Suburban man convicted of breeding dogs to fight

A Cook County judge has found a South suburban man guilty of running a dogfighting ring.

The Chicago Sun-Times reports that Kevin Taylor of South Holland was convicted Wednesday of dozens of counts of aggravated cruelty to animals and owning or breeding fighting dogs. Cook County Sheriff’s officers rescued 37 dogs from Taylor’s home in July 2007. The dogs were in a soundproofed chicken coop.

At the time authorities said it was the largest seizure of animals in state history. They said it was the fourth-largest seizure on record in the country. Sheriff Tom Dart called Taylor an active ringleader on the dogfighting circuit. Taylor has had two prior dogfighting convictions.

Officers found treadmills, weights and methamphetamines in a barn. They also found a female dog kept for breeding.