Originally posted by wolfie
http://www.idahocage.org/fyi.htm
halfway down, titled "Racing Greyhounds Test Positive for Cocaine..." (but I heard it on the TV news)
You'll note that of the thousands tested only 4 dogs had "trace amounts" in their system, thousandths of the dose required to create any effect whatsoever. ARA outfits like to post this stuff in their ongoing propaganda campaigns, but this story has had little or no traction in the press because everybody with an ounce of common sense sees there is no problem. Neither the RI or FL Racing Commissions saw any reason to take any action. No allegations were made against a single track, trainer or kennel.

When one thinks about it, giving cocaine to greyhounds makes no sense. Trainers are paid on a commission basis. If their dogs don't do well, the trainer doesn't make money. He feeds and supplements his dogs with the best possible diet in order for them to compete at peak ability. Cocaine has no performance-enhancing properties---why use it?

The likely answer is that workers who process the meat have cocaine on their hands and the dogs ingest it directly through the food.

If they cared about them they would keep them
If one owns dozens of dogs this is not practical. There are thousands of people, however, who want them. When they adopt a greyhound they get a trained, purebred dog with a wonderful temperament and a documented ancestry. Some folks are "pre-adopting" dogs from breeders and get to follow the dog's career at the track. Many breeders remain in touch with the adopters of their dogs. My breeder friend has her office bulletin board covered with pet pics of the dogs she bred, trained and raced. Most people don't hear things like this because ARA groups focus only on the most sensationalistic stories.

Greyhound breedings have trended down over the past several years and adoptions are way up. The two will intersect at full adoption in the forseeable future, perhaps as early as 2007.