Michael Vick's case changed policies that used to kill these dogs.

[dkf]

Happy ending for most of Vick’s dogs

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=dw-vickdogs092110

Forty-seven of the 51 dogs survived. While not all have fully rehabbed, a good number of them live with families. Their new owners view the dogs’ scarred bodies as loveable and marvel at the ability to put years of aggressive training and systematic torture behind them. Four even work in therapy roles – including one in California which is so gentle and peaceful he’s used as a “listener” for self-conscious children trying to work on their reading skills.

Perhaps most remarkably, if it wasn’t for the high-profile nature of the Vick case and the quarterback’s ability to pay for their postrescue care (Vick reportedly spent a court-mandated $1 million on it), each of the dogs would’ve been destroyed. Dogs which came from fighting busts had previously been considered so far gone that trying to retrain them would take a disproportionate amount of already limited resources.

“Ninety percent of the time, they would’ve been put down,” Gorant said. “Even PETA and the Humane Society recommended it. there are already good dogs out there who need care. Why invest time, effort and money to save these few when so many dogs are out there that need help?”

The public outcry over the Vick dogs helped change that. An attempt was made to retrain them, and the success rate was so high that “the Humane Society changed its official policy,” Gorant said.

[benddem]

1. that's a wonderful outcome

thanks

[ZombieHorde]

2. Nice to see some good come from the horror. nt

[ClarkUSA]

3. It's refreshing that you and a few others here see beyond revenge and outrage to the Big Picture.

Thank you.

[superduperfarleft]

4. Yes, it was totally worth all those dogs that didn't make it to rehab.

And more like a happy ending for most of Vick's surviving dogs, not mentioning the neighborhood cats that were thrown into the pits as bait animals.

[COLGATE4]

5. Nothing like pissing on the one small piece of good news that

came out of the whole Vick mess.

[Name removed]

6. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[dkf]

8. It's not about his motives, it's about something bad making things better.

And it was because of his celebrity that the practice of executing these dogs stopped.

I'm amazed a dog lover can't see that these dogs, and not just Michael Vick's, have a chance now, when they didn't before.

[superduperfarleft]

9. I'm still failing to see how something good coming out of a horrible situation

means that Vick's an okay guy who no one should ever say anything mean about ever again.

[CakeGrrl]

7. k/r - moving forward and making some far-reaching good out of the bad. n/t