topic Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW in Community Spirit

Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

davidc4430 — Thu, 07 Jul 2016 04:10:40 GMT

just heard a breaking news story on ABC radio saying the NSW govt will ban greyhound racing as of mid next year.

as an owner of an ex racer but not in nsw i will watch with great interest this story as it unfolds.

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

bright.ton42 — Thu, 07 Jul 2016 09:37:22 GMT

Great news, I never thought it would happen. Now for Vic to follow.

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

bushies.girl — Thu, 07 Jul 2016 09:42:02 GMT

Fantastic news but dont hold your breath waiting for Vic to follow ...... Vic is the only Aust state that still allows innocent ducks to be shot ...... and s only 1 of 2 states that still allows jumps racing

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

davidc4430 — Thu, 07 Jul 2016 09:49:44 GMT

i think we still shoot ducks in south australia.

our minister for racing says there is no evedence of cuelty to animals in south oz greyhound racing, hes got his head in the sand but we'll get it banned here eventually.

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

bushies.girl — Thu, 07 Jul 2016 10:26:30 GMT

Sorry, I was wrong re duck shooting, thought it was still only legal in Vic

I dont hope grey hound racing is totally banned in all Aust state and territories, sadly I dot think it happen ... Money talks as they say

I personally hate all types of racing which involves the use of innocent animals .. I dont even watch the Melb cup

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

davidc4430 — Thu, 07 Jul 2016 10:55:49 GMT

my only concern about the banning of greyhound racing is what will become of this beautiful breed of dog.

there is no place outside racing at this time for greyhounds, theres no show dogs in this breed so once racing ends i see no reason for breeding to carry on.

and if the authorities do creat a show breed for them would the breeders not begin breeding all the things that make greyhounds beautiful out of them. look what theyve done to so many other breeds in order to create the perfect show dogs.

id never go back to any other breed now that ive experienced these gentle giants.

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

bushies.girl — Thu, 07 Jul 2016 11:04:04 GMT

That concerns me as well, I can only hope that more people will be prepared to adopt them ..... I hope they dont create a show breed, I own German Shepherds and am quite disgusted at the way the show breeders have altered their shape, some of them look nothing like the original GSD breed.

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

***super_nova*** — Fri, 08 Jul 2016 06:55:57 GMT

@bushies.girl wrote:
That concerns me as well, I can only hope that more people will be prepared to adopt them ..... I hope they dont create a show breed, I own German Shepherds and am quite disgusted at the way the show breeders have altered their shape, some of them look nothing like the original GSD breed.

Greyhounds are a show breed, always have been, but the racing dogs are nowadays too different to make it in the show ring.

I have to say I am left somewhat stunned about this ban. On one hand I do not believe that making greyhound run is in any way cruel, unlike horse that is belted be ugly little man on his back, greyhound just loves to run. BUT once betting and big money is introduced that is when all the horrible cruel practices start happening. In many European countries greyhounds and Whippets are raced without betting, without big prize money. There are racing clubs and dogs are family pets that on weekends are taken to a track for bit of fun, and the owners have picnic, and nobody destroys dogs that do not quite win. I went to such races in France, where the Parisian Racing Club has 5 acres on which they built their track. It was a lovely friendly day with all different sighthound breeds running in different classes; from beautifully groomed Afghans to the tiny Italian Greyhounds.

The thing is that greyhound racing in Australia always had problems and nobody seriously tried to clean it up. I remember when dogs that did not run were just bashed on their heads and dumped, so ear tattoos were introduced. Then dogs were bashed over the head, their ears cut off and then, some still half alive, were dumped. So the Racing Authorities introduced subsidised euthanasia programs so the dog owners could have them put down fro couple of dollars with no questions asked. But that still did not sort out all the practices of cruelty. Anybody capable of allowing dog to maul small live animal tied down, is not somebody who would have an ounce of compassion for the dogs either. My friend used to have a GAP greyhound and she had a meat for all her dogs delivered from local greyhound trainer. This greyhound was the loveliest friendliest dog ever, but he was absolutely petrified when the greyhound man came and was unloading the meat into a freezer.
I just find it weird, the government was able to just wipe this industry out with simple legislation, yet they still allow various horrendous puppy farms to exist. I think that more beneficial would be to introduce much stronger bill to control any animal cruelty, with very hefty fines, immediate business closure and Australia wide ban on keeping animals etc.

I wonder is it possible to mount a legal challenge to this bill?

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

davidc4430 — Fri, 08 Jul 2016 07:04:53 GMT

today i hear people from the racing side of this complaining they are being singled out whilst the horse racing fraternity is getting left alone as they are a much bigger player.

that may well be, and id ban horse racing too, but you cant run around pointing at others doing wrong as a reason you should be left alone. the figures that have emerged on healthy dogs being killed by various means are horrific.

not once have i heard from the racing people a way to stop to the excess breeding of dogs that get quickly tested as 'goers' or 'non goers'

the nons 99% of the time have an end to life as soon as its decided theres no racing furure in them

then of the good to race ones how many actually reach a race track? love to know that.

the greyhound trainers must be able to switch off their emotions to be involved in an industry where so many of the animals they rely on for an income are so disposable.

just how many dogs, all dogs, are we killing in australia each year? i mean not just greyhounds but all the pets we dont want anymore, the lost dogs no one looks for, the ones born to strays that wind up at animal welfare sites. must be over 100,000 each year.

at last here in south australia they are introducing into law all cats and dogs not used for registered breeding must be desexed and microchipped. no more back yard breeders, no more just 1 litter to make pooch a 'whole' dog or cat.

if we really do this right eventually we should see a decrease in the numbers of unwanted cats and dogs.

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

davidc4430 — Fri, 08 Jul 2016 07:15:39 GMT

i really didnt know there was a catagory for 'showing' greyhounds, i know other similar breeds do, like the long haired version, afgan?

i'd have thought they would make a perfect dog for showing as phisically they are near perfect, in my view.

i agree, once they introduce betting the problems begin.

i just hope once the racing ban spreads to all states we dont see the end of this beautiful placid breed of dog.

my FOO is a GAP dog, my constant companion and friend. rosie my burmese cat might argue that point.

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

the_great_she_elephant — Fri, 08 Jul 2016 07:16:13 GMT

Have you ever stopped to consider the 'collateral damage' from this sport? How many litters of greyhound puppies are born eeach year? How many pups in each of these litters ever make it to the race track? What happens to all those 'surplus to requirement?

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

grumpy*cat*rocks — Fri, 08 Jul 2016 07:25:25 GMT

Actually greyhounds prefer to not run, they are very much a type of dog that loves just lazing around, snuggled into a cozy bed indoors. Those who have adopted greyhounds are told this. A daily walk is about as much as they require.

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

davidc4430 — Fri, 08 Jul 2016 07:53:51 GMT

from what i just saw on ABC news the racing fraternity just dont get it. they keep saying its just a few rogue trainers who are doing the wrong thing.

they are completely missing the point.

yes, there is or was a small number (maybe a large number) of bad trainers using live baiting.

but the revelation of these guys behaviour just brought about the full truth of the industry, not just the live baiting but the extaordinary amount of dogs being born and then being destroyed as they were 'to slow'

when will these people wake up, its all the killing of perfectly healthy dogs that has made their 'sport' no longer palatable by the general public.

they cant stop breeding more dogs, so the racing must stop.

perhaps there should be an inquest into horse racing too? how many horses get born for racing and dont make it? what happens to the too slow race horses?

i expect something similar to greyhounds.

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

***super_nova*** — Fri, 08 Jul 2016 08:38:26 GMT

@the_great_she_elephant wrote:
Have you ever stopped to consider the 'collateral damage' from this sport? How many litters of greyhound puppies are born eeach year? How many pups in each of these litters ever make it to the race track? What happens to all those 'surplus to requirement?

Where did I say that I think this is OK? I said that greyhound racing is full of horrible practices. Actually I do know that something like 50% of dogs born are euthanized by the time they are 2, only about 10% are homed by GAP. But that is plainly a decision of their greedy owners. It is impossible to predict which dog will be fast enough before they go through their training. Bear in mind that the difference between fast and slow dog is not all that great, and 2 exceptional dogs can have a litter of not particularly fast pups. I am not sure about dogs, but horses' performance has plateaued some time ago, and it is considered impossible to make them any faster than they are now.

I do realise that it is unlikely that we would adopt amateur racing like they do in Europe, but if the dogs did not like to run, they plainly would not run. All sighthounds are sprinters, they run very fast for very short period of time and then are happy to laze around. That makes them relatively easy dogs to live with. But given the chance they do love to run. I had sighthounds most of my life; Borzois, Afghans, Whippets and Italian Greyhounds, and every one of them loved to make few rounds of the paddock at full speed first thing in the morning and again late afternoon. The GAP greyhounds are used to live in small kennel and taken out for walks, there used to be law forbidding to allow greyhounds to run free in public parks, I am not sure if that is valid now, but that might be why greyhounds are generally not taken out for run in dog parks.

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

davidc4430 — Fri, 08 Jul 2016 08:57:06 GMT

in south australia when you adopt a GAP greyhound you are given a short list of rules.

number 1 on that list is they can not be off lead in any public area.

other rules are you must carry a GAP 'card' to show the dog is passed by GAP to be unmuzzled in public.

in cold weather they must have a kennel coat

its preferred they live indoors or have a well insulated outside kennel,

my guy lives indoors but he doesnt get on lounges or beds, he has his own beds, one in the loungeroom one in the bedroom.

he needs to be 'near' me all the time it seems.

if i'm watching tv or having meals hes on his lounge bed

when i'm on the computer hes here on his bed next to me.

he never comes to the table looking for food, he waits till ive finished then i make his dinner in the kitchen.

hes just a really nice dog

never barks either. i do mean never.

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

bsal6160 — Fri, 08 Jul 2016 08:57:40 GMT

Its simply time the government banned ALL forms of betting. And really that is the root cause of this current dilemna.

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

***super_nova*** — Fri, 08 Jul 2016 09:01:37 GMT

Absolutely, once sport starts to be bet on, it is not sport anymore, it is way to gamble and it becomes corrupt.

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

lyndal1838 — Fri, 08 Jul 2016 09:26:31 GMT

@davidc4430 wrote:

perhaps there should be an inquest into horse racing too? how many horses get born for racing and dont make it? what happens to the too slow race horses?

i expect something similar to greyhounds.

The majority of racing thoroughbreds that are too slow or retired from racing are retrained for showing, eventing or just pleasure riding.

They are certainly not hit on the head or sent to the knackery.

Not all greyhound breeders/trainers are bad.

My daughter lived on a greyhound breeding/training property where there was a private training track. The kennels were spectacular and the animals very well looked after. The owner also boarded dogs for other trainers/owners.

As she was a Vet Nurse with a Security Licence her night time job was to oversee the complex and keep an eye on the pregnant **bleep**es....her kitchen window overlooked the kennels.

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

***super_nova*** — Fri, 08 Jul 2016 09:31:21 GMT

@davidc4430 wrote:

at last here in south australia they are introducing into law all cats and dogs not used for registered breeding must be desexed and microchipped. no more back yard breeders, no more just 1 litter to make pooch a 'whole' dog or cat.

if we really do this right eventually we should see a decrease in the numbers of unwanted cats and dogs.

sadly, compulsory desexing has not reduced in any way the number of unwanted dogs and cats, because the puppy/kitten farms keep churning them out at ever increasing numbers to make up for any reduction of number of pups available. Responsible breeders who are members of The Australian Kennel Council and its state subsidiaries often have "take the animal back" policy and they do not end up in pound. I would take back any puppy/dog that I ever bred at any stage of its life.

Re: Greyhound Racing Banned in NSW

go-tazz — Fri, 08 Jul 2016 09:36:31 GMT

@davidc4430 wrote:

they cant stop breeding more dogs, so the racing must stop.

In Victoria you have to go through a proccess to be allowed to breed and further restrictions apply.

The main problem with breeding in NSW is that they allow dogs that have not produced "winners" in over 5

years to still sire pups,(making the problem worse).

The breeders churn out the dogs,(that's where most of the over breeding happens).

Putting restrictions on them would've slowed/stopped the over supply

perhaps there should be an inquest into horse racing too? how many horses get born for racing and dont make it? what happens to the too slow race horses?

Either sold as "hacks".

i expect something similar to greyhounds.

Don't forget about the fishing,a lot of wastage and enviromental impacts,(there was a guy in Portland who

used to catch and then dump bucket loads of fish at the tip).

Who eats chicken?(male chicks are considered wastage at rates of millions a year).

Drink milk?,(what about wastage of calves to continue production and then disregarded).

http://kb.rspca.org.au/what-happens-to-bobby-calves_87.html

The part is that the NSW government could've put control measures in place but it was easier to just blame the

majority on the word/lies of the few.

http://www.news.com.au/sport/battler-trainers-vow-to-challenge-greyhound-ban/news-story/0f7a0612e68f24adfc9203deedee91d0

All they needed to do was work out how many dogs race in a year and set that and say 5 or 10% more as the

maximum that could be bred,(that would stop the over breeding cold).

In SA they have a Pathway race where dogs that haven't won for a while are put in a race with similar dogs.

In Victoria they have Tier 3 racing which is for slower dogs.

Slowing down the breeding is an easy solution.