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Eight
dogs were seized this week by authorities investigating a Benbrook
couple accused of involvement in a dog-fighting ring.
Erick Earl Wright, 33, and Karina Wynett Wright, 30, were arrested
Tuesday and face charges of possession of fighting dogs and cruelty
to animals, Benbrook police said.
Police began investigating the Wrights a month ago after receiving
an anonymous tip that they kept fighting dogs at their house in
the 1300 block of Sproles Drive, police spokeswoman Jennifer Gabbert
said.
When police arrested the Wrights, they found eight dogs -- most
of them some kind of pit-bull breed -- chained to the ground in
the back yard.
"Some of the dogs had fresh scars indicating that they had
fought recently," Gabbert said.
Some of the dogs had cropped ears and broken teeth, characteristics
of fighting dogs, she said. Each dog was attached to a short, heavy
chain.
"They were scattered around the back yard at what appeared
to be stations for each dog," Gabbert said. "They had
food, water and a small shelter and were chained so that they couldn't
reach any of the other dogs."
Investigators found no evidence that fights were held on the property,
she said. They did find evidence that the dogs were fighting elsewhere
but aren't sure where.
The investigation will likely involve multiple jurisdictions and
may even cross state lines, Gabbert said.
Evidence
recovered at the house showed that at least one of the dogs was
purchased out of state.
Erick
Wright was released from jail Wednesday on $3,000 bail, Gabbert
said. His number is unlisted, and he could not be reached to comment.
Karina Wright remained in the Benbrook Jail on Wednesday afternoon
with bail set at $3,000.
The Humane Society of North Texas took custody of the dogs, said
Bobby Williams of the animal-cruelty division. She declined to discuss
the specifics of this case, including the dogs' conditions, because
of the criminal investigation.
Dog owners training their pets to fight often keep them attached
to logging chains strong enough to pull a car, she said.
"It builds their upper body strength when they move around
and strain against the chain," Williams said.
The more sophisticated the dog-fighting ring, the better care the
dogs usually receive, she said. Owners are more likely to tend to
the dogs' injuries as long as they can still fight.
Fights are sometimes held in makeshift rings surrounded by a 2-foot-high
fence, she said. Some rings are even surrounded by seats.
Younger, less enterprising organizers might stage fights in back
yards, garages or vacant houses, she said.
The Humane Society typically seizes dogs from active fighting rings
about three times a year, she said. Those rings sometimes involve
30 to 40 dogs, or as many as 80.
More often, she said, the agency doesn't come into contact with
the dogs until their fighting days are over.
"Usually, we get the dogs when someone has abandoned them and
they're almost dead," she said. "They keep them as long
as they can fight, then discard them."
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