A possum, alive and struggling, her baby still clinging to her back, is tied to the lure arm along the rail. Behind the starting gate a dozen or so greyhounds wait, their eyes fixed straight ahead, their lean and muscular bodies taut with anticipation. The lure arm begins to move along the rail. As it passes the gate, a buzzer sounds. The gate doors fly open and the dogs explode onto the track at breakneck speed. After several laps, the lure arm slows to a halt. The baby possum is nowhere to be seen, having been hurled off somewhere along the track, her brains dashed out on the hard earth or perhaps trampled to death. The mother possum is still alive but limp; her spinal cord has been snapped in half. She squeals.
“It’s crying,” someone says. “It’s lost its baby.”
The track owner chuckles, and removes the dying animal from the armature.
This grisly scene is from a segment on the current affairs program, Four Corners, which aired on Australian television in February of this year. The program included graphic footage, including the scene above, filmed secretly by pro-animal activists that revealed the use of live animals including possums, rabbits, piglets, and kittens, in training racing greyhounds in three Australian states, Queensland, New South Wales, and Victoria. The practice is called live baiting, and it is not only bloodthirsty, it is illegal. The program included interviews with a number of leading greyhound trainers and track owners who denied the existence of live baiting, but there it was on film, and many of those doing the denying were shown to be involved in the bloody practice.
A live piglet used as bait at an Australian dog track.
The public and political reaction to the revelations was swift and widespread. At least one major corporate sponsor has withdrawn its support of greyhound racing in Australia.
In Queensland, 13 trainers are under investigation; five trainers have been banned for life. One trainer was removed from the Racing Queensland Hall of Fame, and the entire board of Racing Queensland was dismissed.
In New South Wales, the board of Greyhound Racing NSW was similarly dismissed, and a former Justice of the High Court of Australia was appointed to lead a review of the greyhound racing industry in that state.
In Victoria, the state government launched two separate investigations, and 15 trainers have been suspended.
Two other states, South Australia and Tasmania, have launched inquiries of their own and are considering changes in legislation to facilitate investigation into live baiting and strengthen penalties for those convicted of the practice.
Typically, though, one prominent politician, Minister of Agriculture Barnaby Joyce, has directed his criticism instead at the activists who allegedly trespassed to record the damning footage. One might wonder what other industries have Minister Joyce in their pocket or on their payroll.
Live baiting is illegal in the United States, too, but that doesn’t mean it’s not happening right here at home.
In 2002, Arizona greyhound breeder Gregory Wood lost his state license when racing commission officials found 180 rabbits on his property. A Texas breeder, Timothy Titsworth, had his license revoked when authorities came into possession of video showing him baiting greyhounds with live rabbits on his farm. Titsworth was initially charged with cruelty to animals, but his case was later dismissed.
But a 2011 FBI investigation into live baiting at a major breeding farm in West Virginia was not pursued to completion. Instead, the man who recorded video of what he claimed showed live baiting and other abuses at the farm was sentenced to six months in prison. The breeding farm being investigated was owned by the mother of West Virginia’s then-governor Earl Ray Tomblin. West Virginia is one of just eleven states where greyhound racing remains legal, and Freda Tomblin’s business collected more in state subsidies – over $2 million - than any other greyhound breeder in the state.
“Bait” animals are not the only victims of the dog racing industry. Greyhounds themselves — naturally gentle dogs — are often kept in deplorable and sadistic living conditions. Live baiters will taunt and incite their dogs to chase, attack, and ultimately kill small animals. If dogs fail to “perform”, they too may be killed.
There has been some progress. In thirty-nine states, commercial dog racing is now illegal. In four states – Oregon, Connecticut, Kansas, and Wisconsin – the last dog tracks have closed and ceased live racing, but a prohibitory statute has yet to be enacted. But in seven states – Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Texas, and West Virginia - pari-mutuel dog racing remains legal and operational.
And deadly.
In February 2015, greyhound advocacy group GREY2K USA and the ASPCA released the first-ever national report on greyhound racing in the United States. The detailed report chronicles thousands of injuries and hundreds of deaths of greyhounds in those seven states. The report, titled “High Stakes,” was mailed to state lawmakers and opinion leaders to urge them to bring an end to this inherently cruel “sport.”
Key findings of the study include:
Death on the track.
Greyhounds injured while racing between 2008 and early 2015 numbered an astounding 11,722. Injuries included severed toes, broken legs, spinal cord paralysis, broken necks, heatstroke, electrocution, and cardiac arrest.
At least 909 racing-related deaths of greyhounds were reported in this period. The true number of deaths is likely significantly higher as there are no verifiable statistics on the fate of those dogs that survive racing but are killed by handlers and track owners for no other reason than that they are considered no longer competitive.
There were 27 convictions of breeders, handlers, and track owners stemming from charges of cruelty and neglect. This figure suggests only a small percentage of the number of dogs who were starved to death, denied veterinary care, or endured poor track kennel conditions. Additionally, 16 racing greyhounds in Alabama and Florida tested positive for cocaine.
Since 1991, 41 dog tracks have closed or discontinued live racing, and the greyhound industry has seen a steady financial decline. Over the past decade, gambling on dog racing has declined by 66%. Government revenue from dog racing has dropped by 79% since 2001. Florida is home to twelve of America's 21 operating dog racing tracks, and the racing of dogs has faded so dramatically in popularity and profitability that even some track owners want to discontinue racing in order to cut their losses. Incredibly, though, a 1997 state law requires Florida track owners to continue hosting nearly as many races as they did two decades ago in order to keep their profitable poker and gaming rooms open. Consequently, in Florida and elsewhere, as profits have declined, cost-cutting attempts—like feeding greyhounds cheap and unhealthy “4-D” (dead, dying, diseased or down (disabled) at slaughter) meat—result in ever worsening track kennel conditions. This year, one greyhound will die at a Florida dog track every three days.
It is to our national shame that the sort of systematic cruelty leading to the deaths of thousands of innocent animals is considered a reasonable consequence of a legal “sport.” Whether by market pressures or the power of legislation, it’s time for it to end.
Let us work together to put an end to greyhound racing in the United States. Here’s how you can help:
Do not patronize greyhound races or venues that host greyhound racing.
If you live in one the seven states where greyhound racing is still in operation or in any of the four states where it has ceased but has not yet been legally banned, contact your state legislators and insist they act now to put an end to this cruel competition.
Join with or donate to any of the fine organizations who are already working to end greyhound racing by educating the public and pressing for legislation. GREY2K USA is devoted to this cause, as are the ASPCA, PETA, and many local greyhound clubs and organizations. Search the internet for one in your area; they're there.
Consider adopting a retired racing greyhound and encourage others to do the same. At individual tracks all over the country, the moment that racing season is over, hundreds of dogs are immediately in need of placement. Until greyhound racing is banned altogether, at least we can insure that fewer retired greyhounds will be put to death by finding good homes for these gentle, low-maintenance, family-friendly animals.
In loving memory of Chester: retired racer, best friend.