A New Life for Florida Greyhounds

This is just to inform.  I am neutral on this issue.  My concern is for the greyhound groups 
who will have to place many dogs.

opinionzoneblog.palmbeachpost.com

This past election day, Florida voters took a stand on what has been a source of contention between greyhound advocates and greyhound track owners for many years.  With the passing of Amendment 13, greyhound racing became banned in the state.  This was a long hoped for victory for many greyhound advocates.

orlandoweekly.com

 There are two sides to this story.  The obvious side is that  many of the Florida greyhounds, but not all, will not have to work anymore and will be adopted.  Some of the greys will still race and will travel to tracks outside of Florida.  Other states such as Arkansas, Alabama, Iowa, Texas, and West Virginia still run greyhounds.  And, of course, there are tracks in Mexico.

The majority of the Florida greys will be picked up by greyhound rescue groups.  Unfortunately, the people responsible for this legislation did not write into it a contingency for funds to help greyhound groups with this onslaught of dogs.  Most groups exist on donations and fundraising events.  This large amount of dogs needing homes will tax the resources of most groups.  Rescue groups have been trying to prepare, and, hopefully, the number of dogs will not exceed their capabilities.

foxnews.com

 All Florida tracks must close by December 31, 2020.     Thousands of dogs (up to 8000) from the tracks will have to   be placed in the course of 26 months, and that number does  not include puppies on greyhound farms not yet old enough  to race.  Many people will have to open their homes to  fosters and adoptions to alleviate the influx. 

floridagreyhoundassociation.com

I don't have strong political feelings about greyhound racing in this country.  I did know methods embraced by the sport were not in the best interests of greyhound welfare.  Crated for many hours a day, the possible administering of drugs in some cases, and the injuries and broken bones that plague greyhounds running at high speeds on a track were concerns for me.  

 I have never been to a greyhound track or kennel so I don’t really know how greyhounds are treated there.  But I do know that although I’m sure that running is their favorite thing to do, occupying a crate for most of their days is not healthy for a dog.  And although  they can break bones in the backyard (I know because it happened to my Kiowa), the possibility of breaks increases running at high speed on a track on a regular basis.

winknews.com

 It’s unfortunate that people in the  racing industry will be affected by these closings.  But the Florida greyhounds will wake up to a new life, one with loving families and warm beds. And they will only dream of chasing a mechanical rabbit around the track.

Resources:

Greyhound Racing in Florida will end soon.  What will happen to thousands of hounds?, Richard Bennet, greytarticles.wordpress.com

Victory For Florida’s Greyhounds!, Stephen Wells, Nov. 2018, thebark.com

Future Unclear for Thousands of Greyhounds That will Need Homes Following Florida Racing Ban, Devan Stuart Lesley, Nov. 2018, people.com