Status of the Greyhound Breed

A producer/director of documentary films, Bill Buchanan, is making a documentary film about greyhound racing titled - Greyhound: Racing Into The Light.  Mr. Buchanan's stated goal is to present a film that is neither pro nor anti racing... a film presenting the facts and views from both sides. Needless to say, skepticism abounds on both sides of the fence.

Most recently, it came to light that David Wolfe, National Greyhound Adoption Program (NGAP), was one of the people with whom Mr. Buchanan has spoken. As one person has said, "David Wolfe has a really bad (and well-earned) reputation, and anyone whose name is linked with him tends to be tainted by association."  The general consensus among those closely involved with greyhounds on most levels is that Wolfe is a snake, the lowest of the low. And, because of Wolfe's reputation, rumors started flying and people were jumping onto the Bash Buchanan Bandwagon.

I must admit that I am skeptical that Buchanan can pull off his pet project. But, I'm willing to give him a chance.  I feel it is IMPORTANT that those on the Pro-Racing side of the fence, NOT lower themselves to participating in the Carey Nation's favorite game - people bashing based upon rumor, distortion, and personal feelings. People bashing based upon facts is something different.  There's a saying that has been attributed to Benjamin Franklin, "Believe none of what you hear and half of what you see."  We really don't want to emulate Grey2K's founders now, do we?  I'm off my soapbox now.

Back to Mr. Buchanan, Elaine S. contacted me to tell me she left a comment on his blog with regards to the comment,

"I would appreciate hearing from people involved in greyhound racing no matter how directly or indirectly you may be and from those opposed to greyhound racing. Who knows, perhaps the frank and open discussions between the warring parties GREYHOUND: Racing Into The Light will present will help them find a little common ground."

Here is most of the post Elaine S sent to me...

"Yesterday, I left a comment on the blog for the film, Greyhound: Racing Into The Light.  I flat out told Bill Buchanan that the two sides will never meet - Grey2K & Racing. I also sent him my phone number and stated that he let me know if I could be of any help to him. 

As you know, I breed AKC greyhounds and my last litter was the result of an AKC sire & an NGA dam, which I purchased. I suggested to Bill Buchanan that my view on the racing matter is totally different and emphasized that I firmly believe the racing bloodlines are needed to keep the greyhound breed alive & genetically diverse and I gave him a brief rundown of the current state of show bred greyhounds, as it appears to me, and what I believe will happen if greyhound racing is banned.  

One of my greatest fears is that if Grey2K and the anti-racing advocates have there way, greyhounds will become extinct. They don't believe it because they believe that greyhounds will always be bred, but who will be breeding them? There is no reason for the racing people to continue breeding them if they cannot race. It could possibly be the death knell for a wonderful breed."

Elaine's comments to me got me thinking. What would happen to the breed if Grey2K is successful? So, I did some digging. I want to know if what she fears is a true & possible result.  Here's some of what I found...

In the AR's Own Words
It is a known fact that Grey2K and it's minions continually state that the breed will not "go away" or "suffer" if greyhound racing is banned. Common sayings denying that the breed would be in trouble would include:

"Greyhounds have been around since before racing and will be around if racing ends."

and

"Will greyhounds become extinct? Not for many years if at all...definition of extinct is when there are less than a 1000 specimens - In all honesty I don't think it will happen."

and, the most used...

"Greyhounds are one of the most ancient breeds of dogs known to man and have existed in their most current incarnation for centuries. Greyhounds existed before the creation of dog racing and were originally bred in the Middle East for hunting purposes. Greyhounds thrived long before dog racing and it seems certain that they will do so after racing no longer exists."

All of these are assumptions by the AR folks.  We all know what the word - ASS U ME - means, if not, we should.

Anyway, here are some facts that I discovered in researching this post.

Facts & Figures
An article in the Jan 27, 2012 issue of Dog News by Laura Quickfall titled "Breeds at Risk of Extinction in the UK" on page 67 states, "A breed is deemed to be at risk of extinction when it numbers less than 300 puppy registrations per year". The show Greyhound registrations with the Kennel Club in 2011 numbered fourteen (14) puppies. The breeding number is DOWN 78.5% from the preceding year. It's my understanding that in the UK, racing & coursing bred greyhounds CANNOT be registered with the Kennel Club. So...  the Kennel Club population is definitely at risk.

The official figures for greyhound registration, which were garnered from the Australian Kennel Club site, indicate that in 2009, 18 Greyhounds were registered. In 2010, there were 50, and 2011 there were 16 dogs registered. There were approximately 26 Australian show pups bred for the years 2009 - 2011. There were 4 born in New Zealand beginning of 2010 or 2011.

There are 173 recognized breeds in the AKC. On the AKC website, there's a list of the popularity rankings of the various breeds. In 2001, Greyhounds were ranked at #123. In 2011, Greyhounds were ranked at #140 - the breed has dropped 17 places.

The highest number of AKC Greyhound litters bred in somewhat recent history was 22 litters, which if they averaged 8 pups per litter would be 176 puppies - not enough to maintain a healthy gene pool, especially when one takes into consideration that some of them will be castrated.

Conclusions
It's fair to conclude based upon the numbers that the show population of greyhounds appears to be in serious trouble with fewer than 200 pups registered in the USA, Australia and the United Kingdom. From where will the show breeders get fresh genetic material?

If Grey2K is successful in its effort to shut down racing worldwide, it is safe to say that well bred, racing bred dogs will pretty much cease to exist - except for those kept by hobby breeders and those who would breed them indiscriminately.  The greatest portion of a relatively large gene pool will cease to exist and to me, a greyhound aficionado, that is frightening.  It will be disastrous for the breed.  The greyhound, as we know it, could easily become an extinct breed.

A couple of months ago, Absolut vodka released an ad which show robotic greyhounds in 2049. If Grey2K and that organization's buddies - HSUS, PeTA & ASPCA, have their way, it is not inconceivable that our future will not have greyhounds, or any other breed, in it.

There's a book titled “Animal Rights vs Nature” written by Walter E. Howard back in 1990. Dr. Howard was a biology professor at the University of California at Davis for 43 years. His Ph.D. was in vertebrate ecology with an earlier degree in Zoology. He wrote more than 430 publications and circulated reports on animal welfare, ecology, behavior, population dynamics, and management and control of wild animals. This is a gem of a book and it has many wonderful quotes.

Many times, we have heard from the Carey Nation how they want to "end the cruelty of greyhound racing, end the suffering of the dogs."  Dr. Howard makes this wonderful statement,

“The only way to abolish pain and suffering to all animals is to eliminate (exterminate) these species.”. 

So, where will YOU be getting your next greyhound?  Where do YOU stand on the racing issue?  Do you support Greyhounds or do you support a political agenda?


Yours in greyhounds....