League Against Cruel
Sports
April 2018
Experts estimate there are tens of thousands of dog fighters across the US forcing hundreds of thousands of dogs to brutally train, fight, and suffer as part of this so-called ‘'sport.'
The scale of dog fighting in the USA has been revealed for first time by
new research from the
American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA).
ASPCA experts estimate there are tens of thousands of dog fighters across
the US forcing hundreds of thousands of dogs to brutally train, fight, and
suffer as part of this so-called ‘sport’.
The national research released by the ASPCA shows the gap between the
public’s awareness and understanding of dog fighting, and its actual
prevalence in the US. The findings show that many people do not understand
how common dog fighting truly is, struggle to recognise the signs and fail
to report suspicious activity to the authorities.
Most alarmingly, only about half of those who said they did have suspicions
report it, but many didn’t bother. Less than a third felt very confident in
spotting the signs. This adds up too many missed opportunities to protect
dogs from this horrendous form of abuse.
The position in the UK is similar. Data published by the Royal Society for
the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals shows the public have made around 5,000
calls about organised dog fighting to their animal cruelty helpline in
England and Wales since 2006. Data on convictions for dog fighting in the UK
show it takes place in our big cities, towns and rural areas.
Yet awareness of dog fighting in the UK also remains low.
It’s clear more needs to be done to help people spot the signs of dog
fighting and report it. That’s why the League has published information for
the public, veterinary and law enforcement communities to help them
understand what to look for and how to report it.
Dog fighters thrive on secrecy: let’s work together to deny them it.
If you have information about dog fighting in the US,
contact the ASPCA HERE and in the UK contact our confidential
Online Animal Crimewatch reporting service. We’ll guide you through the
kind of information we need. Alternatively, please contact us in confidence
on 01483 361 108 or email us directly on [email protected].
Our specially trained investigators will follow up on the information you
provide, and we’ll let you know how it progresses. Let’s do more to stop
this abuse.