Greyhounds front page in Florida and column following article in UK

Those not familiar with the horror behind greyhound racing should visit the Greyhound Protection League site: http://www.greyhounds.org. But the coverage, by Jonathon Brown, in Monday's Independent, was also strong, and pertains to the US and other countries that allow the sport, as much as to the UK. Headed, "A dog's life ain't what it used to be," it opens:

"Rusty the greyhound's toe injury proved to be fatal. After performing poorly during a race at Warwick in April, the once-prized sprinter could no longer earn its keep. The following week, Rusty was discovered by a walker in South Wales, lying whimpering on a rubbish tip, its tail still wagging. The dog had been shot through the head with a captive-bolt pistol, its ears cut off to remove identifying tattoos. A vet was called to finish the bungled job of killing the dog."

We learn, "A recent study said that because of the shortage of suitable homes for retired dogs, a similar fate threatens thousands of greyhounds and lurchers discarded in Britain each year as they reach the end of their racing lives."

And the article refers to the dogs who die and even slower death than Rusty: "In Ireland, where 80 per cent of the puppies that enter the industry are bred, protesters are claiming that former racing animals are being sold to mainland Europe for use in vivisection.... In addition, animal rights supporters want to highlight the plight of greyhounds in Australia, from where, they claim, many former racing animals are being shipped to south-east Asia for experimentation. In Britain, they are calling for an end to the use of fallen dogs for dissection."

You can read the whole article on line at:
http://news.independent.co.uk/low_res/story.jsp?story=601444&host=3&dir=65

A piece by columnist Terence Blacker in the Tuesday, January 18, Independent is headed: "These fanatics are chasing after the wrong hare."

Blacker gives us the details of Rusty's life and death as outlined in Brown's piece, then writes:
"It is too easy to mock those who will be standing, heads bowed, to commemorate a dog whose fate is probably no worse than that of thousands, perhaps millions, of other animals who were brought into the world for human diversion and who, once they had served their purpose, were abandoned, neglected, starved or, if they were lucky, killed. Frankly, if Rusty's final resting place is worth a vigil, then there is hardly a rubbish dump in Britain where a solemn remembrance ceremony could not justifiably take place."

He slams the "extremism" of animal rights groups, but writes:

"But the awkward fact is that, behind the hysteria, rage and sentimentality of campaigners, many of their arguments are justified. The life of a second- rate racehorse can be a tough one; that of a dog, used in a sport which has none of the prestige and visibility of horse-racing, is likely to be dire. There is no place for tactics, athleticism and courage in greyhound- racing; the dogs are nothing more than media for a gamble; to both punters and to commentators, they are numbers rather than names."

Then he writes "It is the animal rights groups' fundamentalist approach that counts against them." He describes the "vision of the world as a lovely Eden in which brothers and sisters from other species hop and frolic free and unused" as "bonkers."

He finishes his piece:
"There are serious issues of animal welfare which any civilised society should address: factory farming, the transport of cattle and horses across thousands of miles to abattoirs, the treatment of greyhounds by gormless idiots like Gough. The mad utopian agenda of liberationists, however sincere though they may be, merely serves to distract the attention both of the public and of bodies like the British Greyhound Racing Board from real problems of cruelty."

(So while slamming the Animal Liberation Front, Blacker has conceded a number of important animal protection issues that affect billions of animals. Once again we see the extremists pushing the mainstream of the public to a "middle position" that is far closer to animal rights than we would achieve if there was nobody pushing the envelope. That is why I am skeptical when mainstream activists argue that the extremists hurt our movement.)

You can read Blacker's piece on line at: http://comment.independent.co.uk/columnists_a_l/terence_blacker/story.jsp?story=601937

The articles above open the door to letters about greyhound racing, or any aspect of the relationship between humans and members of other species. The Independent takes letters at: letters [at] independent.co.uk

In Florida, in the United States, a statewide November 2 ballot initiative gave Dade and Broward counties the ability to legalize slot machines within their borders, at racetracks, if they so choose. It is expected that both counties will soon vote to put the issue on the March 8 ballot. By all media accounts, the measure is likely to pass, bringing slot enthusiasts to the dying race-tracks - gamblers who might enjoy some greyhound race-betting while they are there.

A front page article in the Tuesday, January 18, Miami Herald is headed, "Ad blitz looming before a vote on slots." It tells us:
"Both sides should have big bucks to spend, especially pro-slot racetrack and fronton owners who have the most to gain, since the slots would go in their struggling establishments."

We read that because gambling is a hard sell, the pro-slot campaign folks are "calling themselves 'Yes for Better Schools and Jobs.'"
That is because some of the takings are earmarked (like Rusty was) for the education system and currently "Florida ranks 47th in the nation in per pupil funding."

The article tells us:
"On the other side, two main political action committees have opposed the slots measure. No Casinos, a coalition of anti-gambling, animal rights and business leaders, raised $334,000, mainly from Osceola County, Disney and the Humane Society."

It gives no information as to why animal rights groups oppose. Many readers would assume that radical animal rights activists can't stand the idea of animals, even human loving dogs, being held captive for any purpose, even something as "fun" as racing. Indeed, there are those in our movement who object to all captivity, but it will be a long time before they win public support. However the general public, a dog-loving public, if it knew the truth about greyhound racing, would be unlikely to support it.

Since the slot machines are expected to be far more profitable than the races, we can hope that venue owners, with plenty of money from the slots, will be willing to let greyhound racing die its well-deserved death. But that will only happen with public pressure, and the public must know something about the issue. The front page coverage in the Miami Herald (Dade Conuty), which leaves out any details about the sport, gives us an opportunity to educate Miami Herald readers (and Dade Country voters).

You can read the front page story on line at: http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/10669012.htm
The Miami Herald takes letters at: http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/contact_us/feedback_np1/

For more information, PETA has a great fact sheet on greyhound racing, called "Death in the fast lane" at: http://www.peta.org/mc/factsheet_display.asp?ID=68

And HBO Real Sports did a fabulous expose on the issue last month. I transcribed much of it. It is on my website at: http://www.dawnwatch.com/12-04_Animal_media_alerts.htm#GREYHOUND OR http://tinyurl.com/4f4cm


Yours and the animals',
Karen Dawn

(DawnWatch is an animal advocacy media watch that looks at animal issues in the media and facilitates one-click responses to the relevant media outlets. You can learn more about it, and sign up for alerts at http://www.DawnWatch.com. If you forward or reprint DawnWatch alerts, please do so unedited -- leave DawnWatch in the title and include this tag line.)