HSUS Willing to Give Vick a Chance (Please watch the video)

On a chilly evening last fall, a raid on a dogfight in Chicago's Englewood neighborhood on the south side turned up more than 50 people, including a pregnant woman and a few juveniles, in a basement watching dogs fight a bloody battle.

This summer, young men and their pit bulls gather on hot evenings in that same neighborhood to compete much more constructively (watch the video). The owners learn positive training methods and new ways of thinking about their dogs. The pit bulls, some of whom start the classes wildly aggressive, learn to run an agility course and show off their new obedience skills. Participants shower their dogs with praise and treats and start to see their canine companions as friends instead of fighters.

The HSUS' End Dogfighting program makes the difference in Englewood and other troubled neighborhoods where dogfighting is all too common. People from the community spread the word about our "Pit Bull Training Team" and invite dogs and their owners to attend free classes.

The healthy competition in our classes has turned around many dangerous situations. Greg and his 95-pound bruiser Bolo struggled at first when Bolo tried to attack other dogs. Greg took Bolo out of the room sometimes because of his barking and lunging. Working with Bolo alongside more advanced dogs got him to settle down and make progress. Eventually, Bolo could sit calmly while other dogs wrestled in front of him -- unthinkable at the start of the session.

One famous face symbolized the dangers of dogfighting last week: quarterback Michael Vick. To a rapt young audience in Chicago, he described his downfall by dogfighting and urged them to care for animals, not fight them.

Vick also gave his first interview since prison on last night's edition of 60 Minutes. He says he has a new attitude toward animals and that he's committed to helping boys and young men in inner cities break away from the horrors of dogfighting. On the show, Wayne Pacelle (President & CEO - HSUS) explained that we need to tackle this larger problem, and that Vick might even be able to help with it. (See Wayne Pacelle's blog for more info.)

A few years ago, Michael Vick thought he was on top of the world, while in fact he teetered on the brink of losing everything. Our End Dogfighting program brings solutions to others who may not even know they need one.

PLEASE learn more about Anti-Dogfighting Program and End Dogfighting in Your City

Thanks for doing all you can to stop dogfighting and for spreading the word about it!

Source: HSUS -The Humane Society of the United States

This is an ongoing pledge that should be fulfilled as often as possible.

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Comments, Suggestions and Stories

GEORGETTE COTA HAWTHORNE, CA @ 01:38PM PT Aug 20

WHEN I SAW VICK ON TV SAYING HE IS SORRY HE IS NOT SORRY HE IS SORRY HE GOT CAUGHT.

PEOPLE WHO HURT ANIMALS ARE JUST BAD HEARTED PEOPLE . THEY JUST HAVE NO HEART AND NO ONE CAN CHANGED THEM .

HOW DO YOU LOOK AT THESE POOR DOGS IN THE FACE AS YOU ARE DROWNING THEM OR BEATING THEM AND NOT HAVE ONE BIT OF SADNESS . I DO NOT FORGIVE HIM YES HE WAS RAISED SEEING THAT BUT HE IS GROWN NOW AND KNOWS RIGHT FROM WRONG . HE CANT KEEP SAYING IHE WAS RAISED IN IT.
A M @ 03:07PM PT Aug 18
Pledge fulfilled Aug 17, 2009!

Susan,

I understand exactly how you feel. Its hard not be be angry and not judge Vick. I do not believe he has changed but is doing what he is told to do so that it makes him "look" better. I do have to say though if he is able to change a few people and children or prevent them from starting/being a part of these awful actions then its worth us putting up with him lol.

Terrie, I agree he is not sorry for what he has done, but is sorry for getting caught.

The purpose of what I wrote wasn't just about Vick is was to remind people or help them to remember we all have our faults, anger, resentments and much more. We can't let these things run our lives. Its toxic and ugly. Some people can't see past their ego's, resentment, and anger. Sadly enough they don't see it that way and they continue to hurt others with their actions and what the say. It ends up destroying beautiful things, hurting people and is truly a sad thing.

Vick is a good example of many of these things. Only time will tell what will happen. I don't think many believe he has changed but maybe if he fakes it for long enough he might see/learn something that will change him.
Terrie C. Williams Vidor, TX @ 09:46AM PT Aug 18
Pledge fulfilled Aug 18, 2009!

Having worked in Criminal Justice and in Law Enforcement for over half of my career life, I have had to deal with convicted Dogmen. I can tell you this....they never stop. They only go deeper underground and learn how to do so from other convicted felons in prison.

Mr. Vick is not sorry he did these abominable acts, he is only sorry he got caught. From his own lips he confessed that he was raised up in this environment and thought nothing of it. One cannot undo a lifetime of reinforced cruelty and abuse in a matter of 23 months. But one can start. I hope against hope that Mr. Vick has started this journey for real...but....I know the recidivist rates for felons. The odds are against him. We will see, one way or the other, over time.

I do not think Mr. Vick should have been let back into the NFL. We should hold all our citizens who are in the public eye to a higher standard be they celebrities, police officers, government officials, sports figures or CEO's. They should be held accountable for their actions and know that to engage in anything illegal will constitute loosing their well-paid positions, their right to enforce laws, their lime-light on the screen or, in this case, their ability to play sports. You may not think it fair, but it is just.

All this has taught Mr.Vick, and all the young fans that look up to him as a role model, is you can get away with it. One may lose one's possessions, one's bank account and one's freedom for a time, but just say you're sorry, give a few bucks to a cause or your spare time (which he WILL be paid for), try to look remorseful and you too can go right back to what you were doing before one got caught! To me, if I knew that I could never again do that which I excel in, ever, would give me great pause from doing something illegal or unethical to jeopardize my calling or career. It was done to Pete Rose for gambling, it could be done to all of them who are convicted of crime.

But that might upset the big-money dawgs/corporate machine now wouldn't it? It's all about the money.
S B Philadelphia, PA @ 07:05AM PT Aug 18

Andrea, do you practice yoga? That is something that my teacher would say. You are correct. The ego is not the self, but we identify with it all too much.

I will be honest: I find it hard not to judge Michael Vick. He was cruel; he disappointed fans, friends and family--he did not need the money the sport brought him. Yes, I come from Chicago and I saw dogfighting--it is an industry like drugs, sponsored by gangs with deep ties to organized crime. Cops are regularly paid off. Michael Vick may reach some kids, but the gangbangers who front this operation are laughing. If anything, the focus on dogfighting may backfire as it may bring more people in a troubled economy to bet on dogs in order to generate income they can't get in the "straight" world.

Michael Vick did not start dogfighting as a cruel sport, but he was raised with it and didn't question it. When he got caught, he was sorry. He did his time so we have to take him at his word--for now. No, I don't believe a word he says. But it doesn't matter what I believe. What matters is what happens. Once the true extent of dogfighting's reach is understood by a society that turned a blind eye for too long, there could be change. And if Vick instigates that change, even if he is lying through his teeth, I will accept that with gratitude.
A M @ 04:04AM PT Aug 18
Pledge fulfilled Aug 17, 2009!

"Anger. It's a peculiar yet predictable emotion. It begins as a drop of water. An irritant. A frustration. Nothing big, just an aggravation. Someone gets your parking place. Someone pulls in front of you on the freeway. A waitress is slow and you are in a hurry. The toast burns. Drops of water. Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Yet, enough of these seemingly innocent drops of anger and before long you've got a bucket full of rage. Walking revenge. Blind bitterness. Unharnessed hatred. We trust no one and bare our teeth at anyone who gets near. We become walking time bombs that, given just the right tension and fear, could explode. Now, is that any way to live? What good has hatred ever brought? What hope has anger ever created? What problems have ever been resolved by revenge?"

The ego is a limited belief system within our minds that we have molded and identified as being who we are. The ego survives by establishing boundaries, borders and limits on everything it sees. The defining of such boundaries, borders and limits gives it the illusion that it can tell us what is right and wrong, all in an effort to control us by instructing us on what we are and are not, how we should act and not act, and why we should judge those who challenge it; the status quo. We are taught the right and wrong way to do things, and the right and wrong way to react. Because we learn from the outside world, we believe that truth lies outside of ourselves.

Judgment and fear feed the ego, generating numerous perceived weaknesses and limitations we believe we must defend as real. The more time we spend in defense of our egos and our limitations, the more we believe that this is who we are. And because we see our egos as real and representing ourselves, we defend our egos against anyone we perceive to be as attacking them. In our minds, any view that disagrees with our belief systems attacks them.

We perceive the attacks on our egos and their illusions as real, so we become defensive. The more time we spend defending our false or ego-selves, the more we reaffirm the ego’s reality. The more we reaffirm the ego’s reality, the more willing we are to come to its defense. The more we defend the illusions of the ego-self as real, the more concepts and ideas we will encounter in the world that do not fit into our reality. We perceive different concepts and ideas as assaults to our reality. We defend our ego-selves, through the act of judgment. The exercise of judgment separates us from our fellow brothers and sisters causing stress that may be conscious or unconscious. Stress creates confusion, and a build up of confusion ultimately leads to chaos.

The more time we spend in defense of our ego-selves, the more time we exist in a state of confusion. We might give our state of confusion a hundred different names, such as annoyance, anger, stress, sadness, depression, but they all exist because of our belief in the ego's reality. They all exist within our minds and are fed and kept alive by our belief in our ego-selves.

Our tolerance for pain may be high but our acceptance of our ego-selves is not without limit. Many of us come to a point in our lives where we tell ourselves that there must be a better way, a more fulfilling way of living - that this just can't be what it's all about! These thoughts begin the process of awakening ourselves to the knowledge of who we truly are.
Kactus Kat Peoria, AZ @ 08:52PM PT Aug 17

Ok, my 2-cents on this pledge is that I'm still totally against what Michael Vick did, and what, today, he still stands for. I can forgive, but I won't forget. I don't believe he's rehabilitated - except in greed for his $'s again, and the drive for playing football.

More than forgiveness for HIM, I am saddened that there are sooooooo many children, young adults & even adults who idolized this guy. Who worship him as a football player. A hero to so many young players who want to grow up to be like him. This still makes me cry. To betray our youth, by example, is to damage a dream that kids grow up wanting to fulfill themselves.

He's going to have to continue to show actively what he has learned before I give him a 2nd. change OR a 2nd. glance. There are way too many good people working VERY hard to be activists who truly SHOULD be recognized for their valor and their work caring for animals.

He still leaves a very bad taste in my mouth, and if he hadn't been caught, would this crime still be going on?
Walt Vasco Portland, OR @ 08:46PM PT Aug 17
Pledge fulfilled Aug 17, 2009!

Well said Susan!!
S B Philadelphia, PA @ 08:19PM PT Aug 17

And I will not boycott the Eagles. I will not punish the football team of my adopted city because they made a business decision that may benefit the team. Michael Vick is not worth a boycott of a hardworking football team. But if Michael Vick wants to stop dogfighting and serve as a positive role model, he will dedicate his life to it, not just a few years when he is on parole. True animal activists don't work on a timeline; they just work.
S B Philadelphia, PA @ 08:11PM PT Aug 17

I want dogfighting stopped. But I don't trust Michael Vick. He is now the backup quarterback for the Eagles, so he has become a problem for me as this town loves football. So I will be watching him. My gut says that he just wants his job back--he has been dogfighting since he was a kid. If he is doing what the Humane Society says, then I think he is doing it for an agenda, not a newly born love of animals. I would love to be wrong. There are criminals who change. Is Vick one of them? We will see.
Walt Vasco Portland, OR @ 07:48PM PT Aug 17

As most of you know I have been a staunch activist and advocate for American Pit Bull Terriers most of my life. Working for them and against dogfighting will also always be a big part of my life's work!

Some of you might be wondering, why then have I never posted or signed any actions to ban Vick from the NFL. or to ban the Philadelphia Eagles! This pledge which I have signed and recruited explains in part why.

No one could have felt anymore rage twards Vick than I did as I do twards Ed Farron and anyone who does this to my favorite breed or to any animal!!

However, This is how I feel. When a person is caught, convicted and serves their time for a crime, they are still allowed then to return to work in their field. At first I felt this case is different because he will be a role model for many young children as well as adults and should not be allowed to return. After thinking long and hard I realized that Hollywood and the music industry has many people that have also served time for crimes either before or after fame.

Vick says he has repented and his way of thinking is changed. I say only time will tell but am willing to give the benefit of the doubt. He has the chance now to use his fame and help the American Pit Bull Terriers and all dogs that have and might fall victim to the horror of dog fighting. I say let him use his fame for this and to discourage as many as he can from dog fighting. Knowing full well the complete history of the American Pit Bull Terriers and dog fighting, It sickens me that such a thing was once legal around the world and here in the USA.

On another note, to boycott the whole NFL. or a whole team just would not be fair! I just hope and pray that Vick really does feel true remorse. I would love to see him turn around and become a great advocate for the APBT's and a great activist against dog fighting.

Keep in mind that the apostle Paul who recorded and wrote the majority of the New Testament of the Bible was once named Saul who persecuted and killed Christians. Through God all things are possible!

Aloha and God Bless you all, Walt