Over 16,513,689 people are on fubar.
What are you waiting for?

Glossary of Dog-Fighting Terms Understanding the codes and lingo used by dog-fighters is one of the most important ways you can begin to learn to spot dog-fight related correspondence in newspapers or online. If you need to do any kind of undercover work in a dog-fighting case whatsoever, it is imperative that you become comfortable with these terms - you will stick out like a sore thumb if you don't know what they mean, or if you use them incorrectly. And in dog-fighting situations, a blown cover can cost you your life. 'A' SECTION - the section of the Sporting Dog Journal that reports fights that were judged by officially recognized judges. Fights that are judged by unknown or unrecognized judges are reported in the 'B' Section of the Sporting Dog Journal, and are considered "suspect" as to their authenticity; however, fights are also relegated to the 'B' section because there is insufficient information reported, or the match occurred outside of North America ABILITY - a dog that has "mouth," stamina or "wind," and is dog-aggressive, or "game," is said to have "ability." AC - animal control officer ADBA - the American Dog Breeder's Association; an organization that, among other things, registers pit bulls AGDT - acronym for American Game Dog Times magazine BABESIA - serious, often fatal blood disease that is spread through bodily fluids BAD SIGN - a dog who refuses to "scratch," turns its head and shoulders away from an opponent, or fails to take "hold" is said to "show bad signs." BEST IN SHOW, BEST OF SHOW, BIS, BOS - a winning dog who performed best at a dogfighting convention BLOCKHEAD BULLDOGS - any pit bull that has a relatively large head or is over 50#; preferred chain weights for fighting dogs are nearly always in the 35-48 pound range, and larger dogs are frowned upon by dogfighters BLOODLINE - the well-known lineage of certain fighting dogs, stemming from famous fighting dogs of the past; commonly referenced bloodlines are Jeep, Redboy, Yellow, Termite. Jocko, Panther, Poncho, Rascal, Midnight Cowboy, Eli, Tombstone, Gator, Zebo, G's-Virgil, Homer, OS Virgil, Dirty Mary, Cholly Boy, Ajax, May Day, Smiley, Banjo, Deacon, Andy Capp, Homer,Tab, Werdo, Buck; in the Pittsburgh area, there are many references to Lukane, Sabien, Romeo-if the breeder of a dog is more famous that the dog's closest ancestors, the dog may be referenced as being from, for example, a "Tudor bloodline" or a "Carver bloodline" in honor of the breeder who introduced the breeding line into dogfighting BLUE PITS - these are pit bulls that come from "blue" lines, such as Razor's Edge dogs, Coutourier lines, etc.; they are generally dismissed by dogfighters as being "unfightable" because the dogfighters believe a dog from blue lines has too much American Staffordshire Terrier (or "AmStaff") in it to do any good in a fight. Owners of "blue pits" are frequently disparaged by dogfighters BOTTOM, BOTTOM HALF, ON THE BOTTOM (not the same thing as the "bottom dog") - the female side of a pedigree BOX - the fighting arena, or square, which can measure either 14'x14' or 16'x16' BREAKING STICK, PARTING STICK - an implement, usually about 8"-14" long, used to separate or "part" dogs whose teeth are "fanged" or who are not supposed to be fighting; in urban areas, a breaking (or 'parting' stick) is usually nothing more than an ax or hammer wooden hammer that has an end filed down to a dull edge; fancier break sticks are made of onyx or finely carved wood-the material is not relevant, as long as it can be used to pull dogs apart-the term is usually shortened to "break stick" BROOD BITCH - a female dog who comes from excellent game bloodlines, but who has shown little willingness to fight BRUCELLOSIS TEST - many dog owners require a dog to test negative for Brucellosis, a potentially fatal disease, before breeding their dog to another BULLDOGS - to doggers, pit bulls are either bulldogs or simply pits, the terms are interchangeable; they are almost never referred to a "pit bulls"; "Bulldogs" has absolutely nothing in common with American or English or French Bulldogs----bulldogs are what doggers call pit bulls, period. CAJUN RULES - a set of formal dogfighting rules in use for the past four decades, especially in the northern USA CALL A WEIGHT - this is the phrase dogfighters use to set up a fight; for example, a dogfighter in Iowa may post a message that says, "Open to the world, 32.5 F" which is an invitation to contract for a fight between female pit bulls at a weight of 32.5 pounds CAMPAIGN - dogs are "campaigned" by their owner kennels to get ROM status, or to go for Champion or Grand Champion status; this is done by choosing suitable dogs to fight against, improving a breed by offering a stud dog at private treaty, etc. CARPET MILL - a canine treadmill with a carpeted belt; used for exercising dogs during a "keep;" a carpet mill is considered more strenuous than a slat mill, but less strenuous than an electric mill, and is generally regarded as quieter than other types of mills-this is the reason that dogfighters in densely populated areas prefer carpet mills CATCH WEIGHT - dogs who are 52+ pounds fight at "catch weight" status, where the dogs' weights do not exactly match-category is limited only to dogs over 52 pounds-dogs at 52 pounds or under must fight at matching weights-this term is sometimes misused by dogfighters to mean "chain weight"-if it comes into more common usage, it will eventually change the meaning of the phrase- catch weight is used in some circles, particularly the American South, to describe dogs that weigh more than 59 pounds CHAIN WEIGHT - a dog's normal, unconditioned weight; i.e., "Taz is 42 on the chain" CHAMPION - a dog who has won three reported fights and has not lost a fight; all three fights must be judged by recognized judges CHOCOLATE NOSE - same as any other pit bull, with the exception that the dog displays a dark brown nose; this is caused by a recessive gene that manifests itself every 5 or 6 generations COLOR - when this term is used, it is usually being used by someone who is defending the choice of which dog he or she brought to a fight, as in "I never agreed to the color of the dog-the contract was for a female at 32 pounds, and that's what I brought," the term "color" is used as a short hand way of referring to a named dog who was not expected to fight but who is brought tto a fight; such as when everyone assumes that Dog XYZ is scheduled to fight, and the dogger brings Dog ABC to fight instead; see MATCH; it is sort of like a bait and switch, but is "legal" as long as the weight and sex of the dog are as contracted, unless the contract spells out exactly which dogs are to fight which dogs COMBINE - kennels can join together to purchase and condition and fight a dog; when this happens it is called the "such-and-such Combine" and has a name that is completely different from the names of the participating kennels, and the name chosen is sometimes geographical, such as "the Jersey Boyz" or "Motor City's Finest"; however, when two or more kennels join together in ownership of items other than a dog, such as buying treadmills and dog food and supplements together, they are kennel combines that are known as "partners" and they frequently campaign dogs together, as well as share conditioning responsibilities CONDITIONER - person who takes a dog through a training period known as a "keep". This "keep" is often in the area of approximately six weeks in length, however each conditioner has their own "formula" for what they consider to be the best keep. CONVENTION - a multi-card schedule of fights, a really big show with known doggers COURTESY, COURTESY SCRATCH - when a dog fights hard, but is losing and "picked up" by its owner or handler, the dog is given an opportunity after the "pick up" to go after its winning opponent one more time CROSS - a breeding designed to combine the best traits of two well-known bloodlines, such as a dog coming from a Red Boy/Jocko breeding CULL - the method by which doggers "improve the line" which means they kill dogs that aren't aggressive enough; they consider themselves benevolent for "culling hard" or killing all the dogs from a litter that show the slightest disinclination to fight; it is considered disgraceful to give the "curs" or non-fighters away instead of killing them CUR (CURR) -a dog from game lines that won't fight, or any dog that is not a pit bull CUR OUT (CURR OUT) - a dog that quits fighting CUTTERS - the four canine teeth; also HANGARS DANCE - the actual fight; also called the "show" or the "hunt", or simply, "in the box" or "in the square" DEAD GAME - a dog that dies in a fight is considered to have fought to the death, and is greatly admired by dogfighters, although, unless it is a very short fight, the owner who leaves his dog "in the box" when the dog is obviously suffering fatal wounds falls into disrepute in the dogfighting circles, while his "dead game" dog is praised DMSO (also DMO) - an acronym for a family of cortico-steroids that doggers believe will kill a dog if sprayed on a dog that has been "rubbed" (hey, they aren't chemists!) DOGGER - the term describing a person who participates in the sub-culture of dogfighting; ironically, the common term for a dogfighter was "dogman" ("dogmen", in the plural) until the late 1990's, when the entry of women into "the game" forced a politically correct change of name DON'T GO - when a dog refuses to scratch or take hold; i.e., gives up in anyway, the dog is reported in a fight report as "PEACHES don't go at 1:03", which means Peaches quit at the one hour, three minute mark DOWN DOG - the dog who is fighting on "the bottom" may or may not be the winning dog, however, if the dog on the ground makes a turn or fails to take hold, it will be deemed the "down dog" and it will be required to scratch first FANGED - it is very common during a fight for one dog's canine teeth to go through the flesh of its opponent and out the other side; with the dogs in constant motion, the dog whose teeth went through its opponents skin is then unable to free its teeth to continue the fight-the judge or the handlers then call for the use of a "break stick" to prod and slide the biting dog's teeth free FEDS - any law enforcement police or agency of any sort, local, state, county, federal, that prosecutes dogfighters-has absolutely nothing to do with the federal government FEED - this term usually is used when someone is criticizing the gameness of a dog, such as "I wouldn't feed a dog that _________" FEEDING - this usually does not refer to giving the dog food; when someone asks "what are you feeding?" they are asking you what bloodlines you have FLIRT POLE (also called a "spring pole") - an apparatus designed to teach a dog to bite and hold on; the principle is more important than the actual configuration of the equipment-it can be a leather strap hung over a tree limb dangling a piece of rawhide for a dog to jump up and grab and hold, or it can be a cage panel hung horizontally over a kennel area with meat on top of it-the purposed is simply for the dog to have to jump high and grab and hold-pit bulls are known for grabbing hold and hanging on for astonishingly long periods of time FORFEIT - the money that the dog owners give to a "promotor" to hold until the fight is over; the size of the forfeit usually is a good indicator of how much money is going to be bet on a fight; the forfeit can be as little as $100 (very rare) up to $50,000 or more (even rarer) FOUL - just about any violation of the Cajun Rules is called a foul; depending on the severity of the infraction, the fight may be forfeited GAME - used in two ways; the first, is to describe the sub-culture of dogfighting; the second is an adjective used to describe a dog that has a lot of dog aggression and a desire to win GAME TEST - a non-reported fight that is designed to pit a younger, unschooled dog against an older, experienced dog, to see if the young dog would make a good fighter GAME TESTED - a dog who has been "rubbed," "bumped," or "rolled," to see if it is willing to fight GAMEST IN SHOW - during a multi-card fight, one dog is declared to be the 'gamest in show' and it may not necessarily be a winning dog GRAND CHAMPION - a dog who has won five reported fights and lost none; many certifying organizations require that one of the fights be against a champion, and all judges must be officially recognized GYP - a female "game" dog who has not yet been bred; occaisonally misused to mean a young female dog, whether she has been bred or not and whether she is "game" or not HANDLE - (first common use) when a dog turns its head away from its opponent or fails to seize the opposing dog with its teeth, the judge calls a "handle" and the handlers return both dogs to their corners HANDLE - (second common use) the name doggers give their "kennel" HANDLER - the person in the dog's corner during a fight who is required to take control of the dog if a referree calls a "turn" or says the dogs are "out of hold: and is required to turn the dog to face the opponent and the dog when the order to "scratch" is called; no one but the dog's owner and/or handler is permitted to touch a dog during a fight-the handler is sometimes, but not always, a dog's owner HANGARS, HANGERS - the four canine teeth; fangs HANGING SCALE - a scale which measures up to 50 (sometimes, 60) pounds that dogfighters use to weigh the dogs, in conjunction with a test weight, prior to fights HARDWARE - a dog's teeth HEAD DOG - a dog who prefers to fight by biting the opponent dog's head and face HOG - a fighting dog HOLD - during a fight, a dog must continue to seize its opponent with its teeth, or a "turn" or "out of hold" will be called, necessitating a "handle" HUMANIAC - anyone who thinks dogfighting is cruel HUNT - to fight dogs, the most common euphemism for dogfighting JENNY, JENNIE, SPINNING JENNY, FLYING JENNY - a center pole outrigged with a horizonal bar with a chain or rope hanging from the bar with something attached that a dog will chase, such as a live rabbit, or raw meat-the dog is attached to the apparatus so that he or she can never chase down the bait, in fact, the dog is what is making it spin-this is the proverbial "carrot on a stick" JUDGE - the person in charge of timing the fight, calling turns and 'out of holds' and regulating the behavior of the human participants in the fighting arena KEEP - the six week period during which the dog is put through increasingly intense and prolonged physical training in preparation for a fight; some conditioners add a two week period in front of the keep (called a "pre-keep") in which they closely regulate the dogs' intake of food, water, drugs & supplements KENNELS - for some reason, dogfighters prefer to come up with a name for their enterprise that ends with the plural of "kennel"; i.e., Sidewinder Kennels, Misty Morn Kennels, etc. LEAK, LEAKER - an artery ruptured during a fight LEAVES - in written fight reports, a dog who "leaves at .33" is a dog who jumps out of the fight area (jumps the wall) at the 33 minute mark of the fight, and therefore loses the fight; -in spoken terms, the dog always "jumps the wall" but for some reason, the written accounts prefer "leaves" LEO - law enforcement officer of any sort LONG-WINDED - a dog who has a deep chest, such as dogs from the Chinaman line, is expected to be able to pace itself and have stamina in the longer matches MATCH, SHOW - the actual fight; to be considered a match or a show, forfeit money must be paid up front and there must be an agreement between the dogs' owners (the "contract) on roughly when and where the fight will be, and the weight the dogs will fight at; the dogs both must have been through a keep; historically, any conditioned dog of the right weight and sex (fights are gender-segregated-males only fight males, and females only fight females) can be brought to fight, but with the large financial stakes at many fights today, this loophole is closed, and the actual fighting dog must be specified in the contract MATCHNIGHT-a newer magazine dedicated to dogfighting MILL - a treadmill for dogs; it can be mechanized or motorized; a lightweight, quieter mill is called a "cat mill;" there are also "slat mills" which have a belt made of wooden slats, and "carpet mills" which obviously have belt areas lined with carpet MOUTH - not quite the normal definition of a mouth; a dog with "mouth" is a dog willing to take multiple deep holds on an opponent; certain lines are known for "mouth" such as dogs from Nigerino breedings, and their fights are typically short (it's rare for a true "mouth" dog to fight for an hour or more) because the damage inflicted on their opponents is devastating-however, long winded dogs can also tire a dog who is "all mouth" and those matches are a little longer-if the long-winded dog can somehow prevent serious injuries to itself, it will likely win a mouth/wind match NEWBIES - persons untrained in dogfighting, but who want to learn OFF THE CHAIN - a fight that takes place without the prerequisite keep period, and contract; off the chain fights do not qualify as "reportable matches" OFRN - Old Family Red Nose; a family of pit bull dogs brought from Ireland in the latter half of the 19th century, such as Colby, Lighter, Corvino lines ON FIRE - a dog who "starts" with great vigor PAPER HANGER - a breeder who falsifies his puppies' lineage to make sell them at a higher price than they would be worth without the false claims of parentage PERFORMANCE TITLE - a title earned by a fighting dog as a result of its fight record, such as Champion, or Grand Champion PICK UP - experienced dogfighters are supposed to know the axiom that a dog's condition "will go downhill 20%" after a fight, and they are supposed to pick it up before it is in immediate danger of death; near death is fine, but to actually lose a dog in a lengthy fight because you had too much money riding on it or were too proud is considered bad form for the owner; the dog that dies in a fight is called "dead game" and that is the highest honor dogfighters can bestow on a dog PIED - a pit bull with white and tan patches PIT BULL - what we call "pit bulls" are referred to as "bulldogs" by dogfighters POINTING - during the last week of the keep, the conditioner is supposed to acclimate, or "point," the dog, to the conditions expected at the fight; this is done by stepping down the creatine, increasing or decreasing water, getting the dog used to the environmental temperature he or she will fight in, exposing the dog to the noise of people talking and shouting, etc. POR - Producer of Record; a title created by the old Your Friend and Mine dogfighting magazine-instead of counting Champions and Grand Champions to achieve Register of Merit (ROM) status, the number of wins claimed by the offspring of a dog are counted in the Producer of Record category. PR - Purple Ribbon; a term used to describe conformation, as opposed to "game" pit bulls---just this year, the dogfighters began using "PR" to mean the well-fed and nicely kept house dogs that they show to the humane officers when a cruelty complaint is being investigated. I think the dogfighters began to think PR was for "public relations..." PRIVATE TREATY - male dogs offered for stud service, and females offered for breeding purposes, may be advertised as "open," meaning the dog's owner will accept all comers, or by "private treaty" meaning that a potential match will be examined for traits of an acceptable bloodline and the reputation of the dog's owner and the health of the dog, and, if all checks out acceptable, the breeding will take place only after a contract is in place (the private treaty)-usually dogs offered by private treaty come from highly regarded bloodlines or have good fight records PROPERLY SEPARATE - experienced doggers who see two dogs engaged in a "yard accident" and who are alone by themselves without a break stick will go behind the aggressor dog and lift its hind legs up and back towards the dogger, which causes the dog to stop fighting; if two doggers are handy when a "yard accident" breaks out, this is the preferred method of separating dogs, as there is always a danger of breaking a dog's teeth with a break stick PROSPECT -a young adult male (12-24 months) dog that is touted as a future good fighter REGISTRY - one of several organizations, such as ADBA, Fast Lane, Bona Fide Kennel Club (BFKC) that give pedigrees to pit bulls; the American Kennel Club will not register pit bulls, so these organizations "fill the void" RINGERS - an intravenous device known as a "lactate ringer" that a dogfighter sets up to infuse fluids and/or drugs into a dog before and after a fight ROADWORK - exercising a dog during a keep by hand-walking or hand-running the dog, or by attaching the dog's lead to the bumper of a vehicle and then driving the vehicle for several miles, with the dog forced to keep up or be dragged ROLL - a (relatively) brief fight designed to test the "gameness" of a dog; same as a "bump" ROM - Register of Record; the sire or dam of a Champion and Grand Champion gets points to be listed on the Register of Record RUB - an "illegal" use of a substance, usually put on a dog's fur, but can be combined with something like garlic and fed to a dog prior to a fight to inhibit the other dog from "taking hold" and, in some cases, to poison an opponent's dog RUN - another word for a treadmill, commonly used in more rural areas than in urban areas RUNNING HOT - a dog who fights hard at the beginning of a fight and does not pace itself is said to be "running hot," especially if the dog gets "winded" or is panting in or near the ten minute mark SCATTER BRED - a dog whose lineage is traced to multiple lines of dogs, many of which were not famous or noteworthy, nor deliberately bred from two "good" lines to make a "cross" SCHOOLING - a period of time when a dog, usually at least 18 months old, is permitted to very briefly fight with another dog who is a fighting veteran-these fights last only a few bites SCRATCH - when a dog is released, it must cross the first line that separates its corner (the scratch line) from the fighting arena and proceed to the center of the fighting area to engage its opponent dog; dogs in the northern United States where the Cajun Rules are loosely followed are typcially given 10 seconds to cross the scratch line and engage its opponent SCRATCH LINE - the line separating the dog's "corner" from the rest of the righting arena; in the north, the scratch lines are typically marked off 14 feet apart with tape SCREAMER - a dog who can't wait to fight, and who starts off trying to immediately kill its opponent SET UP - an area owned by a kennel that is devoted to kenneling and training dogs SHADOW KENNEL - many kennels have PR dogs that participate in weight pulls and conformations as a cover to the true purpose of their kennels, which is dogfighting. The illusory "PR" kennel is known as a "shadow kennel" because it is hidden behind the "legitimate" activities of the few dogs that the kennels place in weight pulling and conformation contests; the game dogs are segregated from a shadow kennels' "PR" dogs, which are placed front and center when Humane Officers call-shadow kennels sometimes operate under one name, and the dogfighting part of the kennel is known by another SHOW - the actual fight; a show can have more than one card (or fight) scheduled, but if it is a truly large event with known doggers, it is called a "convention" SPORTING DOG JOURNAL - the "official" chronicler of dogfights, raided by the Pennsylvania and New York State Police on April 23, 2003 (as of the date of writing this dictionary, April 30, 2003, the doggers nationwide are lamenting the "death of the game" due to the raid "on the Journal" or, as it is affectionately known by doggers, the "SDJ" SQUARE - the fighting arena, (the 'pit') often abbreviated as "[ ]" in written form STARTING, STARTED -when a dog reaches the age of 18 months, it may be "schooled" and then "bumped" or "rolled" before it begins a conditioning program, or "keep" in preparation for its first fight; this preparatory period is known as "starting a dog" STIFLE DOG - a dog that prefers to bite its opponent on the muscular part of the rear thigh STREET - older dogfighters lament the insurgence of gangs and "tuffs" into the game by saying, "there's too much street in the game" and "I won't sell to the street" etc. SWIVEL - a metal ring and chain that goes deeply into the ground and is the preferred method of chaining pit bulls on a "yard" TEST WEIGHTS - pre-certified 25 pound and 50 pound weights that are placed on a hanging scale prior to a fight to ensure that the hanging scale is properly measuring dog weights TOP, TOP HALF, ON THE TOP - the male side of the pedigree TREADMILL - see MILL TURN - during a fight, a dog that turns its head and shoulders away from its opponent while it is not biting is said to have made a "turn" and a "handle" is then called so that the handlers approach the dogs and reposition them in the pit corners, much as boxer trainers take care of boxers between rounds TURN ON - the point at which a puppy matures into adulthood when it begins to naturally show dog aggression TURNTABLE - a circular platform that rotates against the dog to keep it running and exercising; currently our of favor among dogfighters because there is no way to adjust resistance UKC - United Kennel Club; the British equivalent of the AKC; pit bulls are permitted to register with the UKC UNTOUCHED - a prospect or a gyp who hasn't been started or even rolled UPHILL - a term used to describe a fight against a dog that weighs more; such as, "Homer went uphill 3 pounds against Tigger." VACATION - incarceration WASH - the washing of a dog immediately prior to a match; the handler of the opposing dog washes your dog and vice versa; this is done to ensure that no one is using a "rub" WRECKER - a dog that begins a fight ferociously and inflicts a great deal of harm in a very short amount of time YARD - the entire dog inventory of a kennel; this may or not be an actual yard, as we think of it-all the dogs can be housed indoors, and the kennel dog inventory is still called a "yard" YARDBOY - someone who works for a kennel, cleaning up after the dogs and feeding them and giving them fresh water, but who is not considered a "dogger" and usually is only invited to a show, if at all, as a spectator YOUR FRIEND AND MINE, YF&M - an "on again"-"off again" dogfighting publication; as of April, 2003, it has been defunct for some time YOURS IN SPORT, YIS - the tag dogfighters sign their messages with so that they can recognize each other; in 2002 and 2003, there has been a trend to shorten this to "in the (or 'da') []"
Leave a comment!
html comments NOT enabled!
NOTE: If you post content that is offensive, adult, or NSFW (Not Safe For Work), your account will be deleted.[?]

giphy icon
last post
16 years ago
posts
7
views
6,089
can view
everyone
can comment
everyone
atom/rss

other blogs by this author

official fubar blogs
 8 years ago
fubar news by babyjesus  
 13 years ago
fubar.com ideas! by babyjesus  
 10 years ago
fubar'd Official Wishli... by SCRAPPER  
 10 years ago
Word of Esix by esixfiddy  

discover blogs on fubar

blog.php' rendered in 0.1144 seconds on machine '205'.