Jim Gorant > Quotes

“Last, I would like to thank the dogs, not just the Vick pack, but all of them, simply for being dogs, which is to say, tolerant and perseverant; willing to connect with a world that does not always return their affection; and for proving, time and again, that life, while messy, difficult, and imperfect, has the capacity to exceed our expectations and feed our undying hope.”
― Jim Gorant, The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick's Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption

“But no one names a thing that doesn’t have hope. No one names a thing that doesn’t have a future. No one names a lost dog.”
― Jim Gorant, The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick's Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption

“Some of those reported legitimate pit bull attacks—the price of so many unsocialized, abused, and aggressively trained dogs popping up around the country—but many were the result of pit bull hysteria, in which almost any incident involving a dog was falsely reported as a pit bull attack. The breed, which had existed in some form for hundreds of years, didn’t suddenly lose control. The dogs simply fell into the hands of many more people who had no interest in control.”
― Jim Gorant, The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick's Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption

“If you show goodwill and kindness toward those who cannot stand up for themselves, you set a tone of compassion and goodwill that permeates all.”
― Jim Gorant, The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick's Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption

“You cannot accurately assume that all the dogs saved from a fight bust are vicious and unstable or that all pit bulls are biting machines waiting for their chance to attack. It may be easier and less expensive to think that way, but it’s not true. Yes, if pit bulls attack, they’re equipped to do the job well—they’re strong, agile, and determined—and they may even have some genetic inclination to be aggressive toward other dogs, but nurture plays”
― Jim Gorant, The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick's Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption

“Animals, Huss felt, could teach us a lot about how to live if we paid attention to them. She had chosen to pay attention.”
― Jim Gorant, The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick's Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption

“Their dog, the dog that no one wanted, the pit bull that a ‘no kill’ shelter had wanted to kill, had outrun, out-jumped, out-hustled, and out-hearted all the herding dogs and retrievers and shepherds. In not just one event, but in a grueling series of games and contests that tested every aspect of a dog’s abilities. Wallace was a world champion.”
― Jim Gorant, Wallace: The Underdog Who Conquered a Sport, Saved a Marriage, and Championed Pit Bulls-- One Flying Disc at a Time

“Then Wallace happened. Stepping onto the field something seemed different. As always, he had an energetic quality to him, jumping for the discs and shaking with anticipation, but Roo could sense something else in his bearing, see it in the way he carried himself. His tail was stiff except for the tip, which flicked steadily. His ears were perked, his eyes wide. The music kicked on, the discus began to fly, and Wallace did the rest.
He ran a little faster, jumped a little higher. He appeared, if it was possible, to move with a little more grace. He caught nearly everything. As the routine progressed, Roo felt that sensation, that connection and singularity of purpose that had struck him during earlier competitions. He could sense that Josh felt it too, and the three of them worked in perfect synchronicity sharing an instant, almost nonverbal communication.”
― Jim Gorant, Wallace: The Underdog Who Conquered a Sport, Saved a Marriage, and Championed Pit Bulls-- One Flying Disc at a Time

“The Vick dogs are, after all, still simply dogs. Dogs of all breeds and backgrounds run into the street and get struck by cars, attack other dogs, and bite people every day. There are 4.7 million5 dog bites recorded annually in the United States, which comes to something like twelve thousand a day.”
― Jim Gorant, The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick's Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption

“He thought of where Wallace had come from and everywhere he’d gone. The pit bull no one wanted, bouncing off the walls at Paws & Claws. The outsider on the disc-dog circuit, from the wrong side of the tracks, with the wrong pedigree, unproven and distrusted. The surprise champion, changing hearts and minds with every catch. Finally, the established veteran, paving the way for others. Everything, all the accomplishments and accolades, was a result of Wallace’s intelligence and drive, his willingness to pour himself completely into the task at hand, and his unrelenting desire.”
― Jim Gorant, Wallace: The Underdog Who Conquered a Sport, Saved a Marriage, and Championed Pit Bulls-- One Flying Disc at a Time

“All those nights when it had simply been the two of them, out in the field, running, jumping, throwing, catching. No judges or fans. Wallace was not a spurned breed or a do that no one wanted; Roo was not a man saddled with debts and marital trouble. They were similar in their single-minded determination and tireless drive, and that effort led them to a state in which there was no thinking, no trying, no worrying – they simply were. Man and dog locked together in pursuit of a single goal. Doing, being, sharing. That, thought Roo, was the definition of a lot of things: success, happiness, life.”
― Jim Gorant, Wallace: The Underdog Who Conquered a Sport, Saved a Marriage, and Championed Pit Bulls-- One Flying Disc at a Time