By TONY GEE
Four pit bull dogs have been destroyed after their Northland owners were convicted in New Zealand's first successful prosecution for running an organised dog fighting ring.
The four dogs were among eight pit bull-type dogs and a cattle-cross dog seized by the Bay of Islands SPCA when an inspector
uncovered a dog fighting centre on a rural property at Mokau, northeast of Whangarei, two years ago.
The fate of three other pit bulls, two of them stud dogs and the other a breeding bitch, has yet to be decided.
An eighth dog was put down soon after investigations began when it was found to have a broken jaw and rotting tissue.
The cattle dog, suffering from little more than neglect, will soon be sent to a new home.
SPCA Bay of Islands inspector Jim Boyd, who led the dog-fighting investigation and subsequent prosecution against a man and a woman, said four dogs had been put down by vets in the last week.
"We made the decision after taking veterinary advice. That came from a team of vets who assessed the dogs in a report," Mr Boyd said.
"We had serious concerns about these dogs. They were showing all sorts of behavioural difficulties.
They were not compatible and couldn't be found other homes. They were a problem."
Mr Boyd said the four dogs had been bred for one purpose - "that was for fighting".
In the Kaikohe District Court last month, Melissa Molly Jane Berryman, 32, and Johnson Dale Murphy, 33, were convicted on three charges brought by the Bay of Islands SPCA under the Animal Welfare Act.
They were each sentenced to 200 hours of community service, and ordered to pay $1000 in costs.
The pair were also banned from owning or caring for animals for three years.
Judge Thomas Everitt said offences against animals had to be put on a lesser level than offences against humans.
During the investigation and drawn-out prosecution, all surviving dogs had been in the care of SPCA members around the North Island.
The stud and breeding dogs, none of which Mr Boyd believes had ever fought, are being assessed before a decision is made on their future.
"One of the stud dogs is old, about 12 now. He's been carefully socialised and is relatively friendly. He'll probably be left to live out the rest of his days in peace," Mr Boyd said.
He estimated it had cost the SPCA more than $20,000 to look after the dogs during the past two years.
The background
* Mokau residents Melissa Molly Jane Berryman and Johnson Dale Murphy were convicted of keeping and using a place to cause dogs to fight; breeding, owning and training dogs for dog-fighting ventures; and failing to ensure the dogs' necessary health, welfare and behavioural needs were met.
* The SPCA claims pit bull-type dogs were used to fight each other to near-death before spectators in a blood-spattered clay pit basement of a house.
By TONY GEE
Four pit bull dogs have been destroyed after their Northland owners were convicted in New Zealand's first successful prosecution for running an organised dog fighting ring.
The four dogs were among eight pit bull-type dogs and a cattle-cross dog seized by the Bay of Islands SPCA when an inspector
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