register for free
View our sister sites
Our sister sites
Our sister sites
Our sister sites
Malka
Dogsey Veteran
Malka is offline  
Location: Somewhere
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 18,088
Female  Diamond Supporter 
 
29-10-2014, 07:30 PM

The mystery of the 1,000 greyhounds who retire and then vanish

Every year, one in eight greyhounds “disappears” at the end of its racing career, with some dogs being sold for research and dissection, a leading animal welfare charity claims.

The League Against Cruel Sports (LACS) estimates that around 1,000 of the approximately 8,000 greyhounds retiring from racing annually are not rehomed and are unaccounted for.

Although the industry’s governing body, the Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB), requires owners to register retirements and provide information on the fate of each dog, they are not obliged to provide any supporting evidence that a new home has been found. Some unwanted dogs are known to be returned to Ireland, where the majority were originally bred.

A report to be published this week reveals that some unwanted greyhounds were sold to a university which slaughtered them and used them to teach anatomy to veterinary students.

University College Dublin admitted buying 33 dogs last year, the report by the LACS and GREY2K USA, an American greyhound protection organisation.

The majority of former racing dogs are rehomed by the Retired Greyhound Trust, which is part-funded by the racing industry and independent charities, or directly by owners and trainers. However, while the GBGB said the industry was “striving to ensure that no greyhound is unnecessarily put down once its racing career is over”, its retirement form includes the category “injury not treated on economic grounds” as a reason to euthanise a dog.

The report also raises concerns about overbreeding, as some pups will never make it to the track because they are too slow or they will not chase the mechanical lure.

The charity is launching its report on Tuesday at the House of Commons and is calling for independent scrutiny of the industry, alongside the tracking of dogs from “cradle to grave”.

“We are releasing this report as self-regulation of the industry hasn’t worked,” said Michael Stephenson, director of campaigns at the LACS. “They had their chance and they have failed. We think the industry needs proper scrutiny. The public are completely unaware of what happens behind the scenes – it is an industry shrouded in secrecy.”

In 2006, there was a national outcry over the treatment of racing greyhounds after The Sunday Times reported that more than 10,000 healthy greyhounds had been shot and buried in a mass grave in County Durham over a period of 15 years.

This prompted two inquiries: the cross-party Associate Parliamentary Group for Animal Welfare, which called for an independent regulator, and one by the greyhound industry, chaired by Lord Donoughue of Ashton. The Government accepted Lord Donoughue’s view that the industry could self-regulate.

Lord Donoughue told The Independent on Sunday that conditions had improved since 2006. “More could have been done, but in a difficult industry, progress has been made,” he said.

While the greyhound racing industry is in decline, there are still 33 tracks in the UK of which 24 are regulated by the GBGB. Another nine “flapping” tracks are not licensed by the GBGB and therefore do not need to abide by the same rules of racing.

Last year, owners registered 7,520 greyhounds to race in Britain, of which 6,203 were Irish-bred.

The LACS is also concerned at the conditions in which some greyhounds are being kept during their racing careers. Many are now being kept at off-track kennels and are only let out of for short periods.

Earlier this month, a trainer and a track were fined by the GBGB for failing to prevent the death of a dog. The greyhound, Harry’s Queen, died last year at Henlow racing stadium from suspected heat stroke. A hearing was told that the air flow into the kennels was uneven and that an exposed, hot metal duct would have raised the temperature. Henlow was fined £5,000, while the trainer, Hazel Kemp, was ordered to pay £500.

A spokesman for the GBGB said: “No registered greyhounds are unaccounted for. However, we do not make public all the data we have pertaining to them.”

He added that “non-chasers” were rare and “usually detected before
registration”, which would mean they do not come under the GBGB’s care.

Defending self-regulation, the spokesman said they worked with animal welfare groups such as the Dog’s Trust and the RSPCA to “improve welfare standards”.
Article and photographs here...

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk...h-9818554.html

Does anyone have any comments about this article?
Reply With Quote
tumbleweed
Dogsey Veteran
tumbleweed is online now  
Location: East sussex
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 2,818
Male 
 
29-10-2014, 07:42 PM
Like every newspaper to sell the papers the always make out the worst cases. Think back, how often to you now hear of bird flu- wrong must not eat this or that becase? or the missing plane? old news don't sell newspapers.

Sensational emotional headings always grabs attention.

So I would not expect national papers to actually get their facts straight in the first place.

They put in a little truth into a story obviously but oh so often overdo it.

They don't mention for example how many are rehomed and make useful loving pets, that does not sell newspapers.

Remember newspapers are out to make money, that is their real interest and anything that might get more sales they put in.
Reply With Quote
Malka
Dogsey Veteran
Malka is offline  
Location: Somewhere
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 18,088
Female  Diamond Supporter 
 
29-10-2014, 08:32 PM
Tumbleweed - please understand that I did not write the article. I just thought it might be interesting so posted it, asking for people's comments on it.
Reply With Quote
tumbleweed
Dogsey Veteran
tumbleweed is online now  
Location: East sussex
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 2,818
Male 
 
29-10-2014, 11:18 PM
Malka

I realise that of course but you did ask quote"Does anyone have any comments about this article?" unquote.

So I answered on the content not who wrote it. Sorry if I gave the impression I thought it was your work
Reply With Quote
spot
Dogsey Veteran
spot is offline  
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 1,724
 
03-11-2014, 10:21 PM
Originally Posted by tumbleweed View Post
Like every newspaper to sell the papers the always make out the worst cases. Think back, how often to you now hear of bird flu- wrong must not eat this or that becase? or the missing plane? old news don't sell newspapers.

Sensational emotional headings always grabs attention.

So I would not expect national papers to actually get their facts straight in the first place.

They put in a little truth into a story obviously but oh so often overdo it.

They don't mention for example how many are rehomed and make useful loving pets, that does not sell newspapers.

Remember newspapers are out to make money, that is their real interest and anything that might get more sales they put in.
Unfortunately in this case it is not the worst case its the all to often truth.

There have been many many discussion on here regarding greyhound racing and the absolute dispicable industry that it is.

Only this week there is more evidence of the utter cruelty and total lack of regard for these beautiful dogs by the owners, trainers and governing bodies.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-29877665
Reply With Quote
madmare
Dogsey Veteran
madmare is offline  
Location: Essex UK
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 6,949
Female 
 
05-11-2014, 01:41 PM
I can tell you this is probably not an exaggeration but the tip of the iceberg. Not mentioned is also the even bigger problem of the vast amount of puppies being born for the racing industry every week and yet only a very few of them actually make the track. A very few more are lucky if they happen to be in a good racing kennels that actually care (and these are few and far between) will be rehomed as pets but what happens to the thousands and thousands of others that again disappear without trace.

Greyhounds, so gentle and sensitive by nature probably suffer more than most other breeds in their treatment and welfare and almost certainly more meet barbaric and untimely deaths.
Reply With Quote
Reply


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Solved one mystery Tang General Dog Chat 5 19-04-2013 06:31 PM
What age do dogs retire from WT? runningrabbit Working Dogs 8 18-09-2012 06:16 PM
David Blunkett's beloved guide dog to retire Lucky Star Dog News 14 10-11-2011 06:39 AM
Mystery day trip with work a mystery no more! terrier69 Off-topic Chat 14 10-06-2008 09:46 PM
The Mystery of Christmas Kazz Off-topic Chat 6 17-12-2007 11:05 AM

© Copyright 2016, Dogsey   Contact Us - Dogsey - Top Contact us | Archive | Privacy | Terms of use | Top