Following the recently announced national Injury Recovery Scheme (IRS), GBGB is partnering with Greyhound Trust and Monmore Green Stadium to launch an additional pilot with a view to ending any cases of unnecessary economic euthanasia. The new pilot scheme, which is being trialled at Monmore, aims to fully rehabilitate and home every greyhound that sustains a career-ending injury at the track.
Mark Bird, GBGB Managing Director, said:
“Over the past 12 months, as part of our Greyhound Commitment, we have begun rolling out a series of welfare improvements across the sport. We are very pleased that this new pilot, and future initiatives like it, will be assisted by the additional funding on bookmakers’ online betting revenue announced earlier this month.”
From Monday 21st January, any owner whose dog is injured at the stadium will – like all other trainers across the country – be offered financial assistance via GBGB’s Injury Recovery Scheme. However, under the pilot scheme, in the event that any owner is still unable to afford veterinary and treatment costs, the greyhound will be transferred to the Greyhound Trust and will be treated by their veterinary charity partner. The greyhound will then be able to recover in a Trust foster home before entering a homing scheme once fully recovered.
The pilot scheme will be funded jointly between GBGB and Ladbrokes Coral Stadia, with a contribution expected from owners towards the veterinary costs.
The additional Injury Recovery Scheme is being trialled at Monmore for a 12-month period and will be monitored closely by GBGB, with a view to a national roll-out should this prove successful.
Duncan Gibson, GBGB Welfare and Integrity Manager, said:
“We strongly believe that, wherever possible, every greyhound should make a full recovery from any injury that has occurred on the track and go on to enjoy a long and happy retirement. We understand that some owners, for a variety of reasons, are occasionally put into a hugely difficult financial dilemma in the unfortunate situation that their racer is injured.
“We hope that this extension to our Injury Recovery Scheme will act as an additional safety net to further protect the greyhounds at the heart of our sport and eliminate any instances of unnecessary euthanasia. We are grateful to the Greyhound Trust to their commitment to extending the scheme and would like to thank them for their support.”
Paul Mason, Welfare Officer at Monmore Green Stadium, said:
“The welfare and safety of the greyhounds running at our track is absolutely paramount so we’re glad to be part of this important pilot scheme. We’re hoping that it will prove successful and have positive application at other stadiums across the country – we’re looking forward to reporting back its results to the wider industry.”
Lisa Morris-Tomkins, CEO of the Greyhound Trust, said:
“It was clear that the base line injury and retirement figures published in 2018 must be improved; it is unacceptable that any greyhound suitable for homing is euthanised. This is why the Greyhound Trust has committed to work with the GBGB to pilot a scheme which will reduce the number of injury related euthanasia. To ensure we do not detrimentally affect greyhounds on our waiting lists, we are collaborating with other suitable homing charities to assist with homing once rehabilitation is completed.”
