Greyhound Racing New Zealand continues to play the victim, while victimising greyhounds.
Continuing to claim the ban on dog racing is based on misinformation, they do not mention their own misinformation, failing to count injuries to dogs in training trials at racetracks.
Included in what is not included are the fractured or dislocated hocks of three dogs in a single training trial at Manukau, Auckland recently.
As they are cagey about providing information, the dogs were named by pet names only — Violet, Perky and Kahu — and required surgery. They are now in rehab.
There was no vet present, something the public are told always happens.
Industry stats do not include the fact that dogs suffer injury and pain that do not come under the "significant" category.
Only registering the worst possible injuries carves off a narrow view of greyhound welfare, while ignoring the wider picture of their pain and suffering.
It ignores spectacular falls with bodies twisting and contorting in all directions, long legs flying — at high speed and around bends, often during collisions, or "run on to the back of" and being clawed at and dragged to the ground by other speeding dogs — where astoundingly, no observable injury is detected.
It is not possible these incidents do not cause unreasonable and unnecessary pain and suffering — something the Animal Welfare Act sets out to protect animals from.
Treating this aspect of welfare as if it is not important — as long as dogs can walk afterwards — again shows how out of sync with societal expectations the greyhound racing industry is. The public expects better than this.
There are also the animals that "lose ground" and "appear awkward in gait" but are cleared of injury. Something has clearly happened, but it cannot be detected.
Smoke and mirrors on injuries; pain and suffering is only part of the industry continuing its old tricks.
There is also failure to report all falls at the lure. Two recent examples: on February 20 at Addington raceway, Xisco Bale fell at the lure in race 7. This is observable on the footage but was not mentioned in the report.
On February 24, Know Brakes was one of two dogs shown falling at the lure in race 8 at Addington. Her fall was not reported.
Where is the RIB in relation to greyhound injuries from training trials? They do not keep records. Meanwhile, dogs continue to suffer collapse, seizures, broken bones and death on racetracks after running for 30 seconds or less.
The industry hopes to overturn the ban while continuing to kill and injure dogs for no purpose other than entertainment.
Not a cat in hell’s chance.
• Lynn Charlton is an animal rights advocate.
