Greyhound racing is not an innocent pastime.
Greyhound racing is legalized animal cruelty. Here’s why.
Facts (sourced from GREY2K USA and the Committee to Protect Dogs):
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Racing greyhounds spend between 20 to 23 hours of every day in tiny cages. In some, they can’t even stand up all the way. They only come out to race or if there’s a medical concern to address. Greyhound racing defenders argue that they let their dogs out three to four times a day for 15 or 20 minutes each time, but if they realize their math, that is 22-23 hours a day (or more) confined in their cages. Read more about confinement here: https://www.grey2kusa.org/about/confinement.php.
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Racing greyhounds frequently test positive for drugs that help them run faster or keep their endurance up. Just since 2008, GREY2K USA has documented over 400 violations right here in our country, including drug positive tests for cocaine, ractopamine, anabolic steroids, and industrial solvent dimethyl sulfoxide. Read more about the drug use here: https://www.grey2kusa.org/about/drugs.php.
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Racing greyhounds get fed the meat that is officially deemed dangerously unsafe to eat. This meat is called 4-D meat named for the four qualities it may possess: dying, diseased, disabled, or (already) dead. At many tracks, it’s even served raw. Read more about 4-D meat here: https://www.grey2kusa.org/about/4dmeat.php.
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Racing greyhound puppies are not properly socialized. Even as puppies, they don’t get to bound around with each other, play with a ball, or anything. They are born to just be running machines, and are treated as such. This means that even if they get adopted, they won’t know how to play with toys and it could take a little bit of time for them to learn how to cuddle up with you because of their trust issues with humans. I learned this from Gold Coast Greyhounds, whom we adopted our greyhound, Henry, from.
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Racing greyhounds get injured all the time on the track. They frequently trip and fall when running into other dogs or turning corners. The most common documented injuries are broken legs, broken backs, head trauma, and electrocution. (At some tracks, the dogs get electrocuted from the ground beneath them at the gate to give them a jolting start to the race.) Read more about injuries here: https://www.grey2kusa.org/about/injuries.php.
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A racing greyhound dies at a Florida dog track about every three days, according to official Florida records. 94% of those dogs are three years old or younger. 483 racing greyhounds have died just since 2013, when reporting of racing greyhound deaths became a mandatory policy. Read more about deaths here: https://protectdogs.org/about.
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Greyhounds perform in extreme weather, when it’s very unhealthy to even be outside. Read more about the weather conditions here: https://www.grey2kusa.org/about/weather.php.
In order for a greyhound to be adopted and to have a better life, the dog has to get lucky a handful of times. This is what it takes for a rescue greyhound to end up retiring to a loving home:
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The greyhound has to survive their racing career, literally.
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The greyhound has to be adopted by a rescue agency. If the dog completes his or her racing career, he or she may be adopted by an adoption agency as to avoid euthanization.
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Finally, the greyhound has to actually get adopted by a loving owner and successfully acclimate to a new home.
In 2009, my family adopted our greyhound. His racing name was Hairy Duck, and we renamed him Henry. He can run very fast, but doesn’t run often. Almost all the time, he just loves to lay in his bed. He likes to be where people are in the house, and loves to have his ears rubbed. He doesn’t bark!
Henry retired at just two years old and was rescued by Gold Coast Greyhounds in Orlando, FL. When we first adopted him, the poor puppy was still in the racetrack world in his mind. When you throw a ball, his ears perk up and he just stares at it and moves on with life. That was a weird thing to get used to when we adopted him. He also was extremely skinny and very timid around humans. We started feeding him properly for the first time in his life and started showing him constant love, and he settled into our home very well. He learned that he loves to eat fruits and vegetables, too.
The good news is that Amendment 13 to the Constitution of the State of Florida is on the ballot this year. Amendment 13 will completely phase greyhound racing out of Florida by 2020. There are 17 greyhound tracks currently operating left and 11 are in Florida, so if Florida ends greyhound racing, that’s saving most of these dogs and the activity will probably die out completely soon after.
Remember: Much of the time, a vote for yes or no can pass by just a very miniscule percentage, for better or for worse. Our votes matter! Each one matters. If 13 goes through, all of our Floridian greyhounds will finally be free. They will live lives full of love, joy, and decent respect. The lives they deserve.