TOLEDO, Ohio — Early Sunday morning, Toledo police executed numerous search warrants on homes suspected of dog fighting operations.
A spokesperson with the Toledo Police Department said the raids were all part of an ongoing investigation with the USDA Office of the Inspector General. While the warrants were mostly within the city of Toledo, a few were executed outside of city limits.
No arrests were made as a result of the searches, but numerous dogs were taken into custody.
According to the Toledo Area Humane Society, dog fighting is more prevalent than most people realize. The human society will occasionally get calls to address something suspicious and more often than not, they are the ones who get the initial tip.
"We've had a couple of instances in the last year or so where we've had to get warrants or attempt to remove animals from situations like that, but going any further and actually proving they're being used for dog fighting, you need other elements," president and CEO of the Toledo Area Humane Society, Stephen Heaven said.
Those other elements include training, equipment and catching it in action. Heaven said that there are multiple things we can do to limit dog fighting. The biggest thing the humane society recommends, is simply to be aware of your surroundings. Human society officials said that most of the time, it happens in neighborhoods.
Toledo police said they will share more information on the raids and what they found when it is appropriate.