WLS Podcast: The Michaael Vick Lost Dogs

All this week, I’m highlighting my favorite 890-AM WLS Podcasts of 2010. Click here to listen to author Jim Gorant and legendary behaviorist Stephen Zawistowski of the ASPCA.

So, Michael Vick’s been in the news – Vick says getting a dog would help him with his rehabilitation. What about the dogs who were at Vick’s Bad Newz Kennels who were in need of their rehabilitation. What happened to them? An entire book’s been written about their stories by Jim Gorant called “The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick’s Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption” Hearing Jim recount the individual stories of the ‘Vick dogs’ is pretty compelling stuff. 

However, the story actually begins before Gorant got involved. I mean courts previously never even considered, much less allowed for rehabilitation of fighting dogs.

The story of these dogs actually begins with Stephen Zawistowski, executive vice president, national programs and
Science Advisor at the American Society for the Protection of Cruelty to
Animals (ASPCA) who led the team that decided on the fate of the Vick
dogs. Zawistowski and I also spoke about how this one case might change
the course of how fighting dogs are dealt with by shelters. Maybe there
is hope for them. But are there enough adopters?