Last year, when pit bulls were seized from the dog fighting facility bankrolled by Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick — the media couldn't get enough of the story. Now that the dust has settled and Vick is serving time, I want to know: What happened to those dogs? Where are they today? And what is the plan for them?

Kelli Ohrtman, today's guest blogger and regular contributor to Star Tribune Pet Central, is in a prime position to answer those questions. Kelli works at Best Friends Animal Society in Kanab, Utah—where 22 of the Vick dogs were placed.

In addition to her article that runs in Saturday's paper, Kelli's accompanying blog and photo gallery provide an insider's perspective on everyday life for the Vick dogs. Kelli will provide regular updates for us as she chronicles the triumphs and setbacks on the Vick dogs' journeys to become just regular dogs.

Vick Dogs: Learning About Life by Kelli Ohrtman

When people hear about Michael Vick’s dogs living at Best Friends in Utah, the most common first question is: “How are they doing?” The answer is, very well. The next logical question is: “What are you doing with the dogs?” Last week, I learned that’s a bit trickier to answer. I decided to pay a visit to the Vick dogs and two of their caregivers, Bill and Kim Jones to find out, really, what they’re doing with the dogs. I found out it depends on the dog.

Bill and Kim have spent nine hours a day, five days a week with the dogs, and both contend that everyone is making progress —- though some more than others.

Oliver has just recently learned to sit and lay down on command, which is “a big deal for Oliver,” says Bill. Meanwhile, other dogs can do a run through the agility course without ruffling a hair. Oliver just happens to be one of the dogs who lacked “life skills;” he had never learned to sit, never got accustomed to normal things most dogs do, like car rides. So these things were very scary for Oliver at first. Now, Bill says, “Oliver loves car rides. When we get in, he’ll run around looking for a spot to settle, which now is often on my lap.” Bill confesses that Oliver is his favorite dog because when he was a kid, his parents always had a Boston Terrier. Oliver looks sort of like a Boston on steroids.

Each caregiver has a favorite activity to do with the dogs, whether it’s teaching basic commands, practicing the agility course, car rides, and even grooming, which is Bill’s personal favorite. The important thing is, each dog gets one-on-one attention or “enrichment” every day in addition to his or her regular cleaning, walking and feeding. I asked Bill if taking care of the dogs, a rigorous, physically and mentally demanding task, felt like a job. “This is a day at the beach for me. I love it,” he answers.

Later, Kim returned with a dog she’d been walking when I first arrived. After putting him back in his dog run, Kim came over to talk with me. She says, “I think the coolest thing is that when we identify things the dogs aren’t good at, we can change how we work with them.” It’s a level of attention that the average dog at a shelter, or even at a sanctuary, may not usually get. Kim says, “I call them ‘interventions.’” Then quickly adds, “In fact, I didn’t like the way Denzel treated you earlier.” When I’d arrived that day, the big black dog had sniffed my jeans and started growling. “Yeah, I didn’t like it either—it was a little scary,” I confess. And the next thing I knew, I got to be part of an intervention.

After handing me a little plastic baggie of dog treats, Kim went back to Denzel’s run, clipped a lead to his collar, and walked him towards me. “He’ll sit for a treat,” she assures me. Treats in hand, as Denzel got nearer to me, I said in a happy voice, “Hey buddy!” So far, he looked happy enough. Then when they were a few feet away, I said in a firm voice, “SIT,” holding a fistful of treats at my side. Denzel sat, I extended my hand (again, I’ll admit I was a little afraid) and he gently and sloppily cleaned every speck of treat from my palm. “Good boy!” Kim and I say together.

Even so, Kim made a note in Denzel’s training profile that he needs more practice meeting people. So every day, new people will come up to Denzel, ask him to sit, and feed him a treat.

For Oliver, learning simple commands and gaining confidence are on the docket. Next week, something else may be more important. The fact is, life with the Vick dogs is ever-changing as they make progress—backwards or forwards.

Visit the Vick dogs at Best Friends

View slide show with commentary about Vick Dogs.