RICHMOND, Va. (AP)—Suspended NFL star Michael Vick(notes) left a Kansas prison before dawn Wednesday to begin home confinement in Virginia, one of his attorneys said, the latest step on a journey that Vick hopes will lead to his reinstatement.

Vick, who turns 29 in June, slipped past waiting cameras and reporters undetected to leave a federal penitentiary in Leavenworth after serving 19 months for financing a dogfighting ring. He was headed to Virginia by car to begin two months of home confinement at his five-bedroom house in Hampton before a scheduled release from federal custody July 20.

He was accompanied by his fiance, Kijafa Frink, and they were traveling back to Virginia with several members of a security team arranged for by Vick’s team of lawyers and advisers, a person familiar with the plans told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to comment on the matter.

The traveling party also includes a videographer recording the journey, the person said, although what Vick plans to do with the footage has not been announced.

The drive from Leavenworth to Hampton is expected to take about 19 hours.

“It’s a happy day for him to be starting this part of the process,” Larry Woodward, Vick’s Virginia-based attorney, said. “He looks forward to meeting the challenges he has to meet.”

Vick’s release was first reported by The Daily Press of Newport News, Vick’s hometown.

Ultimately, Vick’s goal is to rehabilitate his image and return to the NFL, but Woodward said his first priority “is spending time with his children and his loved ones.”

Vick has much work to do to get back into some semblance of playing condition after spending two years out of the game, but his agent, Joel Segal, said his career won’t be Vick’s immediate focus. “Football is on the back-burner for now,” he said.

Commissioner Roger Goodell, who suspended Vick indefinitely in August 2007, reiterated Wednesday he will review Vick’s status after his criminal case is concluded. He has said Vick will have to persuade him and the public that he is genuinely sorry for his crime, has been changed by his experience and that he’s committed to leading a different life.

Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank said Wednesday that Vick has paid his debt to society and merits a second chance. But Blank said that second chance won’t come with the Falcons.

“We’ve made it clear Michael’s not going to play for us again, as you know,” Blank said. “Right now his salary is being tolled so it has no effect on our cap, beyond the allocation of signing bonus which happens under any circumstances. So we’ll deal with it at the time we think is correct.”

Vick, once the NFL’s highest-paid player, is scheduled to report to a probation officer Friday in Norfolk, Woodward said. He will be allowed to leave home to work a $10-an-hour job as a laborer for a construction company and for other limited purposes approved by his probation officer. He will serve three years of probation after his home confinement ends.

The Humane Society of the United States said Tuesday that Vick met its president recently in prison and wants to work on a program aimed at eradicating dogfighting among urban teens.

Retired defensive tackle Warren Sapp(notes), who played 13 seasons for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Oakland Raiders, also said Vick should be given an opportunity to resume his football career.

“We’ve always been a country of second chances. That’s the essence of us, have some contrition for what you did, go pay your price and then come back and become a better person or a little different person, whatever it is,” Sapp said last week.

Even if he is reinstated, Vick’s NFL future is uncertain. Is there a team willing to endure the wrath of some fans in exchange for a player who was perhaps the NFL’s most electrifying performer.

A public backlash isn’t the only risk. By all accounts, Vick has tried to stay in good physical shape, but there’s no telling how much his skills have eroded after two missed seasons.

Vick said in bankruptcy court last month he believes he can play another 10-12 years. The NFL career average is only 3.2 years—it’s much longer for quarterbacks, though—and Vick already has played six.

One certainty is that he will not command the kind of money he once earned. Vick supplemented his 10-year, $130 million Falcons contract with several lucrative endorsements, all lost because of the dogfighting. The minimum salary for a player with Vick’s years of experience is $620,000.

Vick filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan that would have allowed him to keep the first $750,000 of his annual pay, with a percentage of any amount over that going to his creditors. A judge has rejected that plan, in part because of uncertainty about Vick’s NFL future, and ordered him to submit a new one.

His bankruptcy lawyers have complained about the difficulty of handling Vick’s highly complex bankruptcy case while their client was in prison 1,200 miles away. Having Vick back in the area should help them wrap up the Chapter 11 reorganization case.

Vick’s startling fall began in April 2007 when authorities conducting a drug investigation of his cousin raided the former Virginia Tech star’s Surry County property and seized dozens of dogs, some injured, and equipment commonly used in dogfighting.

A federal indictment issued about three months later charged Vick and three of his “Bad Newz Kennels” associates with an interstate dogfighting conspiracy. Vick initially denied any involvement, and all four men pleaded innocent. All four eventually admitted their crimes and were sentenced to prison. Vick’s sentence was the longest.

The gruesome details outlined in the indictment—dogs were hanged, drowned and electrocuted—fueled public outrage but also brought unprecedented attention to the problem of dogfighting, prompting several states to tighten their laws.

However, some supporters also remained loyal to Vick, contending that while he made mistakes he was being singled out for harsh treatment because of his celebrity status.

Vick also pleaded guilty to a state dogfighting charge and was given a three-year suspended sentence.

Associated Press Writers Larry O’Dell in Richmond, Va., John Marshall in Leavenworth, Kan., AP Sports Writers Tim Reynolds in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Fred Goodall in Tampa, Fla., contributed to this report.

By: Hank Kurz, AP Sports writer.

Athletic dogs work hard year-round and need more fuel than the average couch pooch to maintain good health. When winter blows in, active dogs burn even more calories to keep themselves warm. Your dog is active  and requires extra calories if it spends more than two hours a day participating in activities such as Frisbee chasing, ball fetching, hiking, obedience or walking. Your dog is super-active and needs even more extra calories if it participates in highly strenuous activities, such as sledding, skijoring, herding, agility, police work, conformation or field events.

You can determine whether your dog eats enough calories based on its demeanor, appearance and weight. Does your dog seem depressed or lethargic? Does it seem less energetic than normal? Is it ravenous at mealtimes? If so, you may need to feed it additional food or higher energy foods.

Check your dog’s ribs and examine its body outline from an overhead perspective. If you see extra padding over its ribs and no sign of its waist, you are probably feeding too much. Cut down on the dog’s portions or bulk out its meals with lower-calorie foods, such as brown rice. If its ribs are starkly evident and its waist a little too pronounced, it needs more calories. Finally, invest in an accurate scale and weigh your dog on a regular basis. After a while, you’ll be able to pinpoint an ideal weight for your dog. Note that this weight may vary according to the seasons.

You’ll need to adjust the amount you feed on a weekly or even daily basis. The energy a dog requires varies with climate, amount of exercise, stress, breed and the quirks of each individual dog. Most veterinarians recommend you feed your athletic dog two to three meals each day, with the largest meal served at least an hour after the exercise session. A large meal before strenuous exercise can cause indigestion, cramps and other health problems.

You can provide the additional energy your active dog requires during the cold weather two ways: Feed more of the food you already give your dog, or feed it foods that are more tightly packed with nutrients.

To provide the highest level of energy, look for fatty foods. Fats yield more than twice as much energy as similar amounts of carbohydrates or proteins, and smaller amounts of food can supply a larger amount of energy. To help process these additional fats, your dog will also need higher levels of protein. In addition, you may add supplements to your dog’s diet to boost its energy levels and counteract the effects of vigorous exercise.

How much fat and protein should a dog have in its daily diet? In general, high-energy homemade canine diets range from 15 percent to 25 percent fat, and from 30 percent to 40 percent protein; commercial high-performance diets offer 10 percent to 18 percent fat, and 24 percent to 28 percent protein. Whether you are feeding an off-the-shelf diet, making it yourself or some combination of the two, you can easily raise the fat levels your dog’s diet.

Two kinds of fat can be added to your dog’s diet: fat derived from animal sources, which are saturated fats, and fats derived from plant sources, which are polyunsaturated fats. Animal-derived fats offer the highest levels of energy and are the best high-energy supplements.

Plant-derived fats, easily available in vegetable oils, will make your dog’s skin and coat pretty, but they won’t add the desired energy jolt. Plant fats contain fatty acids, which are vital for healthy coats and shiny skin.

If your dog is active, but not super-active, try feeding it larger amounts of its regular diet before switching to the high-energy diet. If that doesn’t seem to satisfy your dog’s energy needs, try adding a little bit of fatty meat, such as chopped or ground beef heart, hamburger, fatty chuck, sirloin steak, lamb or pork, to its meals or increasing the use of fattier cuts of meat in your dog food recipe.

If your dog is super-active, you’ll have to add larger amounts of high-octane foods to its meals. One way is to save the meat drippings from your meals of roasted beef, chicken or turkey. (Be sure it does not contain sugar, artificial preservatives or chemicals, or high sodium levels.) You can also make special arrangements with your organic meat supplier to purchase fresh, pure poultry fat or beef tallow. Poultry fat is much preferred by owners of canine athletes because it is highly digestible and also contains the fatty acids that contribute to a shiny coat. Be careful when adding fat to your dog’s diet, though. If the dog eats solely the fat or too much of the fatty meat and not enough of its other food, it will lack necessary protein and carbohydrates.

Just a little extra whammy in your dog’s diet will have it bright-eyed and raring to mush, even on cold winter mornings. Hmm, maybe you’d better rev up your diet, too. Nutrition

If these are not the cutest blue puppies you have ever seen. The are all so healthy. This is proof of a breeder that knows how to produce a healthy litter. By looking at these pups, I am sure the owner got its money’s worth. Good Job.

Breed Specific Legislation or BSL is horrible. It targets many dogs as ‘dangerous’ when thats not the case at all. Punish the deed not the breed.

This pitbull climbs up a tree, grabs his rope and holds on to it. This video shows true pitbull strength.

Pretty short video, but you got to check out the muscles on this pitbull. Wow! Incredible Hulk.

This Blue Pitbull is Maui. Very Stocky pitbull, I am sure that it took some hard work to breed this bully pitbull.

Look at the color on this Rednose pitbull. What a handsome dog. This pit has some serious springs in them legs. Check out how his head touches the top of the house.

I love this video. I am sure that you guys will love it just as much as I have. Pitbulls are the most amazing dogs ever.

These pitbulls want a piece of that towel. lol. But be careful guys, play like this can sometimes break out fights. Tugging like this must be supervised closely.