By Dick Ciampa
Over the years Grey2K has put out much misinformation about greyhounds. They have campaigned with simple messages, repeated over and over, to paint a picture of abuse and mistreatment calculated to make caring, trusting people believe theirs is the whole and true story.
Grey2K has, for example, taken an extreme and isolated case like Ronnie Williams and portrayed it as the norm in order to reinforce their carefully crafted fundraising objectives.
Stepping back for a moment, consider the consequences if every kennel treated their dogs like that. Would there be any dogs left to race? Would there be any dogs to adopt?
Many people have adopted greyhounds to “rescue” them from the conditions described by Grey2K, conditions alleged to include routine abuse, poor diet, and tens of thousands of dogs killed each year. And yet, just about everyone who adopts a greyhound tells you how wonderful they are, and how great their disposition is.
Remarkable isn’t it, how abused and mistreated hounds change in the blink of an eye into tail-wagging, happy, loving pets. The real explanation is that their wonderful dispositions are the result of their upbringing. They are great and loving pets because of the care they received from the farm to the kennels.
Consider for a moment the amount of rehabilitation needed by abused dogs. It is simply not credible that dogs said to have left the track abused and mistreated could be transformed overnight.
Consider also that Grey2K doesn’t turn the kennels into animal control agencies in spite of all the abuse they claim to have observed. Wouldn’t that be the immediate reaction of most people?
As to the much-maligned greyhound diet, since the beginning of racing greyhounds have received food that they thrive on, typically raw ground beef (4D meat) mixed with many other health-promoting ingredients. Grey2K likes to make 4D meat sound bad by saying it is marked “Not for Human Consumption” and they are right. It isn’t for human consumption. This overlooks one basic, obvious fact: greyhounds are not human, and time has proven that it is perfectly fit and safe for their consumption.
When has a greyhound died from consuming this meat? That information is nowhere to be found in Grey2K campaign literature. Could that be because it has never happened?
Grey2K and allied organizations like GPL, PETA and ALF claim, variously, that 10, 15, 20 thousand greyhounds are killed every year. That is a very interesting claim considering the facts:
In 2011, 11,759 pups were bornGreyhound racing breeders are required to report every pup born in the litter including stillborn pups. Some of the surviving pups may, contrary to Grey2K claims, be lost before 3 months of age - the runt doesn’t make it, the mother accidentally smothers one, some get sick and die, it happens to every species and greyhounds are no exception. Even ignoring those details, based on the number of deaths claimed by Grey2K, how can there be any greyhounds left?
In 2010, there were 12,801
In 2009, there were 15,584
In 2008, there were 20,365
In 2007, there were 20,227
Grey2K loves to take credit for things they didn’t do. They like to point out that when they started there were over 50 tracks and now only are 23 left, implying they were responsible for all those closures. They then ask for donations to help close the remaining tracks.
The truth is, every track outside of Massachusetts closed for reasons that had nothing to do with Grey2K. The economy closed some. The Kansas tracks closed because they didn’t like their cut of the slot money. If they get a better percentage of the slot money they will re-open.
Victoryland’s owner closed the track when he was accused of wrongdoing unrelated to greyhound racing. He has since been found not guilty and has plans to re-open.
Grey2K says greyhound racing is legal in 7 states; however, it is, in fact, legal in 49 states. In some states wagering on greyhounds is illegal, but races can still be run in those states and they can simulcast their signal if they want to.
Grey2K claims to be all about the dogs, but they make no attempt to ban non-betting greyhound races. They have no concern about lure coursing or flyball, yet greyhounds and other breeds get hurt in those sports too.
One can only conclude that while Grey2K isn’t billed as anti-gambling their board members are. Carey Theil, board member and co-founder of Grey2K, sits on the board of directors of the anti-gambling group Stop Predatory Gambling.
Rev. Tom Gray, board member of Grey2K, is Field Director and spokesperson for Stop Predatory Gambling.
The great illusionist David Copperfield makes you think he can walk through The Great Wall of China. David Copperfield has nothing on Grey2K.
If you want to help greyhounds, please support your local greyhound adoption group. Visit http://www.adopt-a-greyhound.org/directory/list.cfm for a comprehensive list of adoption groups in the US and elsewhere.
How can one dispute the injury reports from these active dog tracks? i.e. Mardi Gras' June report, 42 injured, 1 dog put down due to an injury suffered while racing.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.grey2kusa.org/pdf/JUNE2012_MARDI_GRAS_INJURY_REPORT.pdf
No one has ever said that dogs do not get injured. They do and, sometimes those injuries are bad enough that the dog needs to be put down. It happens every day, everywhere, regardless of whether or not a dog is racing on a track.
DeleteWhat is objected to and disputed is the unjustified sensationalism that in embarked upon and how statistics are manipulated by Grey2K to present a situation that does not exist in modern greyhound racing. Rather than portraying an injury as what it is, an accident, they portray them as an intentional abuse placed on the dog.
Overall, the rate of injury of any sort is very low, less than 1%) because the animals are kept in outstanding physical condition, fed right, and they are closely monitored after each race for any signs of lameness, inappetite, temperature, soreness, etc. When an injury or some other situation is detected, steps are taken to correct it.
Sadly, groups like Grey2K are trying to take away our rights as owners of animals, regardless of species. They would mandate that our animals live in situations that would remove all possibility of any kind of an accident. Horses could not be ridden or evented; dogs could not be raced (any racing) or coursed. They would make it to where people would not be able to decide if a dog is too sick or too injured to save and they would mandate that an attempt be made to save at dog at all costs, regardless of one's means.
Ownership involves making some tough decisions for our animals, whether or not others may agree with those decisions. It is not up to Grey2K or any singular person to decide the fate of my animal. That rests solely with me and, contrary to what some would have you believe, it is part of being a responsible animal owner. It's the hardest decision, knowing when to say when.
If a dog breaks a leg in your backyard and is not expected to survive surgery, what do you do? Do you attempt to save it at all costs or do you do the humane thing and help the dog along? If a dog has cancer, do you help it along at time of diagnosis or do you string it along until the dog is in absolute misery? These are the same decisions faced by ALL dog owners, not just pet owners. For one to assume, as Grey2K does, that the racing folk choose to put a dog down is strictly because of cost is not only insensitive, it shows how clueless they are about life. I suspect that they would string a dog along, having that animal live in misery and pain all for their own selfish reasons.
By the way, just to be perfectly clear, I am speaking for myself and not for all of racing with these thoughts.
Sigh... this is so typical... Your link was checked and, as usual, the material there is quite dated. The newest article is 12 years old! Prior to that, articles are from 1997, which is 15 years ago. Good grief!
ReplyDeleteAlso, everyone please note... the foul language, the name calling, the 'screaming' that this anti is engaging in. Again, so very typical. If one cannot argue logically, rant, rave & engage in other juvenile behaviors, such as name calling. One has to wonder if the poster even knows what a Nazi is? They bandy the description about so much! Let's not forget former Grey2K Board member, Karen Zoldan's words which were used to describe a clean greyhound kennel, "It looks like Auschwitz." Such disrespect and such a lack of sensitivity... Tsk Tsk...
Yours in greyhounds...
The Greyhound reports are sent by the 6 states that are still accept Greyhound racing in the US. You are obviously someone who has benefited from monetization of Greyhounds. Your Laissez-faire attitude supporting well documented Greyhound abuse and euthenization confirms my aforementioned statement.
ReplyDeleteAccidents do happen to animals on a daily basis but what dog owner among us would place a beloved pet in harm's way.Greyound tracks do this multiple times on a daily basis and accept the consequences, oftentimes death through euthenization.As a pet owner who has just adopted his 3rd Grey I assure you I would protect my animals against such unnecessary risk. Have you ever adopted a Greyhound or do you just support their use as a tool to entertain no matter what the risk?
I am not making any money from Grey2K, I am just an educated dog owner who believes in preserving life not risking it for profit. The intelligent, educated person can see the truth and the lies from this site.
Theodore Johns