Traceability, a myth of the Greyhound Racing Industry.
For years, Greyhound Welfare Activists have continuously pointed out the flaws and shortcomings of Greyhound Racing Irelands Traceability system. Dogs were only being traced if they made it to the track, leaving a gaping hole for thousands of “ghost greyhounds”, those dogs who are tattooed but not named to fall through. The RTÉ documentary, Greyhounds Running for Their Lives, based on the findings of Preferred Results Ltm. confirmed that thousands of Greyhounds were not being traced by the system and simply “vanishing”. Many ghost greys are known to have been killed; Shot in knackeries, dumped in quarries, drowned off the coast, etc. Many are dumped in pounds or on private rescues to try and find homes for. Two of those Ghost Greyhounds, named “Katie” and “Susie” were rescued by the DSPCA after they had been locked in a shed for a number of years, in conditions that would shake you to the core. Covered in filth and terrified of the world outside of their rank, decrepit home, these two greyhounds sparked controversy when the GRI harassed the DSPCA over the fact they were refereed to as “ex racing” greyhounds. They claimed that as the dogs had never actually raced, it wasn’t the GRIs responsibility to look after them, despite the fact the dogs were born to racing parents, registered and tattooed with the greyhound studbook with the intention to race and even named to race. The traceability and welfare systems didn’t cover dogs who didn’t actively make it to the track to race.
Even those dogs who did make it to the track, including dogs who made names for themselves and won some serious prizemoney were not being adequately traced. Dozens of Irish “Champion” Dogs have turned up in Spain, China, Pakistan and further afield, with many of these dogs still registered to their original trainers and apparently residing here in Ireland.
Off the top of my head, I can pull a number of examples, but the list goes on and on:
Mileheight Alba, Irish Born and Bred, still registered to his original trainer, despite being exported to China.
Granard Swift, listed as “rehomed” in Tipperary when in reality, she was exported to Pakistan.
Dirtbird Mac was rescued in Spain, lame on three legs at the time, despite being listed as “rehomed as pet”
Mustang Sanchez, still registered to his original trainer, whilst being used for stud in China.
Leonas Skylark, listed as “rehomed” when he was in fact in China at Stud.
The old system had a shocking handle on where dogs ended up, often just changing the status of dogs to “rehomed” when they couldn’t actually trace the whereabouts of the animal. The GRI acknowledged many of the shortcomings at multiple points, and as part of the Five-Year Plan, set about establishing a new, comprehensive traceability system, active from January 2021, which will track all dogs from the time they are microchipped. This sounds like a great step forward, tracing all the dogs, regardless of weither or not they make it to the track, right? Imagine my surprise, or lack thereof to be honest, when scrolling on Instagram, I came across “Bad Fella”.
According to user Greyhound_Kingdom, who regularly shares content regarding Greyhound Racing in India, one of the top performers of the season was an Irish Import, going by the name “Bad Fella”, but who was originally named “Walk on Sid”. Showing off the dog, they had posted his pedigree, which does indeed show his land of birth being Ireland. Following the tagged account brings you to Bad Fella/Walk on Sids personal Instagram Account, which provides more proof that this dog is currently in India, and seems to be doing quite well for his owner.
Walk on Sid, a pup out of a litter by Droopys Sydney and Annual Tears, bred by a Mr. David Wilson, born 2nd July 2019. He was owned and trained by Village Crew Syndicate, and raced at Irish tracks including Shelbourne Park Greyhound Stadium, winning a total prize money of €1690 for his owners. He is currently listed as still being owned by the Village Crew Syndicate, residing in Wicklow.
RCET claims all dogs are being tracked and traced from the time they are microchipped, so how is it that Walk On Sid, who lasted raced in Ireland in August 2021, in now in India with no acknowledgment on either the Greyhound Racing or Coursing websites? His Instagram account first posted on 31st October 2021, with videos and photos continuing to be posted to this day. There are dozens of videos of Bad Fella/Walk On Sid Racing, dozens of him at events, and even one stating that he is meeting one of his pups.
How is it that a 23 year old scrolling Instagram can trace the current location of an Irish Greyhound better than the purpose built traceability system supposedly in place to track ALL the dogs produced by the Racing Industry. Both accounts I pulled this information from are public, and not trying to hide any names or information. They are proud of their Irish Imports, and constantly share footage of them racing, walking them, breeding, etc. This information is clearly available, and should be even more accessible for a purpose built system to trace. There are dozens of other Irish Greyhounds being shared across Facebook, Instagram and Twitter in countries like Spain, Pakistan, China, Vietnam and India. The names and pedigrees are proudly shown. So why is it so difficult for the Irish Racing Industry to keep track of them?
TW: #Animal Abuse, #Animal Neglect, #Animal Death, #Animal Exports, #Dog Death, #Dog Abuse, #Dog Neglect
