But while the stats may seem promising, Rickey says, there's no way of definitively knowing if the number of cases are actually decreasing. It's estimated that around 40,000 people are involved in the industry in the U.S. — and that's not accounting for the industries in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Latin America and eastern Europe. NPR reports it's still technically legal in Japan.
The number one rule about dog fighting is that you don't talk about dog fighting
The number one rule about dog fighting is that you don't talk about dog fighting.
"The most frustrating part about this job is that, at the end of the day, it's near impossible to really track your progress," he says. "We have no evidence if it's grown or reduced in size."
What has grown, he says, is public awareness. Since NFL quarterback Michael Vick was sentenced to 23 months in prison for dog fighting in 2007, more people have come forward to authorities with tips about potential operations near them. Social media campaigns, particularly ones geared at reducing the stigma against pit bulls, have been especially helpful: "People are savvy; they know this is happening all around them, and they're proactively trying to stop it," Rickey says.
It's undeniable progress — but he says it would be naive to think there isn't still a long road ahead.
SEE ALSO: Can Instagram save pit bulls in America?
IMAGE: ASPCA
Dog fighting, as a sport, can be traced back to the Roman Empire. After the Romans invaded Britain in 43 A.D., they became instantly impressed by the aggressiveness of the British fighting dogs.
Large audiences would gather in Rome's Colosseum to watch gladiator dogs fight against other animals — including, sometimes, wild elephants
Large audiences would gather in Rome's Colosseum to watch gladiator dogs fight against other animals — including, sometimes, wild elephants. After being crossbred with the Romans' breed of fighting dogs, the new breeds were exported throughout western Europe, eventually finding their way back to Britain.
Around the turn of the 12th century, a practice called "baiting" emerged, which pitted fighting dogs against chained bulls and bears. This remained a popular form of entertainment until it was outlawed by British Parliament in 1835; soon, however, dog-on-dog battles took over as the alternative.
Shortly before the Civil War, the new British fighting dogs were imported into the U.S., where they were crossbred — again — to create the breed we know today as the American Pit Bull Terrier. Fighting became a popular spectator sport on the new continent, but most states outlawed it by the late 1860s. Still, it continued to spread in popularity throughout the world, eventually growing into the huge, underground business it is today.
"This is something that's been around since the very beginning," Rickey says. "The crazy part is that, one point in time, it was somewhat accepted."
IMAGE: ASPCA
Aditi Terpstra has made a career out of rehabilitating pit bulls. Her rescue shop in Winona, Minn., takes in dogs every year who have been rescued from fighting rings.
Following the Michael Vick conviction in 2007, she says, rescued pit bills were given the opportunity to be saved. Prior to that, nearly every pit bull rescued from a fighting ring was euthanized, no questions asked.
"The case was definitely a turning point," she says. "The fact that he was a high-profile celebrity attracted a lot more attention, and people started demanding that these dogs be given a chance at having new lives."
Now, each dog rescued from a fighting ring is sent to a temporary rehabilitation center while the case is decided. The dogs are technically considered evidence, Terpstra says, so they're held in the centers until each owner is prosecuted. The shelters also serve as tests to determine if the dogs are adoptable — if they pass the test, they're released to adoption shelters after each case.
Typically, she says, about 40% of them are deemed OK for adoption; the remaining 60% are euthanized because they're feared to be too aggressive
Typically, she says, about 40% of them are deemed OK for adoption; the remaining 60% are euthanized because they're feared to be too aggressive.
"One thing that most people don't realize is that this truly crosses all social and economic lines," Terpstra says. "It's very prominent in poorer areas in the rural South, but, as the Vick case shows, it's also common for affluent people to be involved. There's no basic demographic."
"Blood sports," a group in which dog fighting is included, involves any event where animals are forced to fight for financial gain, according to the ASPCA. Cases usually involve either dog or cock fighting.
"Cock fighting is just as brutal," Rickey says. "There, people strap razor blades to roosters' legs, so they're literally slicing one another to pieces. But that's a different story."
The money involved, like the operations in general, is widely unknown. But Rickey guesses some matches have pots as high as $10,000.
Most dog fights are planned months in advance. Typical breeders will keep their dogs tied up with 20-pound chains in a hidden yard in the country; if they're in an urban environment, they're usually stacked in kennels in a basement.
The dogs are rarely fed, maybe once every two days, and kept, for the most part, in complete isolation
The dogs are rarely fed, maybe once every two days, and kept, for the most part, in complete isolation. If a dog is chosen to compete, he or she will begin a 16-week training program, where they're fed and given immense attention from the owners — "an attention they desperately crave," Rickey says.
In training, the chosen dogs are forced to fight against smaller dogs, known as "bait dogs," that are tied up and muzzled. The idea is to increase the fighter's confidence. The bait dogs can't fight back; it's a guaranteed bloodbath.
The actual fights take ages. Unlike most movie portrayals, with one dog ripping out another's throat, it takes hours to end: small bite by small bite, scratch by scratch. It's more of an endurance match than it is a fight.
If a dog survives, it might be used to fight again; if it doesn't fight again, it goes back on the chain and is used to breed new, younger fighters.
"These are extremely affectionate dogs. They just want to please their owners," Rickey says.
"I've seen videos of dogs trying to escape the ring during a fight. The owner leans down, whispers something into the dog's ear, and affectionately brings it back to the ring to fight. They don't want to fight; they don't know better. They're just trying to satisfy their owner so they don't go back to months, or even years, of isolation again."
IMAGE: ASPCA
So what — if anything — can the public do to make Rickey's job easier? Be mindful, for one, but not overly accusatory.
"There are clear signs: If you see dogs chained up to really heavy log chains," he says, "or if there are visible scars or ears ripped off of them. You may even notice a group of dogs that are coming and going frequently from one location."
The biggest hope he has, he says, is that the negative perception against pit bulls continues to decrease. The rehabilitation centers are there for a reason; if a dog is truly incapable of overcoming its brainwashed aggression, it won't be sent to adoption centers. But the others — the ones that have been rehabilitated and saved — are generally sweet, timid animals who've spent their entire lives weighed down by a chain.
"In the videos from these cases, I've watched a dog literally scream in agony and seeing them panic — especially as people on the outside laugh — and it's without a doubt one of the most heartbreaking things I've ever seen," he says.
"These dogs are victims of an unspeakable crime. They're not the enemies here."
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