Original subtitles

Tia: YOU'RE LOOKING AT SOME OF THEM WITH THE SCARS,

SO MANY SCARS ON THEIR FACE.

AND, YOU KNOW, YOU THINK, "WOW. YOU KNOW WHAT?

YOU SHOULD HATE ME RIGHT NOW. YOU SHOULD BE ATTACKING ME."

♪

I JUST GOT AN E-MAIL

FROM ST. MARTIN PARISH ANIMAL SHELTER.

THEY JUST HAD THAT BIG BREAUX BRIDGE

DOGFIGHTING CASE WE'VE BEEN HEARING ABOUT.

HOW MANY DO WE HAVE?

49 DOGS. WHAT?!

OH, MY GOD. OH, MY GOD.

LOOK AT THAT CHAIN.

I'M JUST, LIKE -- I'M SPEECHLESS RIGHT NOW.

IT'S LIKE BIGGER THAN THE DOG'S HEAD.

THIS IS THE STORY OF THE TIME WE HELPED OUT A SMALL SHELTER

WHO HAD JUST RESCUED 49 FIGHTING DOGS.

♪

[ DOG BARKS ]

HEY! Tia: ARE YOU MICHELLE?

YES. OH, HI. I'M TIA.

HI. NICE TO MEET YOU.

Michelle: WE WERE NOTIFIED THAT THEY WERE OBTAINING A WARRANT

FOR A RESIDENCE FOR DOGFIGHTING,

AND THAT THEY WOULD NEED OUR ASSISTANCE SEIZING THE DOGS

AND HOUSING THE DOGS.

WE SHOWED UP ON SCENE,

AND IMMEDIATELY, IT WAS LIKE WALKING INTO HELL.

IT WAS, LIKE, A FIELD OF DOGS.

IT WAS SOMETHING LIKE I'VE NEVER SEEN BEFORE.

DOGS SPACED TWO TO FOUR FEET FROM EACH OTHER

WITH SHIPYARD CHAINS TIED TO CAR AXLES

THAT WERE BURIED INTO THE GROUND.

SOME OF THEM WERE KEPT IN CHICKEN COOPS.

THEY WERE ALL EMACIATED -- ALL OF THEM.

A LOT OF THEM HAD SCARS ON THEIR FACES, BROKEN BONES,

BITE WOUNDS, OPEN SORES, FESTERING SORES.

AND THE DOGS SEEMED HAPPY TO SEE US.

THEY DIDN'T KNOW WHAT WAS GOING ON.

I THINK THEY JUST KNEW IT WAS POSITIVE.

YES? OH.

HEY. OH, LOOK.

AW, HEY. HEY.

Michelle: TAKING THEM OUT AND PUTTING THEM ON THE GROUND,

YOU KNOW, WE REALIZED THAT THEY WEREN'T ABLE TO WALK

SO WE HAD TO CARRY THEM OUT.

HI! HI! HI! HI! HI!

HELLO, SKINNY.

HELLO, SKINNY. HOW ARE YOU?

Tia: THEY'VE GONE THROUGH THE MOST HORRIFIC TREATMENT

THAT ANY ANIMAL COULD EVER GO THROUGH,

AND YET THEY'RE ALL HAPPY AND WAGGING THEIR TAILS.

AND YOU'RE LOOKING AT SOME OF THEM WITH THE SCARS,

JUST SO MANY SCARS ON THEIR FACE.

AND, YOU KNOW, YOU THINK, "WOW. YOU KNOW WHAT?

YOU SHOULD HATE ME RIGHT NOW. YOU SHOULD BE ATTACKING ME."

AND THEY DON'T. THEY DON'T.

THESE DOGS HERE ARE TRUE PIT BULLS.

I REALLY WISH THAT WE COULD TAKE ALL OF THEM BACK TO VILLALOBOS,

BUT IT'S JUST NOT PHYSICALLY POSSIBLE.

SO, NOW IT'S TIME TO MAKE SOME REALLY HARD DECISIONS.

TOM JONES... UH-HUH, YEAH.

HE'S A SWEETHEART. HE REALLY IS.

OKAY.

[ LAUGHTER ]

COME ON, TOM JONES. YOU'RE FREE! YOU'RE FREE!

IN YOU GO, COME ON. [ CLICKS TONGUE ]

OH, GOOD JOB, BUDDY.

YEAH, GOOD JOB. COME ON.

Michelle: SHE TOOK THE FIRST DOG.

IT WAS ALMOST LIKE A RUSH OF RELIEF,

THAT FEELING THAT, YOU KNOW, THIS ONE IS SAFE.

ALL RIGHT. OKAY.

WELL, THAT'S ONE. YEAH, ONE DOWN.

Tia: AFTER DECIDING ON TOM JONES,

WE NARROWED IT DOWN AND MADE SOME FINAL PICKS.

LITTLE MAN. [ CLICKS TONGUE ] HEY.

AW, HE'S SO LITTLE AND CUTE. WHAT ARE YOU DOING?

WE'LL CALL HIM DEPUTY. THERE YOU GO.

WE SAW FOUR LITTLE RED DOGS

THAT LOOKED LIKE THEY ALL CAME FROM THE SAME LITTER,

AND WE JUST THOUGHT, "YOU KNOW WHAT?

LET'S JUST KEEP THE FAMILY TOGETHER AND TAKE ALL FOUR."

WE'RE GONNA NAME THIS ONE POSH SPICE,

'CAUSE SHE'S SO SKINNY. JUST FOR YOU.

[ CLICKS TONGUE ] STRETCH. STRETCH.

FREEDOM. Michelle: COME ON, SKIP.

YOU KNOW WHAT YOU NAMED HIM?

THIS ONE, I BELIEVE, IS RUCKUS.

RUCKUS? YEAH.

UH-OH. YOU DIDN'T TELL ME THAT, MICHELLE.

[ LAUGHTER ]

NOW YOU TELL ME.

Tia: THEN, WE GOT DOWN TO THE FINAL SPOT LEFT IN THE VAN,

AND IT WAS TOUGH.

IT'S LIKE -- IT'S LIKE "SOPHIE'S CHOICE."

WHICH ONE DO YOU TAKE?

[ DOG BARKING ]

OH, MY GOD. I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO.

DON'T -- OH, DON'T. YOU'RE NOT HELPING.

YOU ARE SO NOT HELPING.

WHAT DO WE DO?

DALLAS.

DALLAS? DALLAS.

AND WITHOUT ANY HESITATION, SHE SAID DALLAS.

HI, LITTLE BUDDY. HE'S BEAUTIFUL.

YEAH.

I GOT TO LEARN THAT THIS PARTICULAR DOG, DALLAS,

WAS ACTUALLY THE FIRST DOG THAT THEY RELEASED OFF THE CHAIN.

Toney: THEY SAID WHEN THEY TOOK ALL THE STUFF OFF,

HE WAS STILL RUNNING WITH HIS HEAD DOWN.

Toney: THEN THEY SAID THE CHAIN AROUND HIS NECK WAS SO HEAVY

THAT HE WASN'T EVEN ABLE TO PICK UP HIS HEAD.

HE HAD TO LAY THERE WITH HIS CHIN ON THE GROUND.

AND THEY SAY WHEN THEY TOOK HIM OFF THE CHAIN,

HE KIND OF, LIKE, LIFT HIS HEAD UP

AND WAS AMAZED BY EVERYTHING HE COULD SEE.

AW.

LOOK AT YOU.

Tia: YOU COULD JUST SEE RIGHT AWAY

WHY DALLAS WAS A SHELTER FAVORITE.

HIS TAIL WAS JUST NONSTOP WAGGING,

AND HE WAS SO UNCONDITIONALLY HAPPY TO SEE US.

YES!

WHEN WE BROUGHT DALLAS OUT, THERE WAS A LOT OF EMOTION.

THE OTHER SHELTER VOLUNTEERS JUST LOST IT.

Toney: YOU KNOW WHAT? THEY GONNA GET THE BEST OF CARE.

JUST THANK YOU, BECAUSE THIS WAS -- HE WAS SAD.

WHEN YOU LIVE AND WORK IN PIT BULL RESCUE,

YOU NEED TO HAVE SOME HAPPY MOMENTS.

GATE WIDE OPEN, DOESN'T WANT TO COME OUT.

OH, MY GOD. YOU'RE WONDERFUL.

THANK YOU. OH.

THESE LADIES BUSTED THEIR ASSES TO SAVE THESE DOGS.

THEY WERE THE FIRST RESPONDERS ON THE SCENE WITH THE SHERIFFS.

THEY'RE THE ONES THAT GOT THE DOGS OFF THE CHAINS,

AND IT WAS GOOD SEEING THEM CELEBRATE.

Michelle: THANK YOU.

BYE. THANK YOU.

IT WAS GOOD SEEING THEM CRY HAPPY TEARS.

♪

HOLD ON. HOLD ON. NEED TO CUT YOU LOOSE.

THE THING THAT MAKES IT REALLY HARD ABOUT TAKING IN DOGS

THAT HAVE BEEN THROUGH THIS KIND OF ABUSE

IS IT'S A PROCESS.

SO WE'RE GONNA HAVE THESE DOGS FOR A LONG TIME

BEFORE WE CAN ADOPT THEM OUT.

YOU OKAY? YOU OKAY?

IT'S NOT LIKE WE'RE JUST TAKING IN A DOG

THAT CAN JUST TURN AROUND AND GET A HOME WITHIN A FEW WEEKS.

THESE DOGS HAVE TO BE WORKED WITH. WE HAVE TO REALLY GET KNOW THEM.

WE HAVE SEE WHAT THEIR BEHAVIOR IS LIKE.

YOU OKAY? YOU SETTLING IN? YOU SETTLING IN?

OKAY. EAT YOUR FOOD.

YOU KNOW, ARE SOME OF THEM SO DOG-AGGRESSIVE

THAT MAYBE THEY WOULD NOT BE ADOPTABLE?

JUST VARIOUS THINGS.

OKAY.

THEY PUT THEM IN A PART OF THE WAREHOUSE

THAT'S A LITTLE BIT ISOLATED

SO THEY DON'T GET OVERLY STIMULATED,

INTO KENNELS THAT ARE STRONGER THAN MOST, JUST IN CASE.

YOU COMFORTABLE? YEAH?

OH, YOU'RE OKAY. YOU'RE OKAY. YOU'RE OKAY.

WE'RE JUST GOING TO LET THEM SETTLE IN

AND GIVE THEM THE TIME AND THE SUPPORT THAT THEY NEED.

OH, LOOK. HE'S GOING IN.

YAY!

AND SOMEDAY SOON, I HOPE,

GIVE THEM A HOME THAT THEY DESERVE.

♪

-- Captions by VITAC -- www.vitac.com

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS