8 pit bulls taken in by Spokane County Regional Animal Protection Service in need of homes

SPOKANE — Cindy Taskila, kennel manager, dog whisperer and treat lady, is greeted by the eight excited pit bulls kept in kennels for the past year at the Spokane County Regional Animal Protection Service (SCRAPS).

Chewie, a dogfight veteran, leaps 4 feet in the air as he greets her. Rita, her shy favorite, rolls her eyes and climbs into Taskila's lap.

Despite this happy scene, it's SOS time for these dogs, dubbed the "Great Eight" by animal-welfare advocates trying to find homes for the pit bulls, seized last year in the Spokane Valley as evidence in a high-profile case that led to the first dogfighting convictions in Spokane County and Washington state.

"We don't want these animals put to sleep. We've bonded with them," said SCRAPS animal-control officer Nicole Montano as she watched Taskila talk to the dogs and pet them.

Spokane County Superior Court Judge Tari Eitzen ordered the dogs kept alive during the trial of Peter Nelson and Alfredo Renteria, convicted in February of animal fighting, a Class C felony, and keeping an illegal kennel in the Spokane Valley. Each was sentenced to eight months in jail.

With the trial over, the court recently ordered the dogs relinquished to SCRAPS, which is trying to place them somewhere outside the Inland Northwest for fear they might once again end up in local dogfighting circles.

"We are looking for proper long-term placement for these dogs to live out their natural lives," said Patricia Simonet, SCRAPS' assistant director and an animal behaviorist.

Callie, Chewie, Fatty, Rita, Zeta and Gorda are the adults. Montano named the youngest dogs, now 20 months old, Justice and Hope. They were too young to train for dogfights when they were seized in April 2007.

Some of the older dogs have scars and aggression problems from being forced to fight, but most could be rehabilitated with proper care, according to a SCRAPS report produced for the court.

A leading animal-welfare activist agrees.

"My belief is they are the innocent victims of criminals... ," said Sherry Woodard, a trainer and animal-behavior consultant for Best Friends, a Utah animal sanctuary. Woodard reviewed a SCRAPS video of the dogs and is joining in the effort to find them homes.

But where can pit bulls trained in the dogfighting underworld be placed?

Although friendly, they aren't housebroken and have never lived in a house, said Simonet, who evaluated the dogs with Taskila. "These are not typical dogs," Simonet added.

The adults are "dog aggressive" as a result of their past, according to the SCRAPS report. The worst case: Chewie, the only male, after a year still exhibits "fear aggression" toward dogs and many people. Justice and Hope are friendly to people and animals alike.

Spindletop Refuge in Willis, Texas, initially agreed to take all eight dogs but backed out when they had several dogs returned, said Simonet.

According to Bad Rap, a California group with expertise in pit-bull rehabilitation and placement, behavior testing conducted by SCRAPS shows most of the Spokane dogs scored promisingly well on human interaction — but not as well as the average dog during "dog-to-dog greeting."

Best Friends, a Kanab, Utah, animal sanctuary on 33,000 acres, is disseminating news about the Spokane dogs' need for new homes on its Web site. The group hailed the conviction of Nelson and Renteria, calling SCRAPS and the dogs "heroes in the animal-welfare movement."

Woodard, of Best Friends, has worked with pit bulls rescued from Hurricane Katrina and with the so-called "Vicktory Dogs," 23 pit bulls seized from Michael Vick, a former Atlanta Falcons football player serving a prison sentence for operating a dogfighting ring.

The Utah shelter has no room because, in addition to the Vick dogs, it has about 60 discarded pit bulls and pit-bull mixes, Woodard said.