|
6 reasons to say NO to greyhound racing
16 June 2017
Please download, print and distribute our new leaflet outside greyhound tracks to encourage people to show compassion and boycott greyhound racing.
DOWNLOAD NOW (A4, pdf)
1. KILLINGS
Greyhounds too slow to win races and also retired greyhounds are killed: Greyhounds can live up to 14 years but in the Irish greyhound industry, the lifespan is just 3-4 years. On RTE's Prime Time, a spokesperson for Limerick Animal Welfare stated: "We believe that there are probably 10,000 greyhounds put to sleep every year. We've had so many instances of finding them shot, ears cut off, brutalized, drowned." In a Cork 96FM radio interview, a former Irish Greyhound Board chairman said he believed it is "absolutely okay" to kill thousands of dogs and that there can't be greyhound racing without euthanasia.
2. LIFE-ENDING INJURIES
Greyhounds sustain painful injuries when they slip and fall on tracks: It is very distressing to see greyhounds writhing in agony and hearing them crying out when they crash out of races. Hundreds of injured dogs are destroyed at Irish tracks every year. The injuries could be treated but, because this costs money and the dogs are less likely to later win races, they are instead killed. No mercy is shown because it's cash before compassion.
3. CRUELTY
Some greyhounds are mutilated: Among the victims is an emaciated greyhound dumped in Tipperary with her ears burned (to remove markings which would identify the owner) and the tip of her tail hacked off. According to industry insiders quoted in an Irish Sun report, this dog's case is the “tip of the iceberg” and not an isolated incident. They added: “This type of brutality is happening all the time. It's the disgusting underbelly of the greyhound world."
4. DOG EXPORTS
Irish greyhounds are being sent abroad to countries with little or no animal welfare: They are ending up in Macau where they are kept in concrete cells and killed if they stop winning, China where they may be sold on to the dog meat trade and boiled alive, Spain where they are hung from trees and dumped down wells and Pakistan where they suffer from heat exhaustion. The Irish Government has shamefully refused to ban exports to these destinations.
5. ILLEGAL DOPING OF DOGS
Greyhounds are illegally drugged to make them run faster or slower: Dogs are doped by owners to influence the outcome of races so that they can win on bets. This is why many have stopped gambling on greyhound racing. The Morris review, commissioned by the Irish Greyhound Board itself, acknowledged that doping is a problem. A Joint Agriculture Committee report stated: “The use of controlled and illegal substances in racing in Ireland is of grave concern." Drugs used include stanozolol, cocaine and viagra and dogs suffer as a result.
6. BARBARIC BLOODING
Greyhounds are not the only animals who are suffering: The illegal blooding of greyhounds - using live rabbits, hares, kittens and other small animals - is a cruel training method in the greyhound industry. One Irish Independent greyhound scene journalist noted: "The bald truth is that greyhound racing would not continue to exist without blooding. It follows that, with a constant greyhound population of close on 30,000, blooding must be widespread. Don't expect an admission of that from Bord na gCon."
| Greyhound racing’s link to cruel hare coursing: All greyhounds used in track racing are registered with the Irish Coursing Club. The registration fees paid fund the cruel practice of live hare coursing. This barbaric bloodsport involves snatching thousands of hares from the wild every year for use as live bait for greyhounds at coursing meetings. Hares are terrorised while desperately running for their lives and there are injuries and deaths due to maulings. |
Irish Council Against Blood Sports - Working to end animal cruelty in Ireland
PO Box 88, Mullingar, Co Westmeath, Ireland. Find us on Facebook, Youtube and Twitter
Make a donation to ICABS
Please consider making a donation to ICABS. For more details, please click on the button below or follow this link to find out how to become a campaign supporter. Thank you.
