Greyhound culling

Graces7

There are no words

https://www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2019/0626/1057535-greyhound-rte-investigates/

Is this really true?

Jupiter Mulligan

Graces7 wrote: »

There are no words

https://www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2019/0626/1057535-greyhound-rte-investigates/

Is this really true?

Looking forward, apprehensively, to watching it tonight. The government has just decided to legislate for the closure of fur farms, so it's well timed.

No doubt many of the pro-choice brigade will be very upset about the inhumane treatment of doggies - go figure!

marvin80

Jupiter Mulligan wrote: »

No doubt many of the pro-choice brigade will be very upset about the inhumane treatment of doggies - go figure!

What are you on about - I thought this was the Animals and Pet issues thread

em_cat

Unfortunately it does Many moons ago I was living in the States & lived right next to a greyhound racing stadium, use to sit in my room crying for the wee things & had a misconception that they where vicious as I could hear them shrieking & wailing to get their prey. Eventually I witnessed the awful state they were kept in & the sight of the poor things frightened me; was the first time I'd seen a racing hound before. It was also a particularly hot summer so you could smell the rot of the hares carcasses and what ever bait the trainers used. Now though, I dearly love sight hounds and every single one I've met (mostly battered ex racers) has been gentle, kind and pretty much afraid its own shadow There is a lovely Scottish lady that lives near us that use to rehabilitate them for nearly 20 years, now she has little Westie and she says he more trouble than any of her hounds where

jackboy

Graces7 wrote: »

There are no words

https://www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2019/0626/1057535-greyhound-rte-investigates/

Is this really true?

Yes it is true. However, there is great hypocrisy in this highlighting of the greyhound industry. This large scale culling is also widely known in the horse racing industry but the media will not touch this due to the benefits to the economy that the horse racing industry brings.

pointer28

We have the most gorgeous 10 month old Greyhound that was handed into the local dog rescue, with papers, microchip, tattoo and vaccinations. No idea why she was handed in at 4 months but they obviously saw something that suggested she wouldn't be a successful racer.

She was one of the lucky ones and if I'm honest I think sometimes the Greyhounds that are euthanased are better off than some of their brethren that are shipped abroad for who knows what kind of life.

Would recommend a rescue Greyhound if anyone's thinking about it, very gentle, very clean and apart from 20 minutes of galloping morning and evening, quite happy to lounge around and be quiet the rest of the time.

Doctors room ghost

em_cat wrote: »

Unfortunately it does Many moons ago I was living in the States & lived right next to a greyhound racing stadium, use to sit in my room crying for the wee things & had a misconception that they where vicious as I could hear them shrieking & wailing to get their prey. Eventually I witnessed the awful state they were kept in & the sight of the poor things frightened me; was the first time I'd seen a racing hound before. It was also a particularly hot summer so you could smell the rot of the hares carcasses and what ever bait the trainers used. Now though, I dearly love sight hounds and every single one I've met (mostly battered ex racers) has been gentle, kind and pretty much afraid its own shadow There is a lovely Scottish lady that lives near us that use to rehabilitate them for nearly 20 years, now she has little Westie and she says he more trouble than any of her hounds where

Were you ever at a greyhound racing meet at a track?

Graces7

jackboy wrote: »

Yes it is true. However, there is great hypocrisy in this highlighting of the greyhound industry. This large scale culling is also widely known in the horse racing industry but the media will not touch this due to the benefits to the economy that the horse racing industry brings.

why do you use the term "hypocrisy"? it needs publicising and more no matter what the situation is in other areas,

em_cat

Doctors room ghost wrote: »

Were you ever at a greyhound racing meet at a track?

Yes, why?

Graces7

pointer28 wrote: »

We have the most gorgeous 10 month old Greyhound that was handed into the local dog rescue, with papers, microchip, tattoo and vaccinations. No idea why she was handed in at 4 months but they obviously saw something that suggested she wouldn't be a successful racer.

She was one of the lucky ones and if I'm honest I think sometimes the Greyhounds that are euthanased are better off than some of their brethren that are shipped abroad for who knows what kind of life.

Would recommend a rescue Greyhound if anyone's thinking about it, very gentle, very clean and apart from 20 minutes of galloping morning and evening, quite happy to lounge around and be quiet the rest of the time.

wish I could. Really wish that . It was in my mind as soon as I saw this,

Doctors room ghost

em_cat wrote: »

Yes, why?

Where did you see hare carcasses and what bait were the trainers using?

em_cat

Doctors room ghost wrote: »

Where did you see hare carcasses and what bait were the trainers using?

I scantly remember a news article of the place, I was about 5 or 6 years old at the time. It wasn't only hare carcasses, they used live rodents and squirrels too. The place was strewn with their remains as well as the remains of battered greyhounds. This wasn't in Ireland, it was in the south, near Tampa, FL.

Decuc500

Doctors room ghost wrote: »

Where did you see hare carcasses and what bait were the trainers using?

I saw two guys training greyhounds in an empty field behind my brothers house (in a remote area in the country) using a hare as bait.

Do you think this doesn't happen?

Graces7

Graces7 wrote: »

........

Is this really true?

Yes........common knowledge amongst animal rights groups too.
Protests at many greyhound tracks are regular occurrences to try and highlight this to the attendees.


Look at the comments after this article from 5 years ago.
https://www.thejournal.ie/irish-greyhounds-global-betting-1677551-Sep2014/

Doctors room ghost

Decuc500 wrote: »

I saw two guys training greyhounds in an empty field behind my brothers house (in a remote area in the country) using a hare as bait.

Do you think this doesn't happen?

It does happen of course it happens.
But the idea of hares being used at tracks is wrong.
They chase a windsock on a motorized rail.

em_cat

Doctors room ghost wrote: »

It does happen of course it happens.
But the idea of hares being used at tracks is wrong.
They chase a windsock on a motorized rail.

TBH though, live bait shouldn't be used at all, either in training or at the track.

Doctors room ghost

em_cat wrote: »

TBH though, live bait shouldn't be used at all, either in training or at the track.

Fully agree with you.

I’m sure that it’ll be a well balanced program with contributions from both sides. Though from the trailer I’ve seen it’s only a homing center spokesperson with nothing from the greyhound racing authority.
I also wonder if coursing greyhounds are included in the figures or are they part of the disappeared?
I’ve been involved with greyhounds all my life. Yes, there are some bad eggs, but the Irish Greyhound Board have been very pro active in recent years regarding welfare issues and getting homes for former racers. My children were reared with retired greyhounds in the house and they couldn’t make better pets.

DBB

Doctors room ghost wrote: »

It does happen of course it happens.
But the idea of hares being used at tracks is wrong.
They chase a windsock on a motorized rail.

Let's not forget that (a) racing greyhounds are trained off-track to live prey, and (b) the significant proportion of greyhounds that aren't bred to race, but to course hares at legitimate (and in all too many cases, illegitimate) coursing meets or sessions.
So, whilst live animals are indeed used out of the public gaze, hares are also hunted for "sport" in Irish Coursing Club registered coursing fields the length and breadth of the country.
I can hear the cries of "oh, but we let the hares go afterwards... There are wildlife rangers on site ensuring welfare... If it wasn't for us there wouldn't be a hare left in Ireland"... But having had a fair bit of exposure to the seedy underbelly of the industry, I simply don't believe them.
That said, the industry is slowly but surely dying on its arse. It can't fold up a day too soon for my liking, both for the welfare of the dogs, and more importantly to me, the welfare of our native Irish hare, found nowhere else in the world.
I hope this program causes an outcry that speeds up the industry's demise.

Doctors room ghost

DBB wrote: »

Let's not forget that (a) racing greyhounds are trained off-track to live prey, and (b) the significant proportion of greyhounds that aren't bred to race, but to course hares at legitimate (and in all too many cases, illegitimate) coursing meets or sessions.
So, whilst live animals are indeed used out of the public gaze, hares are also hunted for "sport" in Irish Coursing Club registered coursing fields the length and breadth of the country.
I can hear the cries of "oh, but we let the hares go afterwards... There are wildlife rangers on site ensuring welfare... If it wasn't for us there wouldn't be a hare left in Ireland"... But having had a fair bit of exposure to the seedy underbelly of the industry, I simply don't believe them.
That said, the industry is slowly but surely dying on its arse. It can't fold up a day too soon for my liking, both for the welfare of the dogs, and more importantly to me, the welfare of our native Irish hare, found nowhere else in the world.
I hope this program causes an outcry that speeds up the industry's demise.

Fully agree.

Deleted User

Deleted User wrote: »

............
I’ve been involved with greyhounds all my life. Yes, there are some bad eggs, but the Irish Greyhound Board have been very pro active in recent years regarding welfare issues and getting homes for former racers. ..........s.

You reckon all former racers are homed?

Doctors room ghost

Augeo wrote: »

You reckon all former racers are homed?

I’d hazard a guess that up to 90 percent are culled when finished with. I know several people who used to be involved in racing.majority are put down by injection or shot.thats the reality of it but it’s a reality that the public don’t want to know about.
Once they can turn up for the company night out at the dogs and have a bet on a dog cos they like it’s name that’s all that matters to these people.
If hounds were being rehomed they would be everywhere with the amount that’s bred.its a cruel throwaway industry

jackboy

DBB wrote: »

I can hear the cries of "oh, but we let the hares go afterwards... There are wildlife rangers on site ensuring welfare... If it wasn't for us there wouldn't be a hare left in Ireland"... But having had a fair bit of exposure to the seedy underbelly of the industry, I simply don't believe them.

They absolutely do let go of the hares afterwards. Coursing clubs do protect hare populations. If hare coursing was banned in Ireland there would no doubt be a drop in the hare population.

jackboy

jackboy wrote: »

They absolutely do let go of the hares afterwards. Coursing clubs do protect hare populations. If hare coursing was banned in Ireland there would no doubt be a drop in the hare population.

The only positive from the trailer is the highlighting of illegal coursing, though I very much doubt that the finger will be pointed in the right direction!

Deleted User

Deleted User wrote: »

The only positive from the trailer is the highlighting of illegal coursing, though I very much doubt that the finger will be pointed in the right direction!

Where's the right direction?

jackboy

Deleted User wrote: »

The only positive from the trailer is the highlighting of illegal coursing, though I very much doubt that the finger will be pointed in the right direction!

Yes, I’m expecting a half ass documentary which will be full of sensationalism while ignoring those who are destroying hare populations and inflicting awful abuse on dogs.

‘There is an evil in this country’ the trailer says.

DBB

jackboy wrote: »

They absolutely do let go of the hares afterwards. Coursing clubs do protect hare populations. If hare coursing was banned in Ireland there would no doubt be a drop in the hare population.

Even if I bought that, which I don't, the act of trapping, transporting, corraling, chasing, re-corralling, re-transporting hares is appalling bad for their welfare, leaving aside the absolute fact that too many hares get injured and killed at meets in the name of sport, a fact that is publicly denied by ICC, but they know fine well it's more common than they'd have us believe.

I regularly meet certain people out coursing hares illegally. I've yet to see the local coursing club address this by any means other than lip service, and unless this illegal activity happens 9-5 Mon-Fri, the NPWS aren't going to do anything about it. The only people who have ever helped in any way when I report this illegal activity is the Guards.
To be fair, one of the successful prosecutions of an owner for abuse of his greyhounds listed in the OP's article was dealt with by the ICC... I know this as I played a direct role in getting them involved when the matter was brought to my attention. But as the article states, the number of prosecutions is pitifully small, and I have never seen any measures taken when hares end up being injured on the coursing field.

Doctors room ghost

DBB wrote: »

Even if I bought that, which I don't, the act of trapping, transporting, corraling, chasing, re-corralling, re-transporting hares is appalling bad for their welfare, leaving aside the absolute fact that too many hares get injured and killed at meets in the name of sport, a fact that is publicly denied by ICC, but they know fine well it's more common than they'd have us believe.

I regularly meet certain people out coursing hares illegally. I've yet to see the local coursing club address this by any means other than lip service, and unless this illegal activity happens 9-5 Mon-Fri, the NPWS aren't going to do anything about it. The only people who have ever helped in any way when I report this illegal activity is the Guards.
To be fair, one of the successful prosecutions of an owner for abuse of his greyhounds listed in the OP's article was dealt with by the ICC... I know this as I played a direct role in getting them involved when the matter was brought to my attention. But as the article states, the number of prosecutions is pitifully small, and I have never seen any measures taken when hares end up being injured on the coursing field.

It’s the absolute height of cruelty.chasing a terrified hare for the sake of sport while the toffs cheer on. The same toffs wouldn’t run 50 yards with the lard bellies on them.
I’m all for fishing and shooting where prey is dispatched and consumed in a respectful way but the idea of chasing an animal just to see who has the quickest dog is absolute boll1x and should be confined to a dark distant memory

DBB

jackboy wrote: »

Yes, I’m expecting a half ass documentary which will be full of sensationalism while ignoring those who are destroying hare populations and inflicting awful abuse on dogs.

‘There is an evil in this country’ the trailer says.

Oh now jackboy... We all know there's a certain group of people responsible for illegal killing of hares and abuse of dogs... But using this as a smokescreen to defer attention away from the "legitimate" culling and exporting of unwanted registered, traceable greyhounds within the legitimate industry of racing and closed coursing is just that... A smokescreen.
The number of retired/unwanted dogs that B na gC and ICC has facilitated the rehoming of is absolutely miniscule compared to what is disposed of via less palatable means every year. But doesn't it look good on paper when they say they rehome dogs? The truth is a long way away from their public statements. This, I hope, is what tonight's program will throw light on, so that people who go to legitimate B na gC and ICC events know what actually goes on in the background.
The carry-on of illegal coursing folk is a whole other documentary altogether.

uck51js9zml2yt

jackboy wrote: »

Yes, I’m expecting a half ass documentary which will be full of sensationalism while ignoring those who are destroying hare populations and inflicting awful abuse on dogs.

‘There is an evil in this country’ the trailer says.

There sure is, but I think dogs are the least of those evils.

jackboy

DBB wrote: »

Oh now jackboy... We all know there's a certain group of people responsible for illegal killing of hares and abuse of dogs... But using this as a smokescreen to defer attention away from the "legitimate" culling and exporting of unwanted registered, traceable greyhounds within the legitimate industry of racing and closed coursing is just that... A smokescreen.
The number of retired/unwanted dogs that B na gC and ICC has facilitated the rehoming of is absolutely miniscule compared to what is disposed of via less palatable means every year. But doesn't it look good on paper when they say they rehome dogs? The truth is a long way away from their public statements. This, I hope, is what tonight's program will throw light on, so that people who go to legitimate B na gC and ICC events know what actually goes on in the background.
The carry-on of illegal coursing folk is a whole other documentary altogether.

Yes there are a lot of issues in the industry which should be dealt with. However, banning greyhound racing and coursing will not improve the welfare of dogs and hares one bit. Only a broader approach which also highlights the biggest issues will achieve that aim. The purpose of this documentary will be entertainment, not properly informing the public. Just more trash journalism.