A greyhound purpose-bred to race faces a life of deprivation in incarceration. Racing in what they call ‘the fastest race on four legs’, the survival of these animals depends solely on their success at the racetrack. If they lose, a vast majority will be put to death. The Honourable Annastacia Palaszuck, Premier of Queensland, the Honourable Grace Grace,Minister for Racing, members of the Animal Right’s forum, and distinguished guests, good morning. As an investigator for the RPSCA, it is my role to expose the abhorrent treatment of animals, and most recently I have been looking into the treatment of Greyhounds within the Queensland Racing Industry. Based on my findings it is my intention today to convince you to take affirmative action by…show more content… Every year over 18,000 greyhounds are slaughtered. Of which 8,000 pups never make it to the racetrack, while the remainder are 'retired' from racing because they have no chance in winning or have outlived their competitiveness. This means of the 20,000 greyhounds bred for racing annually, nine out of ten will not reach their natural life span of 14 years. Staggeringly most will only live 3 years. Research by the RSPCA has found there are systemic animal welfare violations throughout the industry. A lack of breeding control has meant an over-supply of animals with many dogs ending up in research labs or teaching facilities such as Vet colleges. The recent GRNSW inquiry found hundreds of greyhounds deemed too slow were being exported to race in locations in Asia where they endure appalling conditions and high death rates. What’s more, the few dogs ‘lucky enough’ to make into the sport are often cruelly treated with many dogs suffering numerous injuries including over-exertion. Routinely an average five dogs die in the act of racing each week. They live in inadequate housing and face a lack of socialisation. However the brutality extends beyond the mistreatment of the greyhounds to encompass other small animals illegally used as live bait in the training of the
