Vick says "no" to visit with victims
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Vick says "no" to visit with victims
Amy Worden, Inquirer Staff Writer
Michael Vick may be making the rounds bringing his anti-dog fighting message to Philadelphia school children, but there's one audience he is not interested in meeting with: his victims.
A pit bull advocacy group in Oakland, Calif. says Vick declined an invitation to visit eight of his former dogs this weekend when the Eagles take on the Oakland Raiders.
The group BAD RAP (Bay Area Doglovers Responsible About Pitbulls) told The Associated Press it extended the invitation through the Eagles to Vick last week to view his former dogs that were part of the dog fighting operation at Bad Newz Kennels in Virginia.
BAD RAP co-founder Tim Racer said the group picked a location that would have allowed Vick to view the dogs from behind a window at a distance that satisfied the conditions of his parole that bar him from being near animals.
"We understand Vick is trying to right his wrongs and is very interested in redemption, but you can't find redemption without acknowledging your victims," Racer told the AP. "Making amends to the dogs themselves would have helped to create some closure for many of us, especially those people who worked so hard to keep them from being destroyed. It seems that Vick is not ready to go there."
Oakland-based BAD RAP brought 10 of Vick's dogs into its foster program after being given permission from the federal government to evaluate and rescue as many of the dogs as possible.
Sunday's game against the Raiders is the first road game for Vick since being reinstated to the NFL following an 18-month prison sentence for his involvement in a dogfighting ring. The animal rights group, In Defense of Animals plans to stage a protest before the game, saying Vick has not shown remorse for his actions.
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He won't see them because they may tear him apart I wish they would He should not be playing for eagles he should be in jail— chbradburd- I think Michael Vick just does not want the publicity. He knows now that what he did to those dogs was wrong -- and now he just doesn't want to be reminded of it by seeing the dogs. He also does not want to stir up more negative publicity for himself. Why would he want to see the dogs that he abused? It is enough to know that those that could be saved have been saved. I agree with other comments -- "BAD RAP" is just looking for publicity. Vick is right to stay away from this scene. Hopefully he will continue to find other positive ways to redeem himself.— agaggleofcats
- should he be in jail chbradburd? so you're in favor of keeping ppl in jail indefinitely? or making them serve a term in federal prison and then when they finish, locking them up again because we're all still so upset?— thinkdontspew
- You're all hypocrites.Each one of you would drive your wife or girlfriend to the abortion clinic without thinking twice.— bigeastbeast
- This was a no win for Mike Vick. If he doesn't go to the shelter he is not sincere. If he goes he will somehow be seen as not showing true remorse. He did the best thing which was to concentrate on being a professional QB.— nceagle
- chbradburd, he was in jail, for nearly 2 years. He lost almost everything he had. He lost millions of dollars. He went from living in mansions to living in a prison cell. I don't defend what he did but he served his time. A lot of people have done much worse than Vick and not gotten as severe a punishment as he did.— youpeoplehaveissues
- Good for BAD RAP for calling Vick out. They are a fantastic group which, along with Best Friends' Dogtown, fought to save the surviving Vick dogs from the death sentence the Humane Society attempted to impose upon them. Vick's not man enough to face those who've seen firsthand what he did to the few dogs who survived his house of horrors. As for just wanting publicity, BAP RAP was featured prominently in an award-winning cover story in Sports Illustrated which opened a lot of people's eyes about the nature of Vick's crimes and about the Humane Society, which raised funds for the care of the Vick dogs at the same time they lobbied to have them destroyed.— mrsmax
In a related story, Rush Limbaugh shot an elephant in his pajamas. Why the elephant was wearing his pajamas is unknown.- Badrap is just trying to get some publicity because their donations have dried up. That's all this is...fortunately, nobody cares about their little front.— mlr710
- BigEastBeast: you're wrong. I would think thrice.— riverhealer
- JSaq..Haha...Good stuff!! Haha...I hit a squirrel once , but I didn't go back and say I'm sorry..— crohnkiller
- JSaq, now that is hilarious! Although you eat deer? I never tried it.— scars73
- It's not about the dogs forgiving him, it's part of being remorseful and helping the efforts put into the animals he damamged to reform them into being normal dogs. It was actually smart for Vick to decline, animals remember...he probably wouldn't have left with all his limbs!!!— cynmoe
- I'm a dog lover, but also an Eagles fan. Who cares what happens to dogs as long as the Eagles win? God put animals here to serve Man. If I thought it would get us a Super Bowl win, I'd strangle the pup right now, and God would look on approvingly.— kierenmcd
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- Pet Watch New Jersey
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