The History of the Los Angeles Animal Services Department

For decades, pit bulls have become the center of heated debates. Those advocating for their gentle nature and loyalty are met with the animosity of those who see them as dangerous aggressors, bred to fight and attack. The Los Angeles Department of Animal Services archives holds the unique history of the city’s relationship with the breed, unveiling the complicated story through a collection of newspaper clippings, personal accounts, and legislation. Exploring the dilemma within the Los Angeles Department Animal Services archives produces important questions for the regulation, policing, and breeding practices of pit bulls.

“ 'Pit-bull,' it says. And they shudder and move on." - Gina Spadafori, (Pit-bull by another name gets a chance, (Item I.3.8)).

Animal rights groups and legislative officials in the Department of Animal Regulation organized efforts to curtail dog fighting, animal cruelty, and dog attacks in the 1990s. The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) addressed the persistent issue of dog fighting in “The Final Round,” a document containing flyers, brochures, and state laws from the late 1990s to the early 2000s pushing for stricter regulation of dog fighting in the United States (The Humane Society - Animal Fighting, I.1). The brochure identified the American Pit Bull Terrier as the dog breed most commonly used in dog fighting, selectively bred over several generations to accentuate their speed, agility, and strength. This was simultaneously coupled with cruel training practices and the injection of steroid drugs for “maximum aggressiveness.” HSUS national campaign seeks to “expose this gruesome practice, train law enforcement agencies to investigate and arrest participants, strengthen laws against it, and impose bans on the activity where it is now permitted.” The Humane Society calls for public support by offering a $2,500 reward for any information regarding dog fights.

Although dog fighting has been prohibited since the 1970s, several news articles and reports demonstrate how the practice was far from abandoned. A document published in 1990, "The Pit Bull Dilemma," contains 1,000 abstracts of investigations into dog fights and pit bull attacks during the 1970s and 1980s (The Pit Bull Dilemma, I.3.1). Dog fighting is often associated with socio-economic despair, seen as a common practice within the world of gamblers and drug dealers.  "Pit Bullies," an article in the November 1996 issue of the NewTimes Los Angeles, describes how easy it is to find a dog fight in Los Angeles, not only in South-Central black and Latino neighborhoods, but also among the wealthy elites of the Westside (NewTimes Bullies, I.3.12). Earlier that year, animal control officers seized 17 adult pit bulls and 5 puppies from the New Jersey home of professional football player Todd McNair, illustrating how dog fighting is still a well organized and common sport (A Violent Blood Sport that Breeds Big Bucks, I.3.3). Seen as a danger to the dog shelter and its employees, the dogs would be killed if McNair was found guilty. However, the article later noted how the pit bulls found on the site rarely directed their aggression towards humans, but instead showed signs of fear. Sandy Rowland, a regional director of the Humane Society of the United States, is a dog fight investigator and developed a manual for law enforcement officers to follow. The president of a local humane organization, “Compassion for Camden'' shed light on the city’s prominent dog fighting issue. Humane organizations and advocacy groups were large drivers of the movement to strictly enforce dog fighting laws.