When members of North Mississippi Great Dane Rescue stepped in and rescued a Great Dane named Claire, who was left for dead in the streets of southeast Memphis this past summer, she had suffered horrific laceration wounds and broken teeth.
Trista Perkins, director of North Mississippi Great Dane Rescue, said that Claire wasn’t quite out of the woods yet.
“She has spent months in recovery because her wounds were so bad,” Perkins said. “She still has a slight bone infection from the severe puncture damage.”
North Mississippi Great Dane Rescue claims dog fighting likely caused her injuries. Claire, who is available for adoption, is not alone. Animal fighting is on the rise in Memphis, along with animal cruelty cases specifically related to dog fighting investigations according to John Morgret, criminal investigator and emergency services coordinator of The Humane Society of Memphis & Shelby County.
“We have been receiving more complaints and have investigated more cases of animal fighting this year than in previous years,” Morgret said. “It is blight on our community that also promotes other crimes, such as illegal gambling, and narcotics trafficking and sales, and even weapons violations.”
Typically, two types of dog fighting occur in Memphis. Organized fight rings happen rarely, according to officials. They require highly skilled planning and generally a “look the other away” attitude from local law enforcement.
More commonplace are spontaneous dogfights, hosting 20 to 50 people and are often times staged for show.
Cindy Marx-Sanders, co-founder of Community Action for Animals, a non-profit organization focusing on humane legislation for animal cruelty, explained the mentality behind these fights.
“It’s a ‘my dog is tougher than your dog’ kind of thing,” she said.
A popular version of a spontaneous dogfight is known as “trunking,” Marx-Sanders explained. Two dogs are shut into the trunk of a large sedan, and the door is left shut until the dogs are quiet. The winner of the fight is whichever dog is alive when the door is opened. Dogfight organizers use this tactic to shield children and girlfriends, who are present, from watching violent dogfights firsthand.
Tougher ordinances and an informed and vigilant pubic are ways residents can fight back, said Marx-Sanders, an expert on animal cruelty law and author of the mandatory spay and neuter ordinance in Memphis who has attended over 4,500 hearings regarding animal cruelty investigations.
“It’s important that Memphians know the law,” Marx-Sanders said.
For example, selling pit bull puppies on a street corner is illegal in the city of Memphis and oftentimes an indicator of neighborhood dog fighting, she explained.
Additionally, when a crime is occurring citizens should call 545-COPS and report it immediately.
“Always let the operator know you are going to wait until officers arrive,” Marx-Sanders said, explaining how this tactic facilitates more prompt response from police officers.
