12 December 2018
353 dogs put to death in Greyhound Racing industry - SAFE demands a ban on greyhound racing

SAFE is demanding an end to greyhound racing cruelty, amid new figures that show the industry killed 353 unwanted dogs during the last season.

Greyhound Racing New Zealand released its 2018 Annual Report on Monday, which illustrates that 353 dogs were euthanised after the industry’s failure to rehome them. They claim this is the minimum number of euthanised dogs that can be achieved.

SAFE Head of Campaigns Marianne Macdonald says the report is a damning indictment on the industry.

"353 greyhounds killed is totally unacceptable,” says Ms Macdonald.

"The report states that they have tried everything they can but they still put hundreds of dogs down. This has been the problem all along, and after many years of reforms they still can't get their breeding down to a level that stops them from killing unwanted greyhounds."

This week’s report follows up from last year's Hansen Report on greyhound racing, which led to Racing Minister Winston Peters saying that the numbers of unaccounted for dogs and low numbers of rehomed greyhounds are, “simply unacceptable.”

“New Zealand is a country of animal lovers, yet we operate an industry that kills almost a dog a day for entertainment and gambling profits. This is a black stain on New Zealand’s reputation,” says Ms Macdonald.

“The industry is literally betting on these dog’s lives. This cruelty has been banned in the Australian Capital Territory and Florida, USA. New Zealand is falling behind, and our Government needs to take action to protect these vulnerable dogs.”

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