's relevance and tactics and 2) fund raising.


Ultimately, this argument rests on the fact that neither Patrick or Boudreux were actually caught fighting dogs while being investigated, but were still arrested and their dogs killed.


The other side of the coin feels that justice is not served when Pat Patrick, and others that are known to have been involved in dog fighting, are found innocent.


This argument is based on Patrick's past in which he was a well known dog fighter and breeder of fighting dogs. Moreover, Patrick maintained an internet presence claiming to breed to top notch fighting dogs, and will note that selling dogs for dog fighting purposes is illegal.

This contingent will also cite the great number of dogs that were confiscated from Patrick's yard as evidence of his being "no good."

In closing, I acknowledge that both arguments are more nuanced than the brief summaries I provided.

I'll explore the issue further in future posts, and will provide a personal evaluation of the situation.

Thursday, October 23, 2008

Family Feud (Part 1)

On Oct. 15th, 2008, Floyd Boudreaux, and his son Guy, were found innocent of 48 counts of dog fighting. The Boudreaux's yard was raided in 2005, and for one reason or another, the case was held-up in the system for about three years. So what is there to feud about?


Here's the rub, folks: some in the dog world are not satisfied or relieved in this decision, while some have been overcome with joy. That is, some feel that he was involved in dog fighting at the time of the raid, while others feel that he had not been active with dog fighting for some time. Seeing as I was not privy to the evidence used against these men, and I don't know either of them personally, I'll reserve my speculation and not assume a thing about the Boudreaux family.



So the feud goes something like this:



Group A is celebrating the acquittal as they feel the HSUS, LouisianaSPCA, and the State of Louisiana were wrong in their actions (IE. raiding Floyd's place based on the evidence they used to claim his involvement with dog fighting.) Additionally, Louisiana state law requires the animals confiscated in animal fighting raids be destroyed - even before the accused has gone to trial - and so the Boudreaux dogs (~ 50 dogs) were all killed within a day or so of the raid. This is where Group A feels the HSUS & Co. will really pay for their actions, and will hopefully learn their lesson.





Group B is not celebrating the acquittal as they feel the Boudreaux men were likely still active in "the game." These folks are likely to believe that Floyd and son were acquitted based on sloppy case work from the prosecution, in addition to a sympathetic judge. This group is likely to believe that since the Boudreaux family is storied in the dog fighting world that they were probably guilty of the charges, and essentially got off for crimes they did commit, and as usual, it is the dogs that were the ultimately the victims.



Again, I don't know a thing about the Boudreaux family beyond what can be found on the Internet. Meaning, I trust these folks were involved with matching dogs in the past, and until their yard had been raided, were breeding the line of dogs that they had developed through the years. I couldn't tell you how "active" these people were with dog fighting around the time of their arrest; and I also can't tell you if the prosecution's case work was sloppy or if the judge was somehow sympathetic to the Boudreaux family.


However, I can make this statement with some certainty: these types of cases will always cause a stir in the pit bull world. To me, the "Why?" of it is pretty simple -pit bulls attract so many different "types" of people, and as such, will bring along many different ways of thinking. We're likely to always have the types that feel anyone associated with dog fighting (no matter how far in the past) should be raided and prosecuted; we're also likely to always have the types that feel that dog fighting should be legal. To be sure, everything in the middle is likely to exist as well.


In my way of thinking, dog fighting is illegal for a reason - our society expects better of it's citizens, and letting dogs destroy one another for gambling and spectating purposes is unacceptable. Sounds reasonable to me. Regardless of one's take on this case or on the Boudreaux family history, there are a great number of lessons to be found in this case...stay tuned for Part 2.

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Check this out!





These videos are from a group of Brazilians that operate under the moniker, "SPA Dogs." Weight pull, Long Jump, Vertical Jump, and (my favorite) Vertical Climb seem to be a staple at their events. (I threw in the tree climbing video just for fun.) I believe these competitions are common throughout South and Latin America; which makes me wonder if there are any groups in North America hosting this kind of stuff? If anyone has any information on Americans or Canadians putting on these events, please contact me at nobslnm@yahoo.com.


That said, I have made it known to my pit bull friends that I would like to get these types of events going in my neck of the woods; fortunately, I have a young pup coming up that should do just fine in all of it . As to be expected, I have had several friends offer their concern about these events sending the wrong message. Meaning, some will go away with the wrong idea about pit bulls from seeing them compete in springpole/gripping events. In my estimation, these are fair concerns. However, I have never been one to shy away from the fact that pit bulls are at their essence "gripping dogs."


The concerns that would arise from uneducated and confused observers could be dealt with very easily. In the grand scheme of things, these types of events are great venues for educating the public about our dogs and why they excel at things like weight pulling and vertical climbs - something that is badly needed in the US and Canada.
100% of the profits are used to support RAAP programs
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Why Pit bulls?

As I work to provide positive, rational, and balanced information about pit bulls, and the virtues of dogs in general, I am often (read: ALWAYS) asked why I am so taken by this breed of dog. It is a fair question that isn't always asked in a reasonable manner.

In short, I find many pit bulls to posses the qualities that I value in a canine companion: great with friendly people, loyal, goofy, energetic, athletic, intelligent, and willing. To be sure, the run-of-the-mill pit bull is a lot of dog. It is all of these qualities in a medium-sized dog that has me so taken by pit bulls.

Alas, there are many aspects of pit bull ownership that are less enjoyable. Namely, dealing with the many negative stereotypes, and the constant battle to balance the mis-information provided by the breed's detractors.
...thankfully, it only takes is a few minutes of lovin' from my doggies and I am reminded they're worth the effort.

I hope this blog gives others insight into my life with pit bulls, and most of all, provides information on the breed in general; there are a lot of misinformed generalizations about these dogs.

Please contact me with questions or comments pertaining to dogs, pit bulls, BSL, etc..

All the best,

Donovan McBee
nobslnm@yahoo.com


And don't forget to visit my other blog, No BSL NM.



The HSUS attempted to fund raise for the care of Micheal Vick's dogs, while at the same time suggesting that the dogs needed to be killed.

And to add insult to injury, they weren't even planning on taking possesion of the dogs.

Contact the HSUS and tell them this is unacceptable!
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