Michael Vick’s Dogfighting Story: What Animal Crimes did the Ex-Falcons QB Commit?
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Michael Vick, the suspended Atlanta Falcons quarterback, was accused of being part of Bad Newz Kennels, a dogfighting operation, in 2007. He and his friends- Purnell Peace, Quanis Phillips, and Tony Taylor were funding this operation, as per the 17-page report of the US Department of Agriculture.
After 14 years of this story, Michael Vick took the backlash once again for his cruelty and insensitive practices against his fur friends. The painful memories came as a flashback in 2021, when the last surviving dog who was brought to safety from Vick’s dogfighting ring took his last breath. His name was Frodo, and he died at the age of 15.
A total of 48 dogs were rescued from Vick’s cruel dogfighting ring after his Virginia kennels were raided and he was arrested.
The Animal Crimes Committed by Michael Vick
The once NFL superstar, Michael Vick, was the first Black quarterback for Atlanta Falcons. Despite all of his achievements, his animal crimes were something beyond being tolerated by animal lovers all across the globe.
The report by USDA mentions statements that say, “Vick, Phillips, and Peace were finding it funny to watch the pit bull dogs fight, injure or kill one another in a pit.” Moreover, some anonymous mentions in the report of people who cooperated with the investigation and helped reveal this entire scandal.
Some crimes are terrifying to even read in the report. Vick and his friends even hung three dogs to death, using a nylon cord and nailing them to trees, for not performing well in their so-called, “rolling session”. A ‘rolling session’ is the time when the readiness of a dog is judged. And, they killed three of them because they underperformed.
The cruelty doesn’t end here, as they have also drowned three more of their dogs by dipping their heads in the bucket with five-gallon of water.
Michael Vick’s Confrontation
In 2007, Michael pleaded guilty and served jail in federal prison for 18 months. During all this, he lost his reputation as an NFL Superstar. Every sponsor he had pulled back their funds. Also, Vick was made to pay $1 million as a penalty for the care of all the surviving or rescued dogs.
He also had to return the 10-year signing bonus worth a $130 million contract, which had made him the highest-paid player at that time. But, with this setback, he filed for bankruptcy in 2008.
Vick confronted the jury that he was part of the dog killings, alongside his friends, Peace, and Phillips. He said he didn’t kill the dogs, as his friends didn’t want him to put his NFL reputation at risk by any means. Although he did admit that he did indeed help Philips toss the dead dogs a few times.
As per the report, Vick had paid $100 to someone for digging two graves for the dead dogs. The name of that person is kept anonymous in the report. The person who dug the graves said he didn’t want to bury the dogs. Therefore, Philips and Peace did it themselves.
Michael Vick’s Life After Release
After Vick was out of jail, he returned to the NFL and played for the Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Steelers, and New York Jets. He retired from the sport in 2015, and two years after that, Fox Sports hired him as their Football Analyst.
After 12 years of being caught for operating a dogfighting ring on his property, the NFL awarded Vick with an honorary title, as one of the “Legends Captains” of the 2020 Pro Bowl. Since the announcement, more than 250,000 people had already signed a petition to revoke this title from him.
In 2017, Michael Vick opened up about his past to The Washington Post. He said, “I was young….I didn’t have no guidance…I don’t use this as no excuse. I could have said, ‘No’.”
He did show his guilt and regret for the decisions he made. But, this deed of his cost the lives of many dogs. If not for the raid, the 48 rescued dogs would have also shared the same fate.
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