Figures released by the Irish Coursing Club suggest that greyhound breeding is in freefall.
Litter registration figures for the first six months of the year are showing an 18.3% decline compared to 2019 (980/1199 litters).
However, many of those litters would have been from matings which took place in 2019 and many others prior to the onset of Covid. The more disturbing figure is the total number of matings for the first six months of the year (1195 from 1,588). That represents a 30.4% decline with no immediate likelihood of an upturn.
All of which is set against a 2019 final litter figure of 2,324 litters which was the lowest on record. Around 90% of UK racers are Irish bred.
