Due to the high-profile cases that have come to public attention through media coverage, most people today know that there is something wrong with the greyhound racing industry. Those who have read about the mass killing carried out by David Smith of Seaham, Co. Durham and exposed by the Times newspaper in 2006 will know that it is happening on a massive scale. Smith was convicted of killing 10,000 greyhounds over a period of years and burying them on his land. Another case that garnered media coverage was that of Andrew Gough, who left a greyhound named Rusty to die on a Welsh mountainside. Gough shot Rusty and cut off his ears to remove the ear tattoos through which he could identify himself. Unfortunately, Rusty didn’t die immediately and was still alive and whimpering for help when a man found him days later, he had to be euthanized on scene by a vet.
These are just two cases that made headlines. There are many hundreds more that don’t. More information can be found on my website and others like it. Most people, when they hear about cases like these, are horrified. Before the media got involved, the general feeling seemed to be that such cases were rare, and the greyhound racing industry did its best to hold that view, and indeed still does. Unfortunately, the truth is that even the cases that have been exposed are a mere drop in the ocean of cruelty that is far more widespread than anyone outside of the industry can know, because it is a closely guarded secret. You can understand why this is the case quite easily. If the truth about the racing industry with his death and suffering was generally known, he would cease to exist, wouldn’t he? That’s a valid question actually. On the home page of my website are four photos of a greyhound with a statement about the racing industry followed by the question “does that look good to you?” Someone emailed me a while back saying it was okay for him and it was okay for greyhounds to suffer and die to entertain him.
Fortunately, most people are horrified by cruelty to animals and when they hear that someone is perpetrating cruelty, they will try to stop it. There are others who seem to have a different opinion. While they do not directly perform acts that cause suffering, they turn a blind eye to the things that others are doing, preferring not to hear about it lest it weigh on their conscience. These blind people are the most obstructive to anyone trying to bring about change for the better. They are the ones keeping the greyhound racing industry afloat despite mounting opposition from others more supportive. These are the people I want to address in this article.
If you ever go to a greyhound race, even if it’s just once a year for the company Christmas party, there’s no way you can escape the fact that you are a link in the chain of causation that ultimately leads to to the premature death of thousands of beautiful greyhounds every year in the UK alone. Saying that you are not hurting yourself is not enough. Compare him to a man who wants to build a house in a beautiful forest. Unless he is multi-talented, this man will employ various merchants to undertake the construction of his house, and when it is finished, he will only see the end result. A good home for him and his family. You don’t need to know if the electrician has put in mains or sockets, or if the carpenter has used beech or ash wood. He has trusted these merchants to do their job properly without his interference. You also don’t need to know about the ten beautiful mature trees that were felled to make way for your home and garden, with the subsequent loss of their homes to diverse wildlife. You don’t need to know any of this, but you can’t escape the fact that you are involved in it. In fact, he is the cause of it, because it was he who wanted his house to be built. He is a link in the chain, and when you go to a greyhound race, you are a link in the chain of causation that keeps alive one of the most exploitative and cruel activities in the world today.
Please remember this and don’t support greyhound racing by burying your head in the sand, and tell everyone you know what is happening in this terrible industry. There is a lot of information on my website and others. Take the time to take a look and learn more, then it’s your choice if you want to remain a link in the chain of death.