The terrible suffering of the large numbers of greyhounds who are abandoned, or killed at their owners’ request is at the heart of welfare concerns about the fate of former racing greyhounds.

 

Some greyhounds will be kept by their owners and trainers when they retire, and it is important for anyone concerned with the welfare of greyhounds to remember that many owners and trainers love their dogs and care well for them. However, a very serious welfare problem remains.

 

Some greyhounds will be rescued by welfare organisations. Others will be taken to a vet by their owners and put to sleep. Others, like Last Hope who was found shot through the head on Fochriw Mountain in May 2004, will be brutally killed because their owner is not even prepared to pay for the cost of euthanasia.

  

ACCEPTABLE AND UNACCEPTABLE FATES

 

The following “final fates” of racing greyhounds were listed in a report "The Fate of Racing Greyhounds and Working Lurchers in Wales" published by the All Party Group for Animal Welfare at the National Assembly for Wales in association with Greyhound Rescue Wales.

 

Unacceptable:

 

1. Abandoned and taken to local authority pound

 

2. Abandoned and die without being found

 

3. Euthanased by vet

 

4. Killed by racing/working owner

 

5. Abandoned then found and kept by a member of the public

 

6. Abandoned then taken in and re-homed by welfare organisation

 

Acceptable

 

7. Kept by racing owner as pet

 

8. Handed to rescue organisation by racing/working owner, then re-homed successfully by rescue

 

9. Re-homed successfully to a good home by racing/working owner

 

This report is available to download by clicking here. 

 

THE STRUCTURE OF GREYHOUND RACING IN BRITAIN

 

Greyhound Racing in Britain is divided into the Registered sector governed by the Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB), and the “Independent” Sector which is un-regulated.

 

There are over 30 Registered greyhound tracks in Britain – none of these are in Wales.

 

The number of Independent tracks is declining and there are currently less than 15. Two of the remaining Independent tracks are in Wales at Swansea and Ystrad Mynach (near Caerffili). Another Independent track in England is just over the border of north Wales in Ellesmere Port. The welfare of Greyhounds in Wales is therefore closely linked to the Independent Sector. 

 

THE INDEPENDENT SECTOR AND THE REGISTERED SECTOR

 

The Registered Sector has some regulations designed to protect the welfare of the dogs, the Independent Sector has no overall rules or safeguards concerning welfare. This means for example that there is not even a requirement for a vet to be present at race meetings. A  badly injured dog may therefore have to wait a long time before being treated.

 

The Registered Sector makes some provision for greyhounds when they retire through the charity the “Retired Greyhound Trust”. The Independent Sector does not fund, nor does it make any organised provision for greyhounds when they retire. If an owner decides not to keep a greyhound,  the dog’s only hope is that a welfare charity or an individual will help it.

 

However, the Independent Sector also has some strengths and the Registered sector some weaknesses in terms of welfare.

 

In very broad terms older or slower dogs will continue racing in the Independent Sector longer than in the Registered Sector. This means that an owner of a greyhound racing in the registered sector can hope to sell the dog to the Independent Sector where it may race a little longer before meeting one of the fates listed above. Once a greyhound leaves the registered sector it is no longer protected by that sectors’ rules. This means that the Independent Sector is a convenient way for some people involved in the registered sector to absolve themselves of responsibility for their greyhounds towards the end of their racing lives.

 

While most trainers in the registered sector run large establishments with many dogs, many owners and trainers in the independent sector have only a few dogs, and they may be kept in a family environment.  This means that a closer emotional bond may develop between the owner and their dogs which means the owner is more likely to care for the dogs.  

 

THE FUTURE

 

Greyhound Rescue Wales is working through the Welsh Greyhound Forum which brings together the National Assembly for Wales APGAW, Dogs Trust, RSPCA Cymru and the Welsh tracks, to secure secondary regulations that will protect the welfare of greyhounds in Wales.

 

The Wales Greyhound Forum’s initial recommendations were submitted to the National Assembly in November 2007. These are currently being developed further. It is hoped that the National Assembly for Wales will introduce strong welfare regulations covering greyhounds in Wales by 2010.

  

FURTHER INFORMATION

 

The All Party Group for Animal Welfare at the National Assembly for Wales have published a number of other reports on greyhound and lurcher welfare - see our Links section.

 

"A Better Bet for Greyhounds, a submission to the Welsh Assembly Government in view of proposals to introduce regulations and a code of practice for greyhounds racing in Wales, Greyhound Forum for Wales" - click here to open in new window.

 

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