“RSPCA Australia considers that there are significant ongoing animal welfare problems in the greyhound racing industry”

Greyhound racing industry self-regulating itself is a get out of gaol free card. To claim being able to self manage the industry themselves is clearly not the case.

Premier Peter Malinauskas says he is no longer willing to accept industry’s assurances following footage allegedly showing man kicking and punching dog. Peter Malinauskas says the footage showing the alleged mistreatment of a greyhound ‘needs a strong response’.

An independent inquiry will be conducted into South Australia’s greyhound racing industry after a video emerged showing the alleged mistreatment of a dog.

The premier, Peter Malinauskas, said he had viewed the footage and was angry about it. It allegedly showed a man kicking and punching the animal.

Malinauskas said the government had previously received assurances from the greyhound racing industry that such behaviour did not occur.

He said he was no longer willing to take such assurances as gospel. “This strikes me as being animal cruelty at some of its worst,” he said on Wednesday.

“You can’t help but get angry when you see footage like this. It needs a strong response.”

The premier said he would announce the terms of reference for the inquiry and who would lead the investigation within a month.

He said he continued to believe greyhound racing had a role to play in SA. “But it’s got to be clean,” he said.

Greyhound Racing SA (GRSA) said it was appalled by the video and stewards had immediately served an inquiry notice and opened an investigation.

Both trainers on the property were suspended ahead of a formal interview.

Animal welfare officers inspected the property on Wednesday and were satisfied with the current welfare of all dogs, which will be removed and placed at other training facilities.

GRSA welcomed the calling of an independent inquiry.

“We believe our track record over recent years demonstrates our ability to effectively administer the rules of racing,” it said in a statement.

“But we are always looking for ways to improve in line with our commitments to welfare, transparency and accountability.”

The emergence of the video came after SA’s first confirmed case of live baiting, which resulted in life bans for three greyhound trainers last month.

Wastage and Greed

Around 40% of the 11,000 greyhounds bred in Australia each year are surplus to requirements. Greyhounds are transported nationally and internationally for breeding and live exports. Breeding occurs mainly by artificial insemination, which is invasive, painful, and stressful for the animal. 

There is currently no independent body that provides published data on the lifetime outcomes for greyhounds born into the greyhound racing industry in most jurisdictions. This lack of publicly transparent data on greyhound life outcomes creates a niche market for the use of greyhounds in research, and veterinary schools, as a live export commodity, all of which have emerged in response to this ongoing over-breeding of dogs.

The Greyhound Racing industry is still overseen by the Greyhound Racing Authority which is responsible for both the regulation of the industry and its commercial development, promotion, and marketing. This self-regulatory model fails to ensure that the welfare of greyhounds is prioritized and can lead to serious conflicts of interest. A prime example is the use of financial incentives to promote greyhound breeding, which in turn increases wastage rates. 

In South Australia, $4 million dollars of taxpayer money is handed out each year, typically in the form of incentives for breeding or prize money bonuses. Greyhounds are generally raced from one and a half years of age until they are two to five years old, dependent upon racing performance or injuries sustained. Once a greyhound is no longer profitable, they are ‘retired’ and rehomed. Rehoming programs cannot keep up with the supply of animals. It is not illegal to euthanize animals if they are deemed “unsuitable” for rehoming. In fact, in 2021, sixteen greyhounds were euthanized for behavioral problems. However, these behavioral problems are a direct consequence of the way the racing industry treats these animals.

Injury and Death Rate

In 2021, there were 815 reported injuries and 20 on-track deaths in South Australia. There were 16 greyhounds euthanized due to behavioral concerns, 21 greyhounds euthanized due to injuries, 21 greyhounds euthanized due to illness, and a further 44 died of ‘natural causes.

Injuries are very common in greyhound racing and are the main contributor to the pain, suffering, and distress of the animals. The most common injuries include bone fractures and muscle injuries followed closely by hypoxic fits and heat stress. These injuries are often sustained when a greyhound accelerates while turning around the bend in the race - track, falling over, or colliding with other dogs. Injuries can also be sustained in the catching pen where greyhounds can crash into one another, or the pen itself, causing serious harm. These race day injuries are a serious contributor to the yearly euthanasia rates.

The over-breeding and large-scale killing of greyhounds should be construed as gratuitous killing for sport or entertainment. The export of live greyhounds raises the broader question of Australia’s accountability for animal welfare standards post-export.

Poor Housing

Greyhounds are kept in poor conditions during their time in the racing industry. Greyhounds are typically kept in small, barren, single-dog kennels for 23 and a half hours a day. In South Australia, the legislation only requires greyhounds to be out of these kennels for half an hour per day. 

The conditions greyhounds are kept in can lead to a large variety of issues, some of which last the rest of their lives. The lack of heating or cooling leads to greyhounds developing kennel coat or heat stress and the hard, bare surface of the kennels causes baldness and skin conditions. 

The more significant impacts can include the dogs chewing on the wire of their kennels, which causes long-term tooth wear or damage, which in conjunction with the diet the greyhounds are fed, leads to horrible dental health by the time they leave the industry. The high stress and isolation also cause greyhounds to become socially deprived which in turn makes them more likely to develop fearfulness and aggressiveness or other antisocial behaviors. This is an incredibly important factor, as this is the reason most greyhounds are euthanized for “behavioral issues”. 

Greyhounds are not typically socialized with other dog breeds or given any “real life” experience. This can negatively impact them long-term if they get the chance to be a pet when their time in the racing industry comes to an end. Greyhounds might struggle with interacting with other dog breeds, particularly the smaller ones, and can struggle with basic things such as the noise of cars or buses on a road. They can also develop separation anxiety once they have finally found a human they feel close to. These issues can take months or even years of patience and training to be resolved, even if they can be resolved at all.

Administration of Banned Substances

Various pharmaceutical substances have been administered to racing greyhounds in the quest for enhanced performance and increased potential to win races. Common drugs frequently found in racing greyhounds include amphetamines, methamphetamines, caffeine, anabolic steroids, Viagra, cocaine, and Erythropoietin (EPO) among others. There are long-term physical and psychological impacts associated with the use of banned substances and is a serious cause for concern for animal welfare.

Training

Live baiting refers to the practice of using live animals for the purpose of training greyhounds. This practice is illegal in all states and territories in Australia. There is strong evidence this still goes on. The bait animals involved experience significant pain, fear, injury and distress and will eventually die. The same animals may be used repeatedly, suffering a very long and painful death.