According to the New York Times nine battered dogs, four of them puppies, were removed by the police. During the raid 10 children were at the day care center, which is now shut down.

In the article it doesn’t state what prompted the raid. Whatever the reason, thank goodness it happened, not only for the dogs but also the children.  Keeping malnourished dogs that are being trained to fight near children is just an accident waiting to happen.  The people involved are despicable human beings who have no regard for animals or children.

Three men have been charged, including the day care center operator’s husband, and two more are being sought.

In July I posted about America’s biggest dog fighting ring bust, read more about what happened and the effort needed to bring these people down.

* Bean is an adorable American Pit Bull Terrier who is up for adoption on Dogster’s Adoption Center.

Dogs are rescued from a St. Louis, Mo., location by Humane Society officials July 8, 2009, part of what federal officials call the largest dog-fighting bust in American history. More than 350 mostly American Pit Bull Terrier dogs were rescued in at least five states.  (Photo: AP Photo/St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

Dogs stand chained before being taken away by Humane Society officials in St. Louis, Mo., July 8, 2009. The Humane Society of Missouri says it would welcome help as it shelters about 300 dogs that were seized in raids of dog-fighting operations in Missouri and Illinois. (Photo: AP Photo/St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

Thanks to a report from CBSnews.com we get a look at the insider world of dog fighting and the united effort it took to help bring down these dog fighting rings.

“These are animals which are so eager to please. Yet they have been bred to fight and die for human amusement,” said Dr. Randall Lockwood, a senior behavioral psychologist for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, which worked closely with law enforcement on the raids. “I do see dog-fighting as the greatest violation of that special bond between people and dogs.”

Kathy Warnick, president of the Humane Society of Missouri, said tips had come in from “multiple sources” about dog-fighting and anticruelty workers worked with federal authorities for 18 months. “This heinous, heinous blood sport is not going to be tolerated,” she said.

The national Humane Society said there also were arrests in Arkansas associated with dog-fighting, but no dogs were seized.

Dog-fighting is banned throughout the United States and is a felony in 50 states. A law enacted two years ago increased penalties for activities that promote or encourage animal fighting after a long campaign by animal-welfare groups.

Watch a video of federal agents as they raid dog-fighting operations in Mo. and Ill.

Watch CBS Videos Online

If you can’t see the video in your RSS link, then click here.

Wayne Pacelle, president and chief executive officer of the Humane Society of the United States, said dog-fighting operations typically are not small acts of animal cruelty, but part of organized criminal networks.

“This was quite an operation and marks the latest in a series of actions that are driving dog-fighting, we hope, off the cliff,” Pacelle said.

The Humane Society of Missouri, working with other agencies, is sheltering hundreds of dogs; believed to be mostly pit bull terriers; seized in Missouri and Illinois raids and their conditions are being assessed. The dogs will be housed, cared for and evaluated at an undisclosed emergency shelter in St. Louis.

HSUS spokeswoman Jordan Crump, a spokesman with the Humane Society of the United States, said each dog seized in all the raids will be evaluated by behavioral experts in hopes of placing as many as possible in adoptive homes.

But the future is uncertain for many of the rescued animals.

“Many if not most of the animals will be euthanized. They have medical or behavioral issues that prevent them from being placed in homes,” said Lockwood of the ASPCA. “The greatest kindness that might be shown to them is a humane death.”

Many of the dogs seized from Michael Vick’s Bad Newz Kennels in the former Atlanta Falcons quarterback’s dog-fighting case fared better. Animal welfare groups said most were able to be placed in homes or sent to an animal sanctuary.

“The Vick case taught us to see dogs in these cases as victims,” said Donna Reynolds, with the Oakland, Calif.-based pit bull rescue and education group Bay Area Doglovers Responsible About Pit bulls, or BAD RAP.

“Animal welfare organizations will have to come together to ensure animals are comfortable in their confinement and they have the best opportunity to be evaluated, and if possible, offered rescue resources,” Reynolds said.

Seven people from Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska were indicted by the U.S. Attorney’s office in western Missouri. The indictment said the seven acquired, bred and trained pit bull dogs for fighting and denied medical treatment for wounds and injuries. One man used a .22-caliber rifle to shoot and kill two underperforming dogs, who fought in roll fights, shot each animal twice in the head, then placed the carcasses in plastic containers outside a garage, according to the indictment.

The U.S. Attorney’s office in St. Louis said five men were indicted there for allegedly running kennel operations to buy, breed, train, condition and develop pit bulls for fighting ventures under such names as Ozark Hillbillys Kennel, Cannibal Kennel and Hard Goodbye Kennel.

The men routinely abandoned, destroyed and disposed of pit bull terriers that lost fighting competitions, did not perform aggressively, or became injured or disabled while fighting, the St. Louis indictment said.

The U.S. Attorney’s office in eastern Texas said nine people were indicted June 30 on dog-fighting charges there. Two FBI task force officers working with a confidential informant posed as dog owners and attended fights in Texas and Oklahoma, according to the indictment. They managed to get video and audio from Jan. 17 fights near Tahlequah, Okla., by accompanying suspects to a remote country building for three dogfights, the indictment said.

Authorities said one man was indicted in Oklahoma and arrested Wednesday near Welling in rural Cherokee County. Five people indicted in southern Illinois for dog-fighting in St. Clair and Madison counties also were arrested Wednesday.

Once again it looks like the dogs will pay the ultimate price for man’s inhumanity, death.

Here’s some updated information pertaining to yesterday’s breaking news. It appears the dog fighting rings were not connected but it is still the largest coordinated rescue in U.S. history.

ST. LOUIS - The authorities seized more than 400 dogs on Wednesday and charged 26 people from seven states in what officials called one of the largest crackdowns on dogfighting in the United States.

State and federal agents staged raids in several states, picking up individuals in Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas.

In Missouri, prosecutors said members of a multistate ring routinely destroyed injured dogs by shooting them “in the head, throwing the dogs into the river or burning the dogs in a barrel.”

The arrests stem from the same investigation, but officials said the rings were not necessarily connected, and United States attorneys in four districts – the Eastern District of Missouri, the Western District of Missouri, the Southern District of Illinois and the Eastern District of Texas – will try the cases separately.

“The allegation is not that this was one concentrated, organized conspiracy,” said Don Ledford, a spokesman for the acting United States attorney for the Western District of Missouri, Matt Whitworth. “This was not one big ring.”

In Missouri, the authorities charged 12 people; in Texas federal prosecutors charged nine men; and in Illinois the authorities charged five men with, among other things, buying, selling and breeding animals for dogfighting.

“This is the largest coordinated rescue in U.S. history,” said Kathy Warnick, president of the Humane Society of Missouri, whose organization is caring for more than 300 of the dogs. “This is going to send a vehement message that dogfighting will not be tolerated in the civilized society.”

Let’s hope all the perpetrators involved will be punished to the fullest extent of the law. It’s time to let the individuals who participate in this barbaric sport know that it will no longer be tolerated, they will be caught and punished.

In 2007 George W. Bush signed into law the Animal Fighting Prohibition Enforcement Act, making dog fighting a felony. Each count is now punishable with a fine up to $250,000 and a maximum of five years imprisonment.

*ADOPTABLE: You’ll find Sterling on Dogster’s adoption pages, she’s a beautiful 1-year-old in MO. looking for a forever home.

Here is some breaking news about what may possibly be the largest dog fighting ring in the U.S. to date.

Largest Dog Fighting Operation in U.S. History Raided by State & Federal Agencies With Assistance From ASPCA

ASPCA Dispatches Forensics, Vet Care and Behavior Evaluation Teams to Sites in Missouri, Illinois

NEW YORK, July 8 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — What is believed to be the largest dog fighting operation in U.S. history was raided early Wednesday in an effort that included federal and state agencies, with the ASPCA (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) assisting.

At the request of the Humane Society of Missouri, the ASPCA, along with the Missouri State Highway Patrol, United States Department of Agriculture’s Office of the Inspector General, Federal Bureau of Investigation, The U.S. Marshals Service and the United States Attorney, is collaborating in the rescue, veterinary care, and forensics evidence collection of dogs associated with multiple suspected dog fighting operations. The ASPCA will also be assisting in behavior evaluations of the dogs.

The dog fighting operation is believed to have spanned five states and included arrests in Missouri, Illinois, Iowa, Texas and Oklahoma. Dogs are being safely transported to a secure facility under the direction of the Humane Society of Missouri Animal Cruelty Task Force, where they will be cared for until final disposition is determined by the United States District Court.

“The ASPCA is determined to protect its nation’s pets from dog fighting and other forms of brutality,” said ASPCA President and CEO Ed Sayres. “Animal cruelty cannot be tolerated, and we are proud to lend our support to federal and local agencies to ensure that these abusers are brought to justice.”

The ASPCA is collecting evidence for the prosecution of the criminal case, as well as lending the services of its special forensic cruelty investigation team, comprised of disaster animal rescuers, field service investigators, and Dr. Melinda Merck, the nation’s premier forensic veterinarian. More than a dozen responders from the ASPCA’s Disaster Response team are in the field, along with the ASPCA’s “Mobile Animal Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) Unit,” a critical tool in the collection and processing of evidence at crime scenes. The CSI unit brings both state-of-the-art forensics tools and expertise to crime scenes and is outfitted with medical equipment tailored for animal patients.

“The ASPCA’s Mobile Animal CSI unit is an important component in the effort against animal cruelty,” said Laura Maloney, Senior Vice President of Anti-Cruelty Initiatives for the ASPCA. “This technology allows the ASPCA to strengthen cases against animal abusers and seek justice for their victims.”

Stay tuned…..I will continually post updates as more information on this case is released. To read more about the history of dog fighting and what you can do to help go to the ASPCA’s website.

* Photo from ASPCA site