Vick May Be Getting a Bad Rap

Some truth is coming out in the Michael Vick dog fighting investigation. It appears that he may not be as cruel and inhumane as I once thought. AP reports via ESPN:

"Since the raid, Poindexter said, erroneous reports have surfaced that the dogs were malnourished and that many had scarring and injuries consistent with dog fighting. The dogs, he said, appeared largely to have been well cared for, and the only one that required immediate veterinary care had a broken leg because of a birth defect."

That's good to hear. The thought of 66 malnourished dogs reeks of a canine holocaust. I'm glad it's not true. But why did that come out? Sounds like an overzealous cop to me.

There are some other things that bother me:

"The investigation is focused on dog fighting because while some equipment seized could be typical of a legitimate breeding operation, which Vick is registered to have, there also was a "pry bar" used to pry apart a dog's jaws, and bloodstained carpeting."

I know of loving, caring, responsible pit bull breeders that wisely have these bars, just in case of an emergency. They call it a "break stick." When a pit bull clamps down on something, there is no way in hell it is letting go. This is the only way to get them off, short of injuring them.

In fact, do yourself a favor and check out this link at Pit Bull Rescue Central. Read right under the words, "Why Every Responsible Pit Bull Owner Needs a Break Stick."

But what about the blood stains? Isn't that evidence of a dog fighting operation?

"The bloodied carpet was seized during the raid, and Poindexter said he saw what appeared to be blood spatters on the floor of a room inside the home above the garage.

""The floor was not drenched in blood, but there were specks that appeared to me to be blood," he said."

Specks of blood? Really? I imagine you could find that in any kennel.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not taking up for Vick. I'm taking up for the truth. This whole picture was painted as being much worse than reality.

But there is something very amiss about having 60+ dogs on a property. That is a crime in itself, if it is not part of a rescue operation. And if this is part of a dog fighting operation, it is indeed heinous. But there are so many exaggerated details about this incident that it sounds like a bad rap.