Greyhound Racing To Be Shut Down

[Greyt]

If APBT did not go extinct after the banning of dog fighting (and are in fact still a very popular pet and working dog), then the Greyhound is not going to go extinct at the banning of racing.

Mentioning dog fighting is another thing that worries me, who is to say this isn't just going to continue underground as well and remain totally unable to police?

Dog fighting may be banned, but it isn't gone....

The collective infrastructure will not be available, nor will the TAB, Sky Racing etc.

Remember the scale... up to 68,000 killed over 12 years. Won't happen if it is banned.

[melzawelza]

You can't run greyhound races in dingy basements out of sight like you can dog fighting. It would be next to impossible to run any kind of organised greyhound racing without being noticed.

On top of that, greyhound racing is only legal and operational in five US states and as far as I can tell there's no big issue with illegal races like there is dogfighting.

[Pjrt]

Thousands of dogs will die as a result of this ban.

Many tens of thousands of dogs would die if not for this ban.

Neither option is easy but the choice is clear for me.

[grizabella]

Thousands of dogs will die as a result of this ban.

Many tens of thousands of dogs would die if not for this ban.

Neither option is easy but the choice is clear for me.

These are my thoughts. My heart aches for the dogs who will lose their lives over this decision, but the ongoing cycle of breeding and killing simply cannot be allowed to continue.

[Greyt]

Thousands of dogs will die as a result of this ban.

Many tens of thousands of dogs would die if not for this ban.

Neither option is easy but the choice is clear for me.

These are my thoughts. My heart aches for the dogs who will lose their lives over this decision, but the ongoing cycle of breeding and killing simply cannot be allowed to continue.

Agree entirely. Not to mention caging, baiting, drugging etc.

[trifecta]

So all these greyhounds that are going to be rehomed as pets- where will they be able to run and be exercised properly? Some posters have mentioned lure coursing, but you just can't take a dog out once a month to go coursing, a participating dog needs to be fit or else it will break down, you would need somewhere to slip it up a couple of times a week. But where? Training of greyhounds is going to be banned so any sort of activity that resembles training will be illegal.

[Canisbellum]

I am glad its been banned as for the dogs that now face euthanasia its sad but better that than allow the cycle to continue. As for all the people bleating about what it will do to communities it will be one less place for addicts to lose their money and I am pretty sure those working in the sector will find gainful employment elsewhere after all this is the lucky country with a very low unemployment rate.

[PossumCorner]

Sheesh, surely other breeds of fast sighthounds exist happily without regular top-speed work. Normal daily walking and some off-lead when possible. "Somewhere to slip it up a couple of times a week" - I even hope some of the jargon will disappear along with the gambling and with the ill treatment of dogs.

Lure coursing isn't a top option: ask any vet within cooee of a lure coursing venue and they will tell you why they dislike it. Too many tight turns, falls, joint injuries. Not a fitness issue at all, just the nature of the turning. (Straight runs less damaging).

[trifecta]

Gremlins!

Edited July 9, 2016 by trifecta

[trifecta]

It was a genuine question PC. My limited knowledge of other breeds of sighthounds extends to several sets of friends who have all moved out of suburbua onto acreages to accommodate their dogs!

Just to clarify I think the ban has been too hasty and not thought through. Corvus has already indicated how better control could have been implemented.

Edited July 9, 2016 by trifecta

[~Anne~]

Well done Mike Baird. Suggest people jump on line, thank him and urge him to stand firm. The industry pressure to reverse the decision will be significant.

Obviously you are not from NSW, westiemum!

The man is a right wing dictator who has his eyes set on Canberra and most likely leadership, in time, of the Federal Liberal Party.

There are 65 greyhound tracks in the country, 33 in NSW. In our regional towns and cities, and particularly in Sydney, the greyhound tracks sit on valuable land that developers have been trying to get their hands on for decades. This is nothing more than a land grab and what makes it more obvious is that other states are not following suit. The exception is the ACT which has followed NSW. Coincidence that they have been trying to move the greyhound club off the land at Symonston for sometime and that they have also expressed a desire to resume the land at Thoroughbred Park?

Unless you know him intimately, your post is nothing but a political opinion and because you have such an obvious dislike of a political leader, it restricts you from being able to view the subject matter with any rationality.

Coincidently, as I have pointed out before, the most valuable of all lands, Wentworth Park, was at risk of the Racing Assoc who was trying to convince the State Government to allow them to turn the track into housing development. It's on record. The state Government, via the agency that manages crown land, said no way, not ever.

Edited July 9, 2016 by ~Anne~

[juice]

I was very surprised by the ban, i too thought they would just be stricter guidelines.

But in all honesty when you have a governing body not prepared to step up and stop cruel practices that they know go on where do you go from there?

Trainers who lie on tv about where their dogs go, and when their partner is banned for doping etc. Really, how can you trust any of them?

And how the hell do you stop live baiting, on the basis most properties are rural ?

Thats before you even tackle the 70% of dogs bred that are culled.

I havn't heard any answers to these questions.

[~Anne~]

Thousands of dogs will die as a result of this ban.

Many tens of thousands of dogs would die if not for this ban.

Neither option is easy but the choice is clear for me.

Not to mention rabbits, piglets, possums and cats. Then there is the injuries to the hounds themselves.

The move is a good one. Sure, there will need to be adjustments. Sure, some will lose employment and I feel for these people. I feel for the owners of racing greys who live and breathe this horrible sport. Their lives will change. But the owners and the communities will adjust and move on.

The very heart of it all is that racing involves money. Humans + gambling + animals = abuse. It doesn't matter how much soem want the industry to change. It doesn't matter how hard hey work. Human greed and ego will mean that animals will be abused. And all purely for enjoyment. Human enjoyment. Nothing else. It's not an activity saving a human life. It's not an activity producing food. It's not an activity for anything but entertainment.

The argument about racing greys and pet greys being different is one I cannot fathom. So what if they're different, if they are in fact different at all. Essentially they're a breed that we as humans have developed. We can still have greys and will still have them.

Edited July 9, 2016 by ~Anne~

[m-j]

I was very surprised by the ban, i too thought they would just be stricter guidelines.

But in all honesty when you have a governing body not prepared to step up and stop cruel practices that they know go on where do you go from there?

Trainers who lie on tv about where their dogs go, and when their partner is banned for doping etc. Really, how can you trust any of them?

And how the hell do you stop live baiting, on the basis most properties are rural ?

Thats before you even tackle the 70% of dogs bred that are culled.

I havn't heard any answers to these questions.

I said this in the last discussion we had on this topic when the Four Corners report came out. I believe if owners of the breeders had to pay a registration fee of $3000-$4000 per pup before it was two weeks old on top of the other fees they need to pay which was then put aside for the dog to go into a rehoming facility when it retired there would A LOT LESS pups being born in the first place. If they don't pay that fee the dogs can't be registered therefore can't race. The industry would then die a slow death and the dogs that exist would still get to race until they can't any more. It won't really help the existing young dogs that can't race but neither does the present situation and it also effects the many dogs that are racing plus it will help the many people that will loose their jobs or income and I'm not just talking about trainers I'm talking about the vets, food suppliers, people that are employed because of the tracks needing to be maintained and run on race day etc. As I said last time my boss would have jumped at the opportunity and put in more pens and employ people to look after the dogs knowing that he was going to be paid a weekly sum to look after these dogs, which would a be lot more reliable than the stingy owners that didn't like paying someone to look after their dogs.

While I'm not arguing with you that the industry had more that it's fair share of scumbags in it, not all are like that and to tar them all with the same brush is extremely unfair. I know lots of lovely people who really do like their dogs and do have more retired dogs in their homes than are racing.

[persephone]

It was a genuine question PC. My limited knowledge of other breeds of sighthounds extends to several sets of friends who have all moved out of suburbua onto acreages to accommodate their dogs!

Just to clarify I think the ban has been too hasty and not thought through. Corvus has already indicated how better control could have been implemented.

Mike Baird just seems to enjoy destroying things ..but that's another story ( brumbies, for example)

there are many greys living as pets , and coping ( LOL) with good grace . They seem to be loved & spoilt & well exercised , without flat out runs and/or competition :)

[trifecta]

Well if the NSW Government is really interested in animal welfare I hope they target the piggers next, there are more of them around here than greyhound trainers and they advertise their deeds on Facebook so shouldn't be hard to track down.

ETA Good post m-j!

Edited July 9, 2016 by trifecta

[persephone]

Trouble with pigging is that it can be a job ..it's not a gambling thing .. Many properties areas will not allow firearms in as a method of pig control , so humans & dogs & knives do the job.

I know too well the amount of irresponsible and dangerous and cruel people out there - I also know responsible and caring ones . It will be a tricky one to regulate I know some pigdogs who live with their families ..and are lovely soppy dogs who are very good at their jobs.

Thinking, too - regulation would be almost impossible, breeding wise , as a pig dog is rated on ability, not looks - we have had brilliant Koolie pig dogs , and a pig dog who was a scaredy cat softie ( Kieran) ....

Edited July 9, 2016 by persephone

[Sheridan]

lots of dead dogs .......

Agreed Perse But it may also mean less future suffering by generations of greyhounds...

There won't BE any future generations of greyhounds.

There's an astonishing amount of 'Oh, people will kill their dogs but at least future greyhounds won't suffer' and 'Oh, they'll kill them anyway' going on. For people who apparently love dogs, this dismissal of thousands of dogs is disturbing let alone greyhounds becoming as rare as hen's teeth.

No one is dismissing it, but lets not pretend it's any more deaths than are already seen year in and year out because thousands of dogs are bred with few getting to the track, and far fewer finding suitable homes after racing.

As for the breed becoming "rare as hens teeth" that is no ones fault but the breeders and breed fanciers. If all the breed has going for it is its racing ability how on earth do they manage to be decent pets? Better tell the husky breeders they should be taking their dogs to the alpine races every year to justify their existence.

The bolded is precisely the dismissal of dog deaths I was referring to. Interesting that you also dismiss the gradual death of a breed. So much for being a dog lover. Why is it okay to save whales and dolphins but breed extinction is just given a shrug?

Why do you think the breed will become extinct? Does it have nothing else going for it but it's ability to go round in circles very fast. Again I will put forward the example of huskies but you can use any breed you like, they used to pull sleds, now most of them don't, they aren't extinct so it seems a little odd that you are lamenting an eventuality that there is no real evidence to suggest will occur.

You didnt seem to express much anguish about the deaths of greyhounds while the industry was churning along? Just because I believe that continually breeding thousands of dogs to sustain an industry that wouldn't sort it's crap out doesn't mean I am not sad for the fate of the animals who will be dumped. It's called choosing the lesser of two evils. Doesn't mean anyone enjoys it or dismisses it, it is a realty to state that many dogs suffered and died as a direct result of the overbreeding and practices the industry supported, it is not hypocrisy to put the reality in perspective when it comes to weighing up the current situation.

Goodness, did you actually trawl through my posts to find my opinion on the greyhound industry?

[Salukifan]

Thousands of dogs will die as a result of this ban.

Many tens of thousands of dogs would die if not for this ban.

Neither option is easy but the choice is clear for me.

If this ban were not being implemented with a drop dead date 12 months from now, that choice wouldn't have to be made.

[Salukifan]

Sheesh, surely other breeds of fast sighthounds exist happily without regular top-speed work. Normal daily walking and some off-lead when possible. "Somewhere to slip it up a couple of times a week" - I even hope some of the jargon will disappear along with the gambling and with the ill treatment of dogs.

Lure coursing isn't a top option: ask any vet within cooee of a lure coursing venue and they will tell you why they dislike it. Too many tight turns, falls, joint injuries. Not a fitness issue at all, just the nature of the turning. (Straight runs less damaging).

Really? Which vets and venues in Victoria would those be?

Have you ever actually attended an event or are you plucking this stuff out of thin air?

Edited July 9, 2016 by Haredown Whippets