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Investigating Animal Cruelty 29 Specialized cases This section provides information about some highly specialized case types that can present challenges to law enforcement officers. Although these types of cases are often hidden from view, they are unfortunately all too common. These scenarios include: 1. Animal fighting 2. Animal hoarding 3. Puppy mills Animal fighting Blood sports such as dogfighting and cockfighting are brutal animal contests resulting in suffering, torture, harassment and death for animals forced to participate. Such sports amount to torture for fun and are degrading and unfit for civilized society. This section is intended to serve as an authoritative source of information on illegal animal fighting activities for use by law enforcement personnel. Although the material may appear general in nature to those familiar with these activities, it is necessary to present it in this manner because the terminology, methods of training and rules of actual combat may vary according to the geographic location and preferences of those involved. NOTE: This information in this publication is presented for educational purposes only and is not intended to provide legal advice. The information and procedures herein are subject to agency policy and review by your prosecutor or other legal advisor before implementation. Animal fighting events: Hotbeds for gambling, other illegal activities Dogfighting and cockfighting generate many millions of dollars in presumably unreported income every year. Illegal gambling accounts for a large percentage of this money. Underground animal fighting publications have tended to play down the gambling aspect and label it a humane society ploy. However, evidence of heavy gambling frequently turns up during enforcement actions. Examples include $500,000 discovered by law enforcement agents at the scene of a dogfighting convention in Arkansas and more than $90,000 seized by state police during a raid on a large cockfighting derby in Oregon. In dogfighting, a verbal agreement is frequently made by the owners of the dogs to be matched, often several months in advance of the fight date. The agreement usually specifies such things as the names of the dogs to be matched, their sex and weight, the date of the match, the rules to be used and the amount of money wagered or posted as a forfeit. The amount of money bet on a contract match can range from several hundred to several thousand dollars and in some cases can be up to several hundred thousand dollars. The size of a bet may climb dramatically when the dogs are champions or when the owners of the dogs are prominent figures. The second and most visible form of gambling at a dogfight involves informal side bets among individual spectators. Side betting may involve odds and often continues throughout the match. At cockfights, investigators should be aware that there are variations in the structure of gambling depending on the type of fight Specialized cases


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