We all know what happened to Michael Vick. He served his time in prison and is now back on the football field with the Philadelphia Eagles. The move by the Eagles was very controversial, but I suppose the argument could be - if the dogs were given a second chance, why not Vick. With Vick back in the spotlight and the NFL football season in full swing, perhaps it is time to put the spotlight back on those dogs that were saved. Vick wasn't the only one to make a comeback!
So where are they now? Would you believe some are now certified therapy dogs??? Meet Jonny Justice.
Source: Sports Illustrated
Jonny, whose original name was Jonny Rotten, is now part of a library program helping kids become more comfortable reading aloud.
Hector, also a therapy dog...
Source: Huffington Post
bears deep scars on his chest from his time as a fighting dog. Hector now visits the sick and makes appearances in schools.
And Leo, yes, another therapy dog, visits hospitals and nursing homes.
Source: Huffington Post
All of the dogs that did not go to Best Friends have either been adopted or are in foster homes.
And the Best Friends dogs? Even the worst case dogs have made a lot of progress, many having passed their Canine Good Citizen test. The problems of the majority of the Vicktory dogs was aggression or avoidance because of fear - OF US. And just about everything else. Most of those sent to Best Friends are still there, but even a couple of them have been adopted. Like Cherry who is seen here with his human Melissa and cat buddy, Walker. He also shares his home with another dog.
Source: Best Friends
Mya has also come a long way and now helps to socialize puppies at the sanctuary.
Source: Best Friends
Shadow was so terrified of everything, he would belly crawl on his walks.
Source: Best Friends
He now loves walks and visitors and anything that involves having fun.
Perhaps the most notable of these dogs is Georgia, who you might say has become an ambassador for pit bulls everywhere having appeared on the Ellen DeGeneres show and ESPN.
Source: Best Friends
You can see Georgia's past in her scarred face, but her willingness to become a totally different dog than the one that arrived at Best Friends in 2008 shows in her toothless smile.
The Michael Vick saga has changed the way shelters see pit bulls and a lot of places are now judging each dog as an individual instead of making a blanket assessment of those that have been involved in dog fighting through no fault of their own. They too are Vicktims.
Click here to read more inspirational stories about each of the Best Friends' courageous Victory dogs. Click here to see a wonderful video from the Early Show about some of the other Vick dogs. Ten of the dogs went to Bad Rap, a pit bull rescue organization in San Francisco. Click here for more information about that organization. The Vick dogs are not the only dogs involved in fighting that they've helped.
Jim Gorant has written a book that came out last year about the Michael Vick dogs, 'The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick's Dogs and their Tales of Rescue and Redemption'. Click here to see more about it on Amazon.
Because of their celebrity, both the Vick dogs and those that cared for them had a lot of pressure put on them to succeed and prove that these dogs (and pit bulls in general) do not deserve their vicious reputation and can be rehabilitated. The show 'Dogtown' on the National Geographic Channel even followed the progress of a couple of Vick dogs at Best Friends. Both people and dogs have come through with flying colors and surpassed everyone's expectations. If we've learned anything from this, it's that humans are not the only ones with an indomitable spirit for surviving and beating the odds.
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