Very grateful to Deborah over at Dog Leader Mysteries for today’s post.

The following appeared over on Dog Leader Mysteries last Monday and is republished with Deborah’s permission. Please share this as far and wide as you can.

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1 minute for Irish Greyhounds

Featured by dogleadermysteries

Please help Irish Greyhounds by signing this Care2 petition

Save greyhound dogs’ lives in less than 1 minute

Bring Irish Greyhound Racing Regulations in line with the United Kingdom

I will not submit my readers to the horrors racing greyhounds endure or lose their lives from. I never thought any thing could be worse than dogs bred in puppy mills. After reading the Care2 petition’s explanation of the conditions and animal cruelty in Ireland’s dog racing world, now I feel sadder but an informed and wiser person.

My friend, Rosee Riggs, sent me this petition. The situation and welfare for dogs on Irish racetracks distresses all animal lovers everywhere. Without boring you with research and background, the essence of this petition effort targets raising Irish greyhound racing rules to match those in Great Britain.

4 great things about greyhound dogs

When living in a home with a family

1. Greyhounds love to snuggle
2. Greyhounds enjoy being couch potatoes
3. Rescued track greyhounds often hate to run
4. Greyhounds cannot swim. They sink due to extremely low body fat

Myth buster: Not true that former track greyhounds become runaway dogs!

This is Rosee’s dog, Speedy. Read more about him on her site Good Dog Practice.

From Care2: legal changes needed to better protect Irish track greyhounds

• Have a veterinarian present at all race meetings, trials and sales trials who must inspect every greyhound before it runs;
• Provide the veterinarian with appropriate facilities;
• Provide suitable kennels, diet, hygiene standards, for all greyhounds that are going to run in a race or trial and for the dogs NOT to be muzzled for 23-24 hours a day; Ensure that the greyhounds have access to an outside area for exercise and be supplied with food and water.
• Only allow greyhounds that are healthy, micro-chipped, registered and, were required, tattooed, to run in a race or trial.
• Keep up to date records of owners, trainers, greyhounds and any injuries/deaths to greyhounds.
• Monitor all licensed and private Breeders to reduce excess Dogs thereby reducing the need to euthanize/kill unwanted puppies.
• To regulate Ireland’s greyhound breeders, not governed by the same regulations & welfare stipulations as the UK. All aspects of greyhound dog breeding, training and kennelling.
• To provide adequate travel facilities, breaks (on long journeys) and water/food as required.

Care2 Petition Bring Irish Greyhound Racing Regulations in line with the UK

Please sign and share

Thanks for reading, Deborah Taylor-French

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Delighted to say that at 15:30 PST yesterday, the Care2 Petition site read:

we’ve got 169,061 signatures, help us get to 170,000

and went on to explain the background to the petition:

There are major concerns about animal welfare issues relating to the racing greyhound industry in Ireland. Many puppies and older dogs which don’t perform to racing owner expectations are killed simply because they won’t make money for the owner. They are discovered in mass graves with their tattooed ears hacked off so they can’t be identified – so that their owners can’t be held accountable.

Dogs are generally kennelled, constantly muzzled, for 23-24 hours a day for their entire racing life. There are usually at least two dogs per small kennel, sharing one bed (with straw if they are lucky). The kennels are overcrowded, not properly maintained and badly cramped.

In the UK there are regulations which provide some protection for racing greyhounds. These regulations do not exist in Ireland where most racing greyhounds come from. Changes need to be made to bring the laws in Ireland in line with those in the UK. These rules aren’t perfect but they do offer a lot of improvements to the lives of these beautiful dogs.

Please sign the petition to show the Irish Greyhound Racing Board that the public cares about these dogs, to encourage them to support laws to protect these dogs.

At least 20 greyhounds a day, either puppies, which do not make the track because of lack of “prey drive”, or ‘retired’ dogs, aged between 18 months to 3-4 years, simply ‘disappear’ according to “records”. All dogs should be identifiable by the tattoos & registry records. When they are tattooed the dogs are roughly handled & dragged around by their ears with pincers.

Many Greyhounds are later discovered dumped, either in mass graves or at solitary isolated areas. Most are found with their ears hacked off, so that no owner/track can be held accountable. Many are not “cleanly killed” but left to suffer in agony.Dogs are sometimes destroyed, due to injury, even for as little as a broken toe. As the owners don’t want a dog that costs them money!

The Dogs are half starved or given very poor diets, because of the unrealistic racing weight regulations. They have to eat (muzzled), sleep & defecate in these unhygienic, small areas.

When travelling to race meetings, this can involve very long trips in cages so small that the dogs cannot properly stand up or lie down. With no food or water.

Most of the Greyhounds supplied for the racing industry come from Ireland where they have very little protection or welfare regulations.

Clearly there is an urgent need for changes to be made to protect Racing Dogs from these inadequate, inhumane and cruel practices.

It is important that ALL Greyhounds are monitored and are protected by welfare regulations. This is especially pertinent to Ireland where breeders have vague guidelines and no limitations as to how they treat the dogs. The greatest problems occur with the Irish breeders and there is an urgent necessity for Ireland to follow the same welfare guidelines and regulations as the UK.

Greyhound racing has become an “industry” & unless the dogs are making money then they are of no “worth” to their owners.

In an ideal world this cruel “sport” should be abolished totally but protective laws are a step in the right direction and would help so many greyhounds from an exploited & cruel existence.

APGAW, RSPCA and other animal welfare agencies in the UK and Ireland would like to see major changes in the treatment and kennelling of the greyhounds, & for independent and private tracks to abide by welfare rules and regulations whether in the UK or in Ireland.

Our proposals for Irish racing greyhound regulations, to bring them in line with the UK:

• Have a veterinarian present at all race meetings, trials and sales trials who must inspect every greyhound before it runs;
• Provide the veterinarian with appropriate facilities;
• Provide suitable kennels, diet, hygiene standards, for all greyhounds that are going to run in a race or trial and for the dogs NOT to be muzzled for 23-24 hours a day;
• Ensure that the greyhounds have access to an outside area for exercise and be supplied with food and water.
• Only allow greyhounds that are healthy, micro-chipped, registered and, where required, tattooed, to run in a race or trial
• Keep up to date records of owners, trainers, greyhounds and any injuries/deaths to greyhounds.
• Monitor all licensed and private Breeders to reduce excess Dogs thereby reducing the need to euthanise/kill unwanted puppies
• To regulate Ireland’s greyhound breeders so they are governed by the same regulations & welfare stipulations as the UK in All aspects of greyhound dog breeding, training & kennelling
• To provide adequate travelling facilities, breaks (on long journeys) and water/food as required

Come on everybody, let’s slam through the remaining 11,000 signatures and get things underway for these magnificent creatures.

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