Dog Races

I dont think I would ever go to a dog race because I believe its mostly all about the money (the gambling) We live in Colo and Colorado Springs has a greyhound track. We were up there visiting a couple of years ago and I was looking in there paper and I kid you not there were pages and pages of greyhound rescues in just one of their papers.

If the dogs are loved and treated so well then how come there were so many rescues for them!?! I'm sure a lot are probably treated good and some people do race them for the love of the sport but there are probably many more that do it just for the money. IMHO anyway.....

I live just a short ways (about an hour and a half) from Daytona where they have greyhound racing. I have seen several dogs from off the track that have retired due to injury. A broken leg is certainly not uncommon. At the boarding facility I work at we board several retired greyhounds from the track and they ALL (and I do mean all) have bear butts from being in crates for such long periods of time. Also my best friend has been talking to greyhound rescue about adopting one from the track, and she probably will be soon. She seen and heard some horrible things that these dogs have been through. I am for one totally 100% against dog racing, it's a sick sport. If they love their dog and want them to run they can put them agility classes and keep them off the track.

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Originally posted by K9soul
I'm sure some of the people involved in racing greyhounds treat their dogs wonderfully, the best of everything, and so on. I don't think anyone disputes that. But let's get realistic here, all racers don't race because the dogs love to run and they want to see their dogs have a good time. They race to make money, it's part of the gambling industry, and don't even try to tell me that it isn't true that for some racers the dollar is top priority. And I'm sure that a racing greyhound message board will look a lot different than a greyhound rescue board. I also doubt that the people who treat their greyhounds badly would be involved in a greyhound msg board, just like you don't see people who hate and abuse dogs join Pet Talk.

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I agree completely.

I wish all greyhounds were treated as you describe, Cali, but know that it is not always the case.

Just as all breeders are not puppy mills, or evil back yard breeders, I am sure some greyhounds are treated well even during their racing career.

I have, however, seen horrific photos. And when I met my first rescued greyhound, many years ago, it was very sad. She was terrified of any loud noise. Her owner explained that she had never seen grass, and was afraid of it when she first was rescued, which made house-breaking her a challenge. She was leary of the furniture until she learned that a couch is a soft place to nap! She was very sweet, once I got down to her level and she learned I wasn't a threat, but every time another person walked by, she'd cower. Her owner said at home, she was much braver and more normal, but she had been taking her out to get her more (much-needed) socialization.

If dog races were held for the joy of it, and no animals were overbred, injured, starved, confined, undersocialized, euthanized when they didn't "win" races, if there were no horror stories associated with the track, if dog racing didn't just seem like another way for problem gamblers to lose money and not be at home, then maybe I would consider someday attending a race. Until then, I will not.

I have seen sight-hounds like greyhounds running for the joy of it, and it is a beauiful sight.

That reminds me of a show I saw on animal planet about a woman who rescues retired greyhounds. She talked about the extensive process of introducing the dogs to different textured floors, grass, carpet, everything! It is quite an extensive process when a dog has been raised in a kennel. I have had a few fosters myself who were scared of the world because of growing up in similar circumstances. It is almost a full time job to try to socialize them to the world when they are past their critical socialization period.

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Originally posted by cali
gee I must have my head in the sand because I know litterally HUNDREDS of greyhound owners, rescuers, and racers, who have all prooved that the greys ARE well takin care of etc.. if you think those dogs are muscular and have exellent structures, and are healthy from being treated horrably etc.. you are the one who has there head in the sand :rolleyes: there ARE greys that are treated badly, there are dogs of ALL breeds that are tyreated badly, there is aboslutly ZERO differnce between greys and any other breed of dog in this respect. the dogs are rarly in danger of veing put down, a kennel will keep the dogs until they find a rescue for them, some are put down yes, and some of every other breed on earth are put down for lack of homes too. the dog LOVE to race, its what they were bred to do, RUN. its exactly the same story as some people have with Flyball, people will say its inhumane, the dogs dont enjoy it, its dangerous. all words, no truth.

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You are an incredibly naive and pretentious child. I don't know where you heard this nonsense, or if you made it up, but do us all a favor and don't post total crap and try to pass it off as something you are some sort of expert in.

ANYONE with even the slightest experience with dog racing knows the horrors of it. EVERY racing greyhound will be killed when it no longer a winner, unless a rescue group can take it. A racing kennel will NEVER keep dogs until they find a home. That is far and away the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard. It would make me laugh if it wasn't so infuriating. I fostered racing greyhounds for years in Colorado. Not ONE of them was treated well or loved, and ALL of them were literally snatched from death's door.

If you do not know what you are talking about, please do not comment. Do us all a favor.

Well said Twister!

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Originally posted by micki76
Listen up Cali. For once I think you need to realize that there are people, who deal with this crap every day, day in day out. Believe it or not, they know a great deal more than you do on this subject. Somehow I seriously doubt that you personally know HUNDREDS of people involved in Greyhound racing, care, rescue, etc. If you do in fact, know SOME people that do care for their animals correctly, good for you, them, and the dogs.

But let me tell you this, you have NO IDEA that rescuers see on a daily friggin' basis with this industry. These dogs are killed, cast aside, left to die, and then the lucky ones are euthanized. Some are beaten to death. Some are starved. Their care is usually no better than at a puppy mill, unless they're a winning dog or a dog that shows promise that it will one day be a winner.

You just have no clue. :( Grow up and realize that you DON'T know everything about every thing. Open yourself up to learning something once in a while instead of acting like your opinion and "experience" is the only thing that's real.

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Thank you. I completely agree.

In response to the original question -- No, I would never attend one in a million years.

WOW, just WOW

If you take a look at my user name you will see that I'm a big greyhound fan :)

Have six that I share my home with. Have fostered several more, assist in greyhound adoption with several local and not so local greyhound ADOPTION groups.

There is a major ignorance going on here I see, and it's not the from the post of Cali :D

First off there is no such breed out there that you can use the word ALL on so I will leave that out ;)

Of my six hounds 4 of them came DIRECTLY from the racing kennels and came into my home as if they owned it.

Sure there are websites out there that will show you horrors of greyhound racing but have you looked at some of the adoption boards from greyhounds that there ADOPTIVE owners and the things that some of these people have done to there dogs?

Yes greyhounds are breed for racing which in turn is a money making business.

You can not force a greyhound to run if they don't want to. It's just that plain and simple.

Do I know what I'm talking about? H*ll YES I DO

I started out as a leadout at a greyhound track in Ct, then moved on to becoming a greyhound trainer, and now I raise, race and find forever homes for EVERY GREYHOUND IN MY KENNELS!!!

I've done dog grooming, dog obediance, agility, and now greyhounds.

Have a look at a website that will show you a bit more information about greyhound ownership from racing owner
Teamgreyhound

If you want to really learn about it and not just shoot off at the mouth about things that you know little to nothing about.

Please feel free to contact me and I am more than happy to share my experinces with you all :D

There is nothing ALL good or ALL bad in anything. That is just the facts of it long and short!

The only thing people have said here is that not ALL Greyhounds are treated as pets or as family as yours are.... but a LARGE majority are put down, or thrown out as if they were a broken down change machine.
The many greyhounds saw in shelters everyday are proof of that.
I don't see a bit of ignorance in that, but whatever you say.



Until I see EVERY dog treated as family and treated as they should be, instead of laying in exhaustion on the cement in the shelter, I do not approve of this "sport", nor would I want to attend a race.
http://img32.photobucket.com/albums/...ch11-12/27.jpg
One of the MANY i've seen at my shelter.

Here is what I was talking about. This is IGNORANCE!!

Just the key word rescuers, did these people go to the track late at night, sneak into the kennels, sweep the dog out of there crates and take them to an undisclosed location that the owners of the hounds didn't know about?

HELL NO!!! These dogs were handed over to the adoption groups by people who care about the hounds. Hell the owners probably send the groups a donation that no one talks about because they don't want people knowing about the caring greyhound owners!!

If you have a problem with the fact that the dogs run and the owners make money that's one thing but to claim that these dogs are treated poorly is a whole other story.

Until you go to a track and see the real workings of it then I dont' think that you should go spouting off at the mouth.

Doesn't people realize that greyhounds will get homes quicker by saying how poorly they are treated than. YOu know that whole pity thing?

So that's what I'm saying, educate yourselves a bit that's all ;)

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Originally posted by micki76
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But let me tell you this, you have NO IDEA that rescuers see on a daily friggin' basis with this industry. These dogs are killed, cast aside, left to die, and then the lucky ones are euthanized. Some are beaten to death. Some are starved. Their care is usually no better than at a puppy mill, unless they're a winning dog or a dog that shows promise that it will one day be a winner.

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HMMMM, exhaustion? LOL that is almost tooooo funny.

If I thought the dog was laying there due to exhaustion I would think that his/her tongue would be haning out and he/she wouldn't look too aleart.

Who's to say that someone that adopted that dog didn't drop it off because they didn't want it any more? Who's to say that dog came from a race track?

I just picked up to greys two weeks ago that the adoptive parents didn't want them anymore and just left them tied in the back yard.

Is that the greyhound racing industrys fault? NO, maybe it's the adoption groups fault? Maybe it's just an @sshole owner?

Nice looking hound though :)

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Originally posted by Kfamr
The only thing people have said here is that not ALL Greyhounds are treated as pets or as family as yours are.... but a LARGE majority are put down, or thrown out as if they were a broken down change machine.
The many greyhounds saw in shelters everyday are proof of that.
I don't see a bit of ignorance in that, but whatever you say.



Until I see EVERY dog treated as family and treated as they should be, instead of laying in exhaustion on the cement in the shelter, I do not approve of this "sport", nor would I want to attend a race.
http://img32.photobucket.com/albums/...ch11-12/27.jpg
One of the MANY i've seen at my shelter.

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Originally posted by greysandmoregreys
HMMMM, exhaustion? LOL that is almost tooooo funny.

If I thought the dog was laying there due to exhaustion I would think that his/her tongue would be haning out and he/she wouldn't look too aleart.

Ya think that maybe that picture was taken in a shelter and not the track? There is only ONE greyhound track in the US that I know has a cement bottom to the crates and that is in JCKC.

Nice looking hound though :)

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Maybe because it was cold out.
They rarely move at the shelter. And when they try, it's VERY hard for them. They all come with their "racing names"... all at around the age of 1-2. If their owners honestly cared about them they wouldn't dump them off at the shelter, they'd keep them and love them even if they can't race anymore.

I've even met a "retired racer" who as her description was raced, then when "she couldn't race any longer" was bred many times she was dumped at the shelter. All at the age of 2 years.
That's really a loving owner, huh?
NO. I'm not saying all greyhound owners an people who race them are like that, but until there are no longer "owners" like such I don't approve of the "sport".


YES... DUH. That's why I said that it was one of the many THAT I SAW AT THE SHELTER.
And it's there because it was dumped off like property.
I took the picture, i've been around many "retired racers"

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Originally posted by Kfamr

http://img32.photobucket.com/albums/...ch11-12/27.jpg

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How could anyone do something to such a sweet heart:(

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Originally posted by dogs_4_me
How could anyone do something to such a sweet heart:(

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I'm not sure.
I try to refrain myself from bawling everytime I visit the shelter.
In all of their descriptions it's something about "not good enough to race anymore, etc."

I really would like to adopt one, one of these days, but right now we're at our limit.

ive heard they need alot of TLC b/c lots of them arent used to being in a household,and being around people etc. I dont know if thats true or not,but i would LOVE to adopt atleast 2-3 retired racers.ive heard that they are wonderful family dogs,and i would love to have one.

ive never been to a Greyhound race,and i would never want to go.wehave a racetrack here in Houston and i get soo many sad thoughts everytime we drive by it:(
Kay-that dog is beautiful in your picture,do you know if he got adopted??