Be a Resource, Not a Cyberbully.

The myth has been circulating for years on rehoming pages. Animal lovers ​leverage it to frighten pet owners into believing that ​felony criminals ​​are secretly watching, waiting to pounce. This, in spite of ongoing ​efforts by animal welfare experts to educate and inform. For example, this Animal Fighting Response Manager: “Professional and amateur dog fighters do not use ‘bait dogs’. That is a term that has been used and sensationalized by the media.” – Janette Reever, Manager of Animal Fighting Response with the Humane World for Animals (formerly named HSUS)

Supporting Pet Owners with practical how-to rehoming intel is kinder and more effective than stress stacking them with worse case scenario warnings. How-To Resources

‘But I heard this happens!’  The ​dog fight cases​ we see in the news are prosecuted after months/years of deep-dive investigations, with mountains of ​court reviewed evidence gathered from ​tracking activities, interviewing witnesses, seizing physical evidence and assessing dog victims. Investigators know that the abuse patterns among dog fighters follow​ certain practices that have been handed down by generations of other dog fighters, dating back to times before our country got smart and made it a felony offense. Experts weren’t surprised when a report from the US Dept of Ag revealed that then-NFL player Michael Vick victimized his own dogs, including his own family pets, to “test” or “roll” dogs he intended to breed and/or enter into fights. ​It’s what dog fighters do. 

Dog fighters don’t want your dogs. They glamorize select bloodlines and victimize dogs that they’ve bred, purchased or traded with other dog fighters. Read MVick’s indictment to learn how it works.

​Where did the ‘Free Dog = Bait Dog’ myth start? Much of the sensationalism surrounding Pit Bulls and so-called ‘bait dogs’ can be traced to media efforts to demonize the dogs. In 1987, this infamous Sports Illustrated cover story shamefully capitalized on stereotypical images and scare-stories of urban owners (read: Black male Pit Bull owners) to excite readers. Activists clapped back at those targeted smear campaigns, and through education and example, the dogs have since earned their place back into American hearts. But the tantalizing bit about dog fighters stealing pets for fighting rings still persists and hits at the core of many animal lovers’ anxieties about animals in distress. It’s a classic case of illusory truth effect: What we hear numerous times starts to feel like truth. (Btw, the illusory truth effect article linked here is fascinating if you have a minute.)

​Realities. Yes, there are people who harm companion animals through neglect, hoarding, abandonment or even physical abuse. ​Stories​ of hurt animals stand out for good reason ​and they rouse us to action by demanding enforcement of our animal welfare laws. ‘Free Adoptions’ ​however ​have not been connected to dangerous outcomes. They’ve been well studied and the data suggests that they can attract wonderful adopters without compromising the quality of an animal’s life. We would add that ​a thoughtful application and interview process with follow-up support is a better indicator of adoption success​ than whether a fee was attached to a pet.

Related: How to use Craigslist to attract responsible adopters.

​S​cars – A reminder. Dogs who turn up with bite wounds or old scars can only tell us that they’ve had an altercation at some point with other animals in their home, yard, out in parks or while lost on the streets. Suggesting that they were ‘baited’ with no credible evidence is similar to what the media has done to Pit Bulls to incite fearful reactions. It’s dishonest and harmful ​to animals and it derails real efforts that could be used to understand and assist them.

Myths harm efforts to help dog owners help their dogs. The story of ‘Pie’ hit a nerve when we posted her owner’s story on our Facebook page. Read here. If you don’t use FB, the gist of it is that we watched a distraught mother who was living in a hotel room face extreme bullying and fabricated warnings on a message board that’s meant to help dog families connect with potential adopters. It was brutal.

// Note: We couldn’t stand to see this owner bullied, and took Pie into our program to help ease her distress. Pie is Available for adoption now. //

Want to help more dogs? Be a resource, not a bully when you come across people who are struggling to find solutions for their dogs. Offer support – or if they happen to push your buttons – just scroll on by and let someone else take a stab at helping them. Do No Harm.