Where have Walthamstow's greyhounds gone?

Greyhounds UK have an excellent letter published in the Racing Post, announcing the publication of their Walthamstow data.

Dear Sir

Walthamstow closure

Today Greyhounds UK has published its analysis of the greyhounds which ran at Walthamstow shortly before it closed in mid-August to identify how many dogs have gone on to establish stable lives elsewhere. The data is on our website www.greyhounds-uk.org which has the facility to accept update information on any dog. We intend to do the same for dogs displaced by the closure of Reading racetrack.

This analysis concentrates on the 399 dogs of Walthamstow-attached trainers and is entirely factual. It contains no judgments and uses only information publicly available or from anyone having direct knowledge of specific dogs. The initial results of this analysis were passed to all relevant trainers, kennels, the BGRB, NGRC, and RGT and any comments received have been included.

So what did we find? Broadly, 60% of the dogs have definitely established stability elsewhere. However, 38 dogs have not been seen in public since Walthamstow closed; the remainder have not raced with a frequency likely to pay their keep for two and a half months. This is very worrying in itself without considering the future viability of dogs displaced at other tracks by ex-Walthamstow arrivals.

What we have done for Walthamstow is the product of the efforts of one Greyhounds UK analyst in his spare time on a home computer – literally one man and his dog.

So why hasn’t the greyhound industry, with all its money and resources, done full analyses of the destination of every dog at every track – and published the results?

This week’s disclosures in the Sunday Times of the ending of the lives of discarded greyhounds in such ruthless and shameful fashion should make the promoters and bookmakers realise that they have to sign up to openness and guarantees for the dogs’ futures if their businesses are not to be overwhelmed with sleaze.

If the Greyhound Board of Great Britain is to be any different from its secretive predecessors, it must get a grip on this issue.

Yours faithfully

To view the analysis of Walthamstow track closure please click here

http://www.greyhounds-uk.org/

UPDATE ... 14/11/08

Dear Sir

Walthamstow closure

Thank you to the owners and trainers who have given further information through our website www.greyhounds-uk.org about greyhounds which ran at Walthamstow. The BGRB has also provided details of greyhounds which have trialed at other tracks, several only last week, and some other dogs.

It is now clear that 67% of the greyhounds that ran at Walthamstow shortly before it closed in mid-August went on to establish new stable lives elsewhere – either racing at other tracks or joining a re-homing scheme. However, despite it being 3 months since Walthamstow closed, there is no evidence that any of the remaining dogs are stable – most of them have trialed or raced only occasionally over the last 3 months and many have not been seen for 2 months or more. Finally, the number of greyhounds which have disappeared from view altogether now stands at 18. The first priority for the BGRB is to find these dogs.

I continue to have cause for concern and repeat my call to the industry in my letter last week to get its act together: the BGRB racing form data should be extended with details for every greyhound of its destination after ceasing to race. In the meantime, we will continue our analysis of the greyhounds which raced at Reading .

Yours faithfully

PREVIOUS UPDATE 22/08/08

Following the closure of the Walthamstow greyhound stadium in the UK last Saturday, Greyhound Crusaders/SWAP team UK have been in touch with the person who is in charge of re-homing all the unwanted greyhounds. We have been informed that there are 160-170 greyhounds needing forever homes. 100 of those greyhounds are being kept at a trainers kennels and the rest are being taken in by Retired Greyhound Trust kennels. £150,000 has apparently been given to help the re-adoption of these greyhounds.

Forever homes are now needed. We are not appealing for rescue places at rescue centres as we have been told that the greyhounds are already in rescue and need to go straight to forever homes.

If you would like to adopt a greyhound please email us at greyhoundcrusaders@googlemail.com or southwestanimalprotection@yahoo.co.uk and we will put you in touch with the re-homing co-ordinator. Homechecks will be carried out. If you have cats please advise the rescue as cat friendly greyhounds will be found.

Greyhounds make the most wonderful companions, they are couch potatoes and contrary to popular myth they do not need loads of exercise, two twenty minute walks a day are recommended. Many are wonderful with children and can be great fun to have around.

Please read on for more info
1) Walthamstow re-homing appeal (from www.greytexploitations.com )

Despite the ‘Save Our Stow’ supporter’s allegations of corruption over the sale of Walthamstow, we think it is now safe to say the track, baring a miracle, will never hold another greyhound race again.

But we hope you will agree, before we can congratulate ourselves on a job well done, we still need to consider the greyhounds that will now be ‘surplus to requirements’.

Not only those greyhounds made redundant from Walthamstow but also those greyhounds that will have been displaced by some Walthamstow dogs moving to other tracks.

Of course all of these greyhounds are the responsibility of the industry but as the industry allows for euthanasia if the greyhound is ‘unsuitable for re-homing' and space will be limited, many may not even make it to an RGT kennel.

There will also be greyhounds sold to race on independent tracks and when injured or retired, the industry takes no responsibility for these. Often abandoned, their lives will depend solely on independent rescue centres who receive no industry funding at all.

So please ask friends and neighbours to consider adopting a greyhound, particularly if you live in the South East area.

Nationally, greyhound rescue centres are full to bursting point, so if you cannot commit to the long term responsibility, please consider fostering a greyhound. Your local rescue centre will have further details on fostering arrangements and the rewards can be truly amazing.

If adoption or fostering is not an option for you, please consider making a donation to one of the independent 'Rescue and Re-homing' centres listed on this link.

http://greytexploitations.com/greyhound-protection-links

2) CONTACT WALTHAMSTOW AND DEMAND THEY MAKE PROVISION FOR THE DOGS

Please email Mr Chandler and the British Greyhound Racing Fund and request that the near half a million pounds awarded to the track as 'Stadia Improvement Grants' be returned and used to ensure the welfare of greyhounds forced into retirement who presently race at Walthamstow.

All rescue centres are either full already or, if they take a Walthamstow greyhound, this will just take the place of another dog that will end up being put down instead.

The only way the Walthamstow greyhounds can be saved, without causing other dogs to be put down in their place, is for the track owners and/or racing industry in general to make special provision for them.

Appeal from Greyt Exploitations

PLEASE FORWARD FAR AND WIDE

CLOSURE OF WALTHAMSTOW STADIUM

As you will probably now be aware, Walthamstow has sold the stadium to property developers and greyhound racing has finished. It is anticipated the closure will lead to 100's of greyhounds being "retired" in the next 3 months.

Mr Charles Chandler is a director of Walthamstow Stadium, and the stadium has received no less than two 'Stadia Improvement Grants' from the British Greyhound Racing Fund in 2006 and 2007, amounting to £438,826. These grants were awarded whilst Mr Chandler was also a director of the British Greyhound Racing Fund.

We are appealing to you today, to email Mr Chandler and the British Greyhound Racing Fund and request that this near half a million pounds be returned and used to ensure the welfare of greyhounds forced into retirement and who presently race at Walthamstow.

I hope you will agree that the responsibility of these greyhounds lay firmly with the industry, who have made huge profits for the owners of Walthamstow.

As the RGT is greatly under funded and has enormous waiting lists, Greytexploitations will be suggesting that the returned monies should be made available to ALL re-homing centres, independent and RGT, who can offer to kennel and re-home an ex Walthamstow greyhound.

Please contact Charles Chandler at Walthamstow Stadium reminding him of the industry's responsibility towards these greyhounds.

Please also contact Charles Lenox-Conyngham, Chairman of the British Greyhound Racing Fund, urging him to either recover the Walthamstow grants or to allocate funding specifically for the retirement of these greyhounds.

Charles Chandler can be contacted via the Directors Secretary
debbie@wsgreyhound.co.uk

Charles Lenox-Conyngham can contacted via the British Greyhound Racing Fund
info@bgrf.org.uk

Walthamstow Owners and Welfare Association can be contacted here
http://www.wsretiredgreyhounds.co.uk/

Please remember to be polite in all correspondence and thank you for your time.
info@greytexploitations.com

Details of the grant awarded to Walthamstow in 2007 can be seen here, section 9. 'Related Party Transactions'
http://www.bgrf.org.uk/files/BGRF2007.pdf

Details of the grant awarded in 2006 is no longer available online.

If you would like a copy of the British Greyhound Racing Fund financial statement for that year, detailing the £284,892 grant awarded please email
info@greytexploitations.com

Greyhound Action Comment : It's important to remember that no dogs will be put to death because of the closure of the stadium. They will be put to death because of the failure of their racing owners and the racing industry in general to fulfill their moral duty to look after them following the closure of the stadium. Up to 200 additional greyhounds could be discarded by the industry following the stadium's closure. However, it's important to remember that the existence of the stadium is responsible for the deaths of over 500 greyhounds every year, so it is obviously far better for it to close than remain open.


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