VIC Greyhounds unmuzzled

[Pjrt]

I just saw this story 

 

http://www.news.com.au/national/breaking-news/greyhounds-to-shake-muzzles-in-victoria/news-story/8478d6200cebfe8e2db8ab26d181169c

 

Greyhounds to shake muzzles in Victoria

The Victorian government has announced reforms that will allow non-racing greyhounds to be in public without muzzles.

Caitlin Guilfoyle

Australian Associated PressAPRIL 23, 20181:15PM

Greyhounds are more likely to find furr-ever homes in Victoria after reforms allowing them to go without muzzles.

Non-racing dogs can ditch the muzzle in public from January 1, the state government has announced.

The change is part of a new code of practice developed after the 2015 live-baiting scandal.

"We're striking the right balance between welfare for racing greyhounds, a strong industry and dogs that are well suited to become much-loved pets in their retirement," Agricultural Minister Jaala Pulford said in a statement on Monday.

The removal of muzzles will improve the breed's image and increase adoption rates, RSPCA Victoria says.

Currently, a non-muzzled greyhound will find a home in under a fortnight, while those forced to wear the device may not be adopted for more than 40 days.

Greyhounds are usually friendly and gentle, chief executive Liz Walker says.

"Many people mistakenly conclude that greyhounds are muzzled due to an aggressive and dangerous temperament, however this is far from the truth," she said.

The reforms follow similar moves in the Northern Territory, ACT and parts of Queensland.

Other states, such as NSW, require greyhounds to complete an assessment program before they are allowed to go without a muzzle.

BEHIND THE MUZZLE

* Compulsory muzzling of greyhounds in public only happens in Australia and Northern Ireland

* Victoria's non-racing dogs will not require a muzzle in public from January 1, but will still need to be leashed

* More than 1300 public submissions were considered in developing Victoria's new code of practice

* The reform was a key recommendation from Victoria's chief veterinary officer following the 2015 live-baiting scandal

* The code will be enforced by Greyhound Racing Victoria

* It includes procedures to prepare retiring greyhounds for rehoming.

(Source: RSPCA Victoria, Victorian government)

[Papillon Kisses]

Do they still have to be on-leash when in public areas without a muzzle, or is that just a NSW thing?

[Pjrt]

I don’t know. In SA as far as I’m aware it’s still leashed & muzzled, except Green collared dogs, which must be on a lead?  I don’t know about NSW

 

The changes in Vic state the dog still needs to be on a leash, just not muzzled. I was going to say, which makes it the same for Greys as any other dog (except dogs under restriction orders) but I’m not so sure having thought about it. I’d assume the phrase ‘or under effective control’ wouldn’t apply to an unmuzzled Grey, and they must remain on lead at all times? 

 

 

 

[Rebanne]

The leash requirements have not changed for greyhounds in Victoria. I believe Tasmania has also loosened the muzzle laws. I'm very happy with the change.

[Maddy]

3 hours ago, Rebanne said:

The leash requirements have not changed for greyhounds in Victoria. I believe Tasmania has also loosened the muzzle laws. I'm very happy with the change.

From what I understand, two organisations will be "approved organisations" and issue green collars but there are also provisions in future for dogs from non-approved organisations/private rehoming and basically, the dog just has to meet the criteria.

The trouble is, the criteria are so vague in the most important areas that I think we'll run into trouble fairly quickly.

For example, this is the criteria for prey drive:

"The development of activities and assessment criteria to assess the greyhounds prey drive around other small animals, such as small dogs. The activity must ensure the safety of the small animal being used in the assessment."

And from there, no guidelines on what passes or what fails. And no obvious way for this to apply to greyhounds from non-approved sources. Assessors also have to be "suitably qualified" but again, no details of what this might possibly mean. There is no recognised course for assessing greyounds and even if there was, a couple of days doing a short course could not possibly compare to years of experience.

So, for the moment, it seems really only possible for greyhounds to go unmuzzled if they come from one of the two approved organisations, which will spell the end for small rescues, who can't offer unmuzzled greyhounds. This may lead to more Tasmanian greyhounds being euthanised, in the long run, as both the approved organisations are based in the south of the state.

Edited April 23, 2018 by Maddy

[corvus]

The greyhound industry needs to address their socialisation practices as a priority. To me, this is putting the cart before the horse, and I hope it doesn't prove costly for people's small animals. Assessing greyhounds for predatory behaviour is a curly issue, and evidence for the efficacy of assessments is pretty thin on the ground AFAIK. 

[Maddy]

12 hours ago, corvus said:

The greyhound industry needs to address their socialisation practices as a priority. To me, this is putting the cart before the horse, and I hope it doesn't prove costly for people's small animals. Assessing greyhounds for predatory behaviour is a curly issue, and evidence for the efficacy of assessments is pretty thin on the ground AFAIK. 

Pretty much. As I've told many adopters, you can test a dog for hours and not see anything worrying, but a small dog squealing or a game of chase getting out of hand can be enough to trigger predatory behaviour. You can't guarantee that a dog will never react to arousing stimuli, in the way it was bred to react. Worst still is greyhounds who have been "trained" not to chase, as these dogs are usually the sneaky ones who will appear to pass assessment comfortably but out of human supervision, absolutely can't be trusted.

Prey drive exists in all breeds to some extent but what a lot of people don't understand is that for racing greys, it has been strongly selected for- to the point that they'll continue chasing the lure with broken limbs or other severe injuries. They will joyfully kill themselves for the chase and I think a lot of people just can't understand that intensity of drive until it is in front of them, killing the neighbour's cat. In my experience, only 5% of greys are safe with cats or other small animals and ~25% fail small dog testing badly enough to be a real worry (I'm talking about the dogs who devolve into a baying, frothing mess at the sight of a small dog).

Early socialisation is definitely something that needs addressing but also, selecting for greyhounds of more moderate drive. No greyhound should have to be put to sleep because its own genes make it a danger to the community. Greyhounds with extreme prey drive are almost doomed from birth, unless they're lucky enough to find a very understanding and experienced sighthound home, which is not all that likely.

Oddly enough, since the live baiting scandal, I've noticed a definite trend towards dogs with higher natural (as opposed to trained) prey drive and with it, some bizarre, wonky temperaments. Overall, more likely to be resource possessive, more likely to fight, much higher prey drive and very highly strung, manic dogs. I'm not a fan of this new greyhound at all and they definitely don't make good pets.