Fact sheet 1:

YOU BET THEY DIE...

The shady background of the greyhound racing industry.

Fact sheet 2:

Measuring the Massacre

Just how many dogs are put to death by the greyhound racing industry.

Fact sheet 3:

Greyhounds as companion animals

A practical guide.

Fact sheet 5:

Hare Coursing

The connection between racing and coursing.

Fact sheet 6:

The Importance of publicity

Practical Info

Fact sheet 7:

Some typical examples of cruelty in the greyhound racing industry

Case Studies

Fact sheet 4:

Greyhound Racing in the USA

Info sheet about greyhound racing in the USA produced by GREY2K USA.

Click here to download a pdf of this info sheet

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The following fact sheet was produced by Greyhound Network News (GNN) and the Greyhound Protection League (GPL).

THE NATIONAL SCENE

As of August 2001, 46 operating greyhound tracks are conducting live greyhound racing in 15 states [19 tracks operate seasonally, 27 operate year round.]

The racing states and number of tracks in each are: Alabama (3), Arizona (3), Arkansas (1), Colorado (3), Connecticut (2), Florida (16), Iowa (2), Kansas (2), Massachusetts (2), New Hampshire (3), Oregon (1), Rhode Island (1), Texas (3), West Virginia (2), and Wisconsin (2).

Seven states have banned live and/or simulcast greyhound racing since 1993. They are: Maine (1993), Virginia (1995), Vermont (1995), Idaho (1996), Washington (1996), Nevada (1997) and North Carolina (1998*).

Based on recently published reports (August 2001), the dog racing industry continues to decline dramatically. According to industry statistics, dog racing held only a 0.7% share of the entire $61.6 billion annual U.S. gambling market in 2000, a decline of 6.65% or $32.6 million from 1999.

The nation's two newest tracks, Shoreline Star in Connecticut and Camptown in Kansas, both of which opened in 1995, went bankrupt within one year or less. Shoreline reopened as a seasonal track in 1998. Camptown, which reopened in August 2000 as a seasonal track, closed 13 weeks later. A third track, Valley Park in Texas, closed since 1995, reopened for simulcasting in 2000. A three- month live racing seasonal resumed in December.

Economic decline has forced the closure or the end of live racing at 16 dog tracks since 1991. Thirteen of the 16 are completely closed, including two that have been demolished, and three remain open for simulcasting only.

State revenues from pari-mutuel dog racing have declined significantly from 1990-1998 (latest figures available).Some examples: Kansas[-59%], Arizona [-68%], Massachusetts [-69%], Oregon [-70%], Florida [-71%], Connecticut [-79%] and New Hampshire [-84%].

* Live dog racing was outlawed in NC in 1954

GREYHOUND NUMBERS

According to industry breeding reports published in The Greyhound Review, 77,852 litters were registered by the National Greyhound Association between 1989 and 2000. Multiplying these litters by a [low] average of 6.52 pups per litter results in a minimum total of 507,596 greyhounds born in this twelve-year period.

Greyhounds are tattooed by three months of age and individually registered by 18 months. Of the 507,596 born, only 395,545 were individually registered - a discrepancy of 112,051 [22%] of puppies and young dogs that were culled [killed] from the system before the age of 18 months. Because rescue of young farm dogs is extremely rare, these culls are presumed dead.

A comparison of the published numbers against the estimated combined number of dogs that are still racing (40,000), alive on breeding or training farms (30,000), and dogs that have been adopted (113,000), indicates that more than 325,000 greyhounds, including the culled puppies, have died between 1989 and 2000.

On average, a revolving baseline of 1,000 dogs is needed to sustain a racetrack operation. As dogs grade off due to injury, age or poor performance, they must be continually replaced by a new population. § Between 1971-1990 the number of operating tracks doubled to 56. This rapid expansion fueled a two-decade breeding frenzy that produced approximately 450,000 greyhounds in the 1980's alone.

In 2000, approximately 26,500 greyhounds entered the racing system, and an equal or greater number of greyhounds, aged between 2 and 5 years old, exited the system. Approximately 13,000 "retired" dogs were rescued and adopted. An estimated 19,000 greyhounds were killed in 2000. This number includes 7,600 farm culls and 11,400 "retirees" that were not rescued.

This "sport" has conservatively claimed the lives of more than 1,000,000 greyhounds in its 75-year U.S. history.

For more info on greyhound racing in the USA click here to visit our international website or visit the websites below

www.greyhounds.org

The Greyhound Protection League (GPL) is the USA's equivalent of Greyhound Action.

www.greyhoundnetworknews.org

Greyhound Network News (GNN) is a tri-monthly anti-greyhound racing magazine published in the USA

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