Aug 11, 2009 10:23 pm US/Central
9 Dogs Recovering After Brutal Dogfighting Bust
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
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Nine dogs were rescued from a dogfighting ring bust in Kankakee County.
CBS
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Nine dogs were rescued from a dogfighting ring bust in Kankakee County.
CBS
You may take your child to the park or the beach, but who would take their 5-year-old daughter to a dog fight? After rescuing nearly a dozen injured fighting dogs from a suburban farm in Kankakee County, it's a question that has the Cook County sheriff scratching his head. CBS 2's Anne State reports.
The disturbing thing is Sheriff Tom Dart says he's seen kids at dog fights, and even a pregnant woman. But something happened this weekend that was unusual.
A pit bull with sad eyes and a scarred face sat in a cage Tuesday. Next door, was a tail-wagging dog. The next cage over was another dog with a sad face.
"You look in their eyes and they have that bewildered look, like, 'What did I do wrong?' And that's what's so sad," said Linda Estrada, director and president of Animal Welfare League.
Estrada says these dogs were used in dog fights and they've got the scars to prove it.
One has gashes all over his face; one is lying motionless on a blanket with visible neck injuries.
"It's not the animals who are bad, it's the people," Estrada said.
The Cook County sheriff's office says nine dogs were rescued from a dog fight over the weekend. The sheriff says it took place on a remote farm, and dogfighters came all the way from Chicago to take part.
"This was a high stakes one. We were estimating the purse for the final champion was going to be $20,000 to $30,000," Dart said.
Sheriff Dart says that's unusually high. Sadly, not so unusual, he says, was the fact that one man brought his 5-year-old daughter to watch these dogs tear each other apart.
"Do you know how many children watch dogfighting?" Estrada said. "If a child can watch it, what are they going to grow up to be?"
Estrada says these dogs will have to be rehabilitated and re-socialized, which involves lots of love and attention. If they can't be rehabilitated, they'll have to be put to sleep.
"Their life will be lost because of these idiots, and for money," Estrada said.
The sheriff's office says seven people were arrested in connection with this dog fight, including 50-year-old Ronald Patton of Chicago. He's the one who allegedly brought his daughter to the fight.
CBS 2 called Patton's house Tuesday night. A woman who answered the phone said he was still in custody. She had no comment on the charges.
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