Leading independent homefinder Kevin Stow, who runs the Lincolnshire Greyhound Trust, is advocating two significant welfare reforms to reflect changing attitudes within the greyhound industry.
The first is to scrap the ‘economic euthanasia’ section on the GBGB’s rehoming form.
He said: “As someone who works closely with the industry, I can see the good and bad. I don’t think the industry deserves much of the bad press it receives but ‘economic euthanasia’ is – to use an unfortunate but appropriate phrase – ‘a self inflicted injury’.
“While I understand why it came about to protect owners and trainers from vet bills running into thousands of pounds that they couldn’t pay or for trainers who were left with abandoned dogs by owners.
“I am told the GBGB can warn off and fine a bad owner, but they can’t enforce the fine and for the trainer to pursue to owner through the civil courts is time consuming, expensive, and with no guarantee of success.
“So, traditionally, trainers felt they had no option other than to take the dog to the vets.
“But how does that phrase look to someone on the outside of the industry? For those who think the industry destroys the majority of its ex-racers, that phrase just confirms what they always thought.
“With more tracks helping with veterinary costs, and more money being put into re-homing, that trainer has more options open to him than ever before.
“If a track is prepared to help re-home a dog, why put it to sleep? As for injuries, top vets like Daniel Doherty and Alesandro Piras tell us that very very few serious injuries are bad enough to require euthanasia on compassionate grounds.
“Greyhound people know that some trainers have used the injury excuse to save themselves the cost of treating or re-homing a dog.
Greyhound racing has to look at the real issue and that is, how many dogs are put to sleep not because the trainer can’t afford to keep the dog, but because they don’t want to keep the dog?
“Phil Taylor who works at various racing kennels has launched a petition on Change.org calling for the removal of ‘economic euthanasia’ as a reason to have greyhounds put to sleep. I know that there are many within the greyhound industry, including some track owners, who agree.
“Secondly, because I care about the wonderful athletes that make our sport what it is and because as an individual who works with the sport I know that there are many more good trainers than bad ones, I have introduced a self certifying Ethical Trainers List.
“An ethical trainer is one who does not euthanase healthy or ‘repairable’ greyhounds.
“While some may consider having a leg amputated to save a dog it is clear, and in my opinion reasonable, if some say they would not or do not think their dog would cope on three legs.
“But as I said earlier, most career ending injuries are not life threatening. Conversely, a pup running around a paddock can shatter a leg, or an ex-racer slip its lead, be hit by a car and need to be destroyed. That is life when you live and work with animals.
“Some people may point out, quite rightly, that it is an owner not the trainer who is responsible for the dog and a trainer can’t be held responsible for an owner making a fatal decision.
“This is absolutely true and the owner must carry the ultimate responsibility for their dog. But an ‘ethical trainer’ would not, and should not, want an owner with such an attitude in their kennel.
“The idea of the list is it is a self certifying list of trainers willing to say, on principle, they’d do ‘the right thing’ by all their dogs.
“The anti racing groups, and even some within the sport, would also be keen to pick holes in it so a trainer would need to be confident they can answer any issues.
“The list would be run by myself and independent of the GBGB and I’ll publicise those that have said they’d be happy to be on such a list. It is incredibly easy to administer and not a problem to update the list regularly.
“Who’d not want to be on a list like this? Naming and praising good people seems a really good idea and when the statistics are released in 2018 those on the list will hopefully be able to show they were not the ones who were responsible for the majority.
“I know in the past when I tried this idea some very welfare conscious trainers said they didn’t see a reason to sign or be part of it and maybe that was the case then. But things are different now and those doing the right thing need to be saying they are.
“Like anything I am sure there will be some negativity and some people may be quick to slate the idea and find problems.
“That is fine and anything constructive I am willing to listen to, but something needs to be done to continue the momentum of the green form petition so I ask any trainer who wishes to be a part to get in touch and I’ll add them.
“Alternatively if you’re an owner speak to your trainer and ask if they are willing and able to be a part of it.
“The list will already contains champion trainer Mark Wallis , Kevin Hutton, Sarah Spillane and Paul Philpott.
“If YOU are prepared to make that commitment, please get in touch.
“One thing that these two initiatives will do will show up greyhound racing’s critics. Will they support them because they really want to make things better
“Or do they have their own agendas?”
