Jim Gorant: The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick's Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption

Grace and Alex deserve special mention for enduring my alternating bouts of crankiness and distraction while grinding against deadline, as does my father, George, for introducing me to dogs and helping me to develop a true appreciation for them. At the top of the list, in perpetuity, is Karin Henderson, for her editorial gifts and unending encouragement and for being a true partner in all things.

Last, I would like to thank the dogs, not just the Vick pack, but all of them, simply for being dogs, which is to say, tolerant and perseverant; willing to connect with a world that does not always return their affection; and for proving, time and again, that life, while messy, difficult, and imperfect, has the capacity to exceed our expectations and feed our undying hope.

BOOKS

Colby, Louis B., with Diane Jessup. Colby’s Book of the American Pit Bull Terrier. Newburyport, Mass.: Colby Pit Bull Kennel, 1997.

Delise, Karen. The Pit Bull Placebo. Ramsey, N.J.: Anubis Publishing, 2007.

Fuller, J. L., and J. P. Scott. Genetics and the Social Behavior of the Dog. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1965.

Stahlkuppe, Joe. The American Pit Bull Terrier Handbook. New York: Barron’s, 2000.

ARTICLES

“Pit Bulls in Dogfighting Case Likely to be Euthanized,” Associated Press, May 23, 2007.

Colston, Chris. “Officials: No Solid Vick Evidence, But Problem Persists,” USA Today, May 23, 2007.

– -. “Latest Search Warrant for Vick’s Property Put on Hold,” USA Today, May 29, 2007.

Judd, Alan. “Records Show How Vick Burned Through Fortune,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, December 6, 2008.

Kurz, Hank. “ Small Town, Big Case for Vick and Dogs,” Associated Press, June 4, 2007.

Macur, Juliet. “Given Reprieve, NFL Star’s Dogs Find Kindness,” New York Times, February 2, 2008.

Maske, Mark. “Vick’s Dad Traces Dogs to Son’s Childhood,” Washington Post, August 24, 2007.

Maske, Mark, and Sara Kehaulani Goo. “A Commonplace Case Complicated by Fame,” Washington Post, March 13, 2005.

Red, Christian. “Trained to be Killers, Vick’s Pit Bulls Now on Death Row,” New York Daily News, August 30, 2007.

Schmidt, Michael S. “In the Case Against Vick, Dogs Are Held in Evidence,” New York Times, August 1, 2007.

– -. “Pit Bulls from the Vick Dogfighting Case Await Fate,” New York Times, September 1, 2007.

Squires, David. “Vick’s Father Says Prison Made Him ‘A Better Man.’ ” Newport News Daily Press, May 27, 2009.

Wade, Nicholas. “New Finding Puts Origins of Dogs in Middle East,” New York Times, March 18, 2010.

Weisman, Larry. “Sheriff Mum as Dog Fighting Charges Encircle Vick,” USA Today, May 16, 2007.

Wyche, Steve. “Link to Vick in Evidence Seizure,” Cox News Service, May 22, 2007.

Youngmisuk, Ohm. “Dog Daze,” The New York Daily News, June 10, 2007.

LEGAL DOCUMENTS

U.S. DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA (CRIMINAL ACTION)

INDICTMENT (JUL. 17, 2007)

Plea Agreement (Aug. 24, 2007)

Summary of Facts (Aug. 24, 2007)

Motion for Restraining Order (Nov. 20, 2007)

Sentencing Minutes (Dec. 10, 2007)

U.S. DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA (CIVIL ACTION)

Verified Complaint in Rem (Jul. 2, 2007)

Arrest Warrant in Rem (Jul. 2, 2007)

Request for Entry of Default (Aug. 24, 2007)

Motion for Entry of Default Judgement (Aug. 30, 2007)

Forfeiture Order (Aug. 31, 2007)

Motion for First Order as to Disposition (Oct. 1, 2007)

First Order as to Disposition (Oct. 1, 2007)

Motion for Second Order as to Disposition and Appointing Guardian/ Special Master (Oct. 15, 2007)

Second Order as to Disposition and Appointing Guardian/Special Master (Oct. 15, 2007)

Motion for Order as to Final Disposition (Dec. 4, 2007)

Order for Final Disposition (Dec. 6, 2007)

Report of Special Master (Dec. 6, 2007)

RESCUE ORGANIZATION APPLICATION

RESCUE ORGANIZATION APPLICATION (OCT. 26, 2007)

JIM GORANT has worked as a magazine editor and writer for twenty years, the last seven as a senior editor at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI, Gorant wrote for GQ, Men’s Journal, Men’s Health, Outside, Sports Afield, and Popular Science, among others. His previous books include Fit for Golf (with Boris Kuzmic) and Fanatic: 10 Things All Sports Fans Should Do Before They Die.

[1]Source: Judd, Alan, “In Game of Life, Vick Blitzed by Trouble,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, July 22, 2007.

[2]Name and some identifying details have been changed.

[3]Much of the history and all the stats in this section derive from The Pit Bull Placebo, in which Karen Delise, founder of the National Canine Research Council, reviewed 150 years of newspaper archives and studied every account of a fatal or near-fatal dog attack.

[4]Name and some identifying details have been changed.

[5]According to a 1996 study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (written by J. J. Sacks, M. Kresnow, and B. Houston). “Dog Bites: How Big a Problem?” Injury Prevention 2 (1996): 52-54.