Brief History of Dog Fighting

In 1817 the dog was first brought to America and introduced to the American culture. Before the dog had come to America, dogs have been fighting since the Roman times. Things however were a little different than and dogs weren’t just fighting dogs. The Romans would throw the dogs in the ring inside the Coliseum and let them fight against animals such as bears, and bulls. The dogs were overpowered by these other massive animals, but the bloody fight was a thrill to the Romans and people of the medieval times. The sport eventually grew and spread to England, but came to a halt in 1835 when it was outlawed Parliament of the Humane Act of 1835.

When the dog was finally brought to America in 1817 the United Kennel Club took control over the dog fights and actually started running the first organized dog fighting club. This club provided referees to call the fights and make sure the fights went accordingly. “Although dog fighting had become illegal in most states by the 1860’s, it continued to flourish as an American pastime through the early twentieth century. By the 1930’s and 1940’s, the blood sport had been driven further underground as high profile organizations such as the United Kennel Club withdrew their endorsement.” It was just a matter of time until the Kennel would lose their endorsement with dogs and organized fighting. In 1976 dog fighting was outlawed in all states and was a felony charge in 48 of the states. Without a doubt dog fighting is a terrible crime but is something that hasn’t been controlled to heavily by law enforcement in past times and is beginning to become more of a concern as it should.

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