Nike claims it was never the company's intent to associate with, imply or encourage dog fighting in any way." The ad was intended to demonstrate the competitive nature of basketball, and the clip of the dogs was part of that messaging," Nike spokesman Celeste Alleyne wrote in response to an early complaint.

But some dog advocates aren't buying it. "A disturbing number of Pit Bull abusers are young urban males who gamble their dogs' lives in quick, violent street corner battles," says Donna Reynolds, president of Bay Area Doglovers Responsible About Pit bulls (BAD RAP), a Pit Bull rescue and education organization in San Francisco, California. Critics worry just whom "The Battle" ad is aimed at.

In April, Alleyne declined to go on the record for Bark. But when the ad first aired in February, she tried to deflect criticism. She told a columnist for Go Memphis that the Pit Bull and the Rottweiler - breeds most typically associated with illegal fighting - were simply the available dog actors. She minimized their significance by saying they were leashed, unhurt, just "coming together" and hardly noticeable.

Tell that to the folks who swamped the HSUS with mail. "I had more response to this commercial than any other in the 11 years I've been here," Bauch says.

The sneaker giant promised that no future ads would feature dogs and that the current commercial would not run after March 17. But in early April, television viewers in Canada, the Pacific Northwest and California reported seeing it.

Advertising executive Scott Stanner, a vice president at McCann-Erickson Los Angeles, was one of them. He questioned the judgment of Nike's creative teams, Portland based Wieden + Kennedy, the originators of "Just Do It." (W + K refers all calls about "The Battle" to Nike.)

"The ad is irresponsible and ignorant," says Stanner, who lives in the Oakwood area of Venice, California, where he's witnessed first-hand the role of dog fighting in a gang neighborhood. "(Nike) thinks any reference to ghetto life - no matter how dysfunctional - will make them appear 'real' and genuine. Why doesn't Nike go a step further and promote dealing crack and slapping women as cool?"

In real-world dog fights, Pit Bulls and Pit mixes that have been systematically abused and trained to kill by their human owners will bite and tear at each other for hours, sometimes brawling to the death. Even "winning dogs" often die later from blood loss, shock, dehydration or infection. Those that are rescued can rarely be rehabilitated and adopted, and almost always have to be euthanized."

(BAD RAP would like to note: Because human-aggression and dog-dog aggression are two very different behaviors, pit bulls that have once fought other dogs can still make exceptionally devoted, loving pets. However, ex-fighters are typically destroyed due to a lack of committed, responsible adopters. In addition, pit bulls do not have to be "trained" to fight other dogs, but rather, are *encouraged to fight by abusive owners who exploit their genetic predisposition to dog-dog aggression.)

"Dog fighting in back alleys, basements and shady areas is on the rise coast to coast in every major city", says Eric Sakatch, director of the West Coast Regional Office of the HSUS. Sakatch has witnessed the bloodletting of dog fights during under-cover investigations and he's dismayed by the counter-culture capital - from "combat dogs" emblazoned on T-shirts to the Nike ad - derived from glamorizing this vicious activity.

"It would be refreshing to see a company own up to a mistake and make amends," Sakach says.

Folks like Reynolds and Bauch agree that something more than stonewalling is in order - perhaps donations to organizations that fight animal abuse, or a public service announcement encouraging humane treatment of Pit Bulls and Rottweilers. But since Nike hasn't admitted that it miscalculated with this ad, reparations seem about as likely as Air Bud in the NBA.