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| Little and her portrait by Pet Studio Art. |
Little Red was rescued from
Michael Vick’s dog fighting operation in 2007. Well, I guess we shouldn't call
it ‘rescue’ right away, since the dogs that were taken from the ‘Vick’ property
were actually placed in custody for the next several months before truly being
rescued.
Little Red was one of
twenty-two of the Vick Pit Bulls that was sent to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary
in Utah. It was here that a dedicated team of dog behavior specialists met and
set up a plan for working with these pups in order to rehabilitate them to
their ultimate goal; being adopted into loving homes, a place that these pups
had never had before.
The 22 dogs that were sent to
Best Friends were among the most traumatized of the pups. Little Red in
particular was used as a “bait dog” (a dog that is used for the fighters to
practice on). Many of her teeth were filed down or removed completely, so she
would not be able to harm the other dogs, her body is covered in scars and she
has a serious illness called Babesia, a common disease in dogs that experience
deep puncture wounds during fights.
Despite all of the outward and
inward trauma when Little and her friends arrived at Best Friends, the staff
was determined to ensure that these pups were given the best chance at a happy
life, even the dogs that are court ordered never to leave the Sanctuary are
given the best care both physically and emotionally by the team that looks out
for them.
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| Little at Best Friends. |
For every animal lover in
America, it was impossible not to watch the story of the ‘Vicktory’ dogs. Little’s
now mom, Susan, was no exception and
enjoyed reading all about the pups in the Best Friend’s magazine, where she
fell in love with Little’s smile. While she enjoyed reading about all of the
dogs, something about Little Red stuck with her and during Little’s 2nd
year at Best Friends, Susan stopped by to visit. Although Little was extremely
shy and would not approach the fence, Susan was able to see Little interact
with another dog. It was love at first glance and although she was not able to
meet Little face to face because of the court order (Little Red was still not
ready to interact with volunteers), she did decide to volunteer at Best
Friends, even being able to work in Little's Unit and observe her in her ‘shy dog’
class; a class where staff members sit in a room and when one of the ‘shy dogs’
approach them of their own free will, they get a treat! Little loved being
around other dogs and would prance and smile, it was hard not to be smitten
with her.
It was after seeing Little in
her ‘shy dog’ class, Susan stopped by the adoption office to ask about adopting
Little. She figured it was a long shot and that tons of applications would be
piling up for Little, but to her surprise, Susan was the first person to
inquire about Little, she was ecstatic that she would have a chance to be
considered to adopt this special pup.
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| Little enjoying the sun. |
Since she had previously
adopted a dog from Best Friends, Susan had a great history with them, but
because Little Red was a ‘Vick’ dog and had a court order attached, the
adoption process for Little Red would be much more extensive this time. Little
had to pass her Canine Good Citizenship test (which she passed in August of
2011) and she would need to meet all of the existing dogs in Susan’s home.
Susan also needed to provide information on her home, insurance, training
resources, yard, fence and philosophy regarding dogs. None of this was a
problem and after bringing her pups to Best Friends for their visit in
September, Little moved in for the 6 month foster-trial period just a couple of
weeks later!
Once arriving home, it did
take a bit of adjusting for Little to start to feel at home. Little was very
shy and had never lived in a home environment before, so the normal sounds of
everyday life were an entirely new experience and overwhelming for Little. She
was afraid of coming and going through doors and up and down stairs, she
reacted with fear when the washer or dryer was turned on. Sudden noises on the
TV, the dishwasher or storms terrified her. Little was even scared of wide open
spaces when she first moved in with Susan, but after several months, Little was
embracing her new life and learned to enjoy the open pasture at her new home.
She doesn’t play with toys,
but Little loves being around other dogs more than anything. She lives with a
couple of older dogs that are not as active as she is (even at 10, Little loves
to play); Susan mentioned that she even gets her feelings her when the other
dogs ignore her requests to play. Little loves nothing more than having a Pit
Bull visitor for a play-date. She lights up and loves to wrestle and have ‘pittie
play’ a special type of play that pit bulls adore. When a Pit Bull buddy isn’t
around, Little’s favorite thing to do is run with Susan. She races ahead of
Susan in the pasture, leaps in the air with a big grin, then doubles back to
start all over again.
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| Little and her family. |
Little Red’s adoption was
finalized on March 19th, 2012. Little had been home for months, but
that official paperwork truly meant that Little would never have to worry
again, she would be loved and cared for, in a wonderful home, for the rest of
her life. Little is a testament to the sweetness that is inside of all dogs,
even those that have been hurt in the past.
The important thing to
remember with Little’s history (and all other dogs that come from similar
situations) is that she was the victim, not the other way around. The practices
of dog fighters are brutally sadistic, these are individuals that will watch
another living being kill or be killed in front of them for greed and
entertainment. These people are criminals, regardless of their jobs, their
family life or their views on other issues in the world outside of the dog
fighting arena. People who participate in breeding dogs for fighting, watching
dog-fights or even going so far as to bet on the fights are just as guilty as
those putting the dogs in the pit. Dogs are feeling, thinking beings. They yelp
when you accidentally step on their tail, they slink away after you
catch them digging through the garbage, they snuggle with you when they aren’t feeling
well. Anyone who argues that dogs don’t deserve a wonderful life should simply
click the ‘x’ at the top of this screen and leave because I don’t really want
those people visiting my blog.
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| Little Red and Cheeto. |
Vick and his cronies tried to
make a mean dog out of Little Red, but they did not succeed. She survived their
brutality. She survived their torture. Little is a sweet, affectionate dog that
adores other dogs. She suffers from PTSD, but has shown herself to be a truly
remarkable dog in her recovery process. The five years that she suffered will
always be a part of her past, but Little only has happy things to look forward
to. She will live her remaining years with all of the things that dogs should
have; companionship, love and respect.
“Dogs have always played a big
part in my life. I have 5 rescue dogs and will continue to have rescue dogs for
the rest of my life. Little is a remarkable survivor and she is able to forgive
people – even though it was people that inflicted such horrible pain on her…. Isn’t
that amazing?” – Susan, Little’s mom.
Stephanie Conrad
Pet Studio Art | Owner |
Artist
Little loves her new life but doesn't forget about her Best Friends family. She stops by to visit!
