The curious case of U.S. v. APPROXIMATELY 30 PIT BULL TYPE DOGS

Dogs across the country better lawyer up — the government is feeling litigious.

The United States on Tuesday filed a lawsuit against "APPROXIMATELY 30 PIT BULL-TYPE DOGS," a legal tracking Twitter account reported. The lawsuit, filed in North Carolina, alleges that the dogs were involved in an animal fighting operation, and seeks to require their owners to pay up.

Among the defendants: "a brown male, pit bull-type dog;" "a black and white, female pit bull-type dog;" and "an underweight black, male pit bull-type dog." The dogs are suspected of being involved in a fighting ring "for purposes of sport, wagering, or entertainment."

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Of course, it's the humans who will ultimately be accused of violating the Animal Welfare Act, the lawsuit explains, but the poor dogs are the ones who were seized by officials and are named in the legal documents. "They are currently in the custody of the United States Marshals Service and being cared for by the Humane Society of the United States," reads the lawsuit. While the "pit bull-type" dogs were seized more than a month ago, the owners apparently still haven't paid to cover the cost of their care and veterinary treatment while in government custody.

For the record, the government's "approximate" guess was spot-on. It's unclear how much longer the exactly-30 dogs will remain in government care.