Hundreds of Greyhounds to be euthanised over the next few weeks

I'd previously blogged about the likely fallout from the greyhound live baiting scandal that's been tearing the Australian greyhound racing scene apart over the last few weeks.

In previous blogs I'd speculated that the scandal would see its innocent victims continue to suffer long after the issue had faded from public attention. Now the UK's daily mail is reporting that hundreds of "blooded" greyhounds are going to be euthanised as trainers banned from racing can no longer afford to keep them.  

According to the daily mail "More than 70 trainers and owners have been banned across Australia, including some of the industry's biggest names, and upwards of 600 dogs are believed to have been taken out of racing or pre-training"

I could smugly say "told you so", but the reality is that I'm equal parts sickened and saddened as the insanity spirals out of control and hundreds of these beautiful animals will soon be killed.

Sponsors such as AFL star Jonathan Brown, The McGrath Foundation, and Macro Meats Gourmet Game co. have all pulled out from sponsoring greyhound racing in Australia. Ceasing to support greyhound racing might seem like a prudent PR move, but surely it'd be a thousand times smarter if they took the money they'd previously put into the racing industry and re-directed it into welfare such as rehabilitating and re-homing the hounds who'd been "blooded" so they're pet friendly. 

Simply put, the reality is that supporting greyhound racing needs to be replaced with supporting greyhound welfare.

Then there's the divisiveness that's spread across social media, and online forums all of which are abuzz with people weighing in with their own opinions about the evils of the industry. Regardless of the many differing opinions, there's one fundamental reality that anyone with a good conscience cannot ignore. These poor animals need our help.

Now is not the time for pointless debate and finger pointing, now is the time for everyone to set aside their differences and to help find a long term solution before hundreds of these innocent hounds are killed.

So what can you do to help?

There's 4 simple things that can make a huge:

1) DONATE money to Australian greyhound rescue agencies - this will give the agencies some much needed breathing space in which they may be able to get more hounds re-homed. There are a bunch of greyhound rescue agencies in Australia that'll happily take a credit card number/paypal and other forms of payments. Check out:

http://www.gapnsw.org.au/home/ 
http://www.friendsofthehound.org.au/
http://www.greyhoundsaspets.com.au/
http://gap.grv.org.au/

2) LOBBY the sponsors who've ceased supporting greyhound racing to throw their support into greyhound welfare and rehabilitation. If they wont listen stop buying their products. Making money from greyhound racing is one thing, but turning their backs on these dogs when they need help more than ever strikes me as being both hypocritical and disgusting. From a PR standpoint, getting involved with supporting greyhound welfare should be a total win-win for anyone who'd previously supported the Australian greyhound racing industry. Admitting fault is one thing, but following it up with positive action that can make such a huge difference in the lives of so many innocent dogs can only translate into positive publicity.

The McGrath foundation can be reached at

54 Chandos Street, St Leonards, NSW 2065
PO Box 471, St Leonards, NSW 1590
Phone: (02) 8962 6100

Fax: (02) 9958 0140

Macro Meats is reachable via

Macro Meats
51-53 Lavinia Street,
Athol Park,
South Australia
Australia 5012

P.O. Box 222
Kilkenny,
South Australia
Australia 5009

Telephone:
+61 8 8341 2533
Facsimile:
+61 8 8341 0345
sales@macromeats.com


I don't have the contact details for Jonathan Brown, but I am sure that if enough people contact his former club via their website (http://www.lions.com.au/) he'll be bound to do something

If you get a chance, contact ABC Australia's CEO and ask why they have been so quiet after they broke the news. Running a story like this has huge consequences. The ABC network needs to step up as a responsible broadcaster and at the very least document what is happening. The ABC's 4 corner programme can be reached at their website.

http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/ 

3) ADOPT. I know this sounds cliched, but greyhounds make amazing pets. As a greyhound owner I am admittedly totally biased, but they really are awesome. If you live in Australia, and are thinking about rescuing a dog (or know someone who is thinking of rescuing a dog), you could do a lot worse than adopting a greyhound. Don't take my word for it, check out this video I made a while back where greyhound owners talk about owning a greyhound. 

4) WRITE letters to your local newspaper. As long as this issue is kept alive and the public remained informed, a positive outcome remains a possibility. Feel free to re-share this blog and to comment too. Every little bit counts.