A motion put to the Victorian Legislative Council by the Animal Justice Party (AJP) calling for Greyhound Racing Victoria (GRV) to include more detail on animal welfare integrity data has caused a divide among the greyhound-racing community and animal activists.
The motion was passed on Oct. 16, receiving 23 “yes” votes to 14 “noes”, to increase protocols on record keeping—with a focus on injuries incurred at the track and on training paddocks.
The AJP member of the Legislative Council for Northern Victoria, Georgie Purcell, strongly advocated for the motion, arguing there was a high demand from lawmakers and the general public for greater transparency in greyhound racing.
But GRV CEO, Stuart Laing, believes his industry is being punished for taking steps to address animal welfare.
Laing released a statement on Oct. 18, and highlighted that over the past four years, total injuries in Victorian greyhound races have dropped more than 8 percent.
He added that last season, more than 92 percent of all racing injuries were deemed by the officiating on-track veterinarian to be non-serious, and that the injuries deemed serious represented 2.46 injuries per 1,000 starters (or 0.2 percent). This figure was down on a year-by-year basis.
Laing also said that fatality rates in Victorian races were down more than 47 percent compared to five years ago, refuting claims made by the AJP and other anti-greyhound racing activist groups that GRV has been lying about its figures.
“GRV remains as committed as ever, as we know the greyhound racing community in Victoria is as well, to the key priorities of greyhound welfare and maintaining the integrity of the industry,” he said.
Animal Justice MP’s Plea
Purcell said greyhound-racing industry members should not fear these changes, or think they are part of a broader agenda to end the sport.But if it was up to her, Purcell—who has also campaigned to end live sheep exports, ban duck hunting, and push for more stringent pig welfare protocols among others—said she would ban greyhound racing.
“If opposition members want the greyhound racing industry to thrive in this state, they need to support measures that will maintain their social licence, which is rapidly deteriorating every single day,” she said in Victorian Parliament.
“If members love and support this industry, then they should not fear the GRV giving us more data.
Top Trainer Goes in to Bat for Industry
Former Greyhound Clubs Australia (GCA) Trainer of the Year David Geall, has always welcomed tough animal welfare regulations, which is why he gets frustrated when his industry appears to get targeted by activists.“Every greyhound trainer and breeder have property and animal welfare inspections each year, where each greyhound is scanned and inspected to ensure all greyhounds are healthy and all properties are up to GRV standards,” he told The Epoch Times.
“They [anti-greyhound racing protestors] bring up things that happened 30 years ago, but everything is so regulated now.”
Geall—a two-time Melbourne Cup winner—is also a greyhound breeder.
He breeds one litter a year and has 15 racing dogs in work.
The AJP website states that greyhound racing is “cruel and dangerous,” and that “there is massive overbreeding and those dogs that are not valuable for racing disappear with no hope of adoption because of the sheer number of dogs involved.”
Geall disputed this, saying nothing gave him more joy than seeing one of his retired greyhounds being adopted by a loving individual owner or family.
“We had one lady on her farm who adopted one of our greyhounds seven years ago,” he said.
“She rang us two weeks ago and took one of our dogs called Hill Top Jonnie. He’s gone to her place and she loves him.
Pushing Back Against Negative Headlines
Outside of the greyhound-racing industry, the sport has received intense scrutiny from media since the live baiting saga in 2016.The document, written by former chief vet of Greyhound Racing NSW, Alex Brittan, alleged widespread animal abuse and persistent reporting and oversight failures.
Purcell says she was left shaken by the report.
“Just this year, 40 greyhounds have been killed and 4,600 have been injured on NSW and Victorian greyhound racing tracks—and those are just the deaths and injuries we know about,” she said at the time in a statement to The Epoch Times.
“Gambling and animals simply don’t mix, and the continuous animal welfare issues and high death rates of injuries and deaths make it clear that this industry can’t operate without systemic cruelty.
“A ban on greyhound racing is the only way to stop the consistent catastrophic injuries, deaths and animal cruelty occurring—we are calling for a ban to be legislated as soon as possible, alongside a support package to retire greyhounds and transition workers out of the industry.”
The Brittan report was tabled in NSW parliament and it made national headlines in a blow to the greyhound racing industry.
But prominent trainers Peter Lagogiane (NSW), and Anthony Azzopardi and Mark Delbridge (Victoria) spoke up in defence of their industries.
“As for somebody saying we mistreat them [greyhounds], nothing could be further from the truth,” Lagogiane told The Epoch Times.
“If we see someone flying foul of the rules, of course, we’re going to stand up, speak up and step in.”
Similarly, Geall said he did not believe GRV would publish false numbers regarding greyhound injuries in order to protect its participants.
“It’s a great industry, and it [bad headlines] is very frustrating for us trainers because the vast majority of trainers and breeders love their greyhounds, and treat them very well,” he said.
“I don’t know why it’s some people’s business. GRV make stringent rules whether we like it or not—they’ve put stringent rules in place and we’re doing our utmost to follow them.”
The Epoch Times contacted Purcell’s office for further comment.
