Greyhound Racing to be Banned in New South Wales

Warrigal

Warrigal

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Location
Sydney, Australia
In the language of Yes Minister, this is a brave decision.

NSW Premier Mike Baird has announced a ban on greyhound racing, after the state government considered an 800-page report tabled by a Special Commission into "widespread cruelty" in the industry.

Former High Court judge Michael McHugh oversaw the Special Commission - which was sparked in the wake of ABC's Four Corners investigation to the industry - and presented his report to Deputy Premier and Racing Minister Troy Grant last month.

In a media release and Facebook post on Thursday morning, Mr Baird said the government planned to close down the industry which directly employs more than 1000 people.

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NSW Premier Mike Baird broke the news on Thursday morning via his official Facebook page. Photo: Jessica Hromas



The report found that between 48,000 and 68,000 greyhounds - or almost half of all greyhounds bred to race - were killed in the past 12 years because they were deemed uncompetitive.Advertisement

"In response to widespread illegal and unconscionable activity, including the slaughtering of tens of thousands of dogs, I can today announce that NSW is putting an end to greyhound racing," Mr Baird announced on his Facebook page.
"One of the issues we have had to wrestle with is the positive impact of the greyhound racing industry. There are over 1000 direct jobs in the industry and nearly 6000 registered owners of greyhounds. Dog racing can be an important part of the social fabric of regional towns. And, of course, having a punt on the dogs over a few beers is good fun for many people.

"So, as Mr McHugh asked, do such benefits of the dog racing industry outweigh the shortcomings? Based on this report, the Government believes they do not. Greyhound racing has been banned in many countries and many states of the US and is legal in only eight countries around the world. NSW will be the first state in Australia to ban it."
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This has come about because of the actions of animal activists who managed to film horrific scenes of live baiting by trainers at secret locations and the discovery of dump sites for lots of dog carcases in bush sites.

The Premier says that there appears to be no prospect of reform of the industry in the short or medium term, hence it will be banned in one year - July 2017.

Good on him. He will face a backlash from the racing and gambling industries. It is indeed a brave decision.
 

Dog fighting, cock fighting, dog racing...It's taken so long for these sports to be banned. But human gamblers insist on their "sports".
 
fureverywhere said:
Dog fighting, cock fighting, dog racing...It's taken so long for these sports to be banned. But human gamblers insist on their "sports".
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We should take the human gamblers and have them fight, no? We could take bets on them. Just a hypothetical situation, not real.
 
I've said that before. All the bangers around here who let a poor dog fight to the death...get yourselves in the ring against another human...sorry no weapons allowed...and whoever dies first...can't get up? You have a winnah, gamble on that you bastards. It's pathetic, those guys are cowards. A gun or dog to make up for what a wimp you actually are.
 
fureverywhere said:
I've said that before. All the bangers around here who let a poor dog fight to the death...get yourselves in the ring against another human...sorry no weapons allowed...and whoever dies first...can't get up? You have a winnah, gamble on that you bastards. It's pathetic, those guys are cowards. A gun or dog to make up for what a wimp you actually are.
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:yes:
 
I believe they still have the races here in Florida, though there's been some action to have it banned.

PS, I checked on the status of the legislation they were to vote on to stop it here in FL and sadly, it didn't pass, they won't vote on it again till 2017.
 
That's good news to my ears ,DW :) hopefully the same will happen in SA .I often hear about greyhounds being put down just because they didn't win a race ....I know there is a charity in Adelaide that tries to re home the "retired" dogs to prevent them being destroyed ..
 
Kadee46 said:
That's good news to my ears ,DW :) hopefully the same will happen in SA .I often hear about greyhounds being put down just because they didn't win a race ....I know there is a charity in Adelaide that tries to re home the "retired" dogs to prevent them being destroyed ..
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Yes, I've heard of places that rehome the poor greyhounds, too. They did nothing to deserve such horrible treatment!
 
I would be hesitant to adopt a dog that might have been live blooded.
He could be a cat killer, or even attack toy breeds of dogs.
You could never trust it unless it was muzzled.

I'm not the only one thinking like this and it is a significant factor in the small number of adoptions of greyhounds needing rehoming.
 
Warrigal said:
I would be hesitant to adopt a dog that might have been live blooded.
He could be a cat killer, or even attack toy breeds of dogs.
You could never trust it unless it was muzzled.

I'm not the only one thinking like this and it is a significant factor in the small number of adoptions of greyhounds needing rehoming.
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Perhaps they could be trained?
 
Some could, Ruthanne, but the number of dogs amounts to about 5000 per year.
There is no way that this number of dogs can be rehomed so they are slaughtered.
Mass graves have been found in isolated places, suggesting even more wastage than reported.
 
Warrigal said:
Some could, Ruthanne, but the number of dogs amounts to about 5000 per year.
There is no way that this number of dogs can be rehomed so they are slaughtered.
Mass graves have been found in isolated places, suggesting even more wastage than reported.
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This is very sad. More could be rehomed though.
 
Well, that is okay, many places neuter dogs. Just need some kind folks to take care of them and there are plenty of those!
 
It seems that if you rob a bank, commit fraud, terrorise the neighbourhood etc.. very little happens. But, harm an animal and you automatically become Satan and a load of 'do gooders' are screaming for your blood. Don't get me wrong, I don't condone cruelty to animals, but it's always easy to 'cherry pick' evidence and use this to condemn everyone.
This is just typical of the knee-jerk reaction. It's always easier to punish the innocent than to pursue the guilty.
 
It isn't knee jerk. The Commission has been looking into this industry for 2 years and has concluded that there is no will to clean up systemic animal cruelty.

The Special Commission of Inquiry found overwhelming evidence of systemic animal cruelty, including mass greyhound killings and live baiting. The inquiry's report concluded that the NSW Greyhound Racing Industry has fundamental animal welfare issues, integrity and governance failings that can not be remedied.
http://www.greyhoundracinginquiry.justice.nsw.gov.au/
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We aren't the first to ban greyhound racing

Greyhound racing is only commercially run in eight countries. The largest of those is the United States where it has been in decline over a number of years with Arizona becoming the 40th state to ban the sport in June this year.
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This fact sheet summarises the issue and the actions taken by the government.
http://www.greyhoundracinginquiry.j...ndustry-nsw-special-commission-of-inquiry.pdf
 
Warrigal said:
I would be hesitant to adopt a dog that might have been live blooded.
He could be a cat killer, or even attack toy breeds of dogs.
You could never trust it unless it was muzzled.

I'm not the only one thinking like this and it is a significant factor in the small number of adoptions of greyhounds needing rehoming.
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There are lots of dogs up for adoption where the notes will say that they should not be with other pets, so those animals could go to homes where there will only be other dogs of like size or none at all.
 
Capt Lightning said:
It seems that if you rob a bank, commit fraud, terrorise the neighbourhood etc.. very little happens. But, harm an animal and you automatically become Satan and a load of 'do gooders' are screaming for your blood. Don't get me wrong, I don't condone cruelty to animals, but it's always easy to 'cherry pick' evidence and use this to condemn everyone.
This is just typical of the knee-jerk reaction. It's always easier to punish the innocent than to pursue the guilty.
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There are no 'innocents' when it comes to dog racing, horse racing, dog fighting, cock fighting, rodeos, ............it all boils down to humans using animals and making them do things they don't want to do so that the people can gamble, get money, be entertained and in some cases, get thrills by watching suffering animals being terrorized.
 
Debby said:
Not only the poor dogs. I once saw a video of how they teach the dogs and the little rabbits suffer so horribly, it's beyond belief!
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We have all seen the full horror of it thanks to a documentary showing actual footage. The animals sacrificed included piglets, rabbits and Australian possums. The screams were pitiful and they were torn to pieces while trussed on the lure.

This is referred to as "traditional training".
 
I never even thought about the so called training methods <<<shiver>>> Obviously the dogs don't just get out there and race for fun. They're taught to have lunatic prey drive. I knew a bookstore that had a resident greyhound. She spent her days curled on her large bed next to the register. But she was a gentle old soul. I've heard of the greyhound rescue groups, but that must be really difficult finding the right home for a pup who might always have to be muzzled. Unlearning prey drive is almost impossible.
 

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