Four-year-old boy greyhound, Son Of Brock, was put down at the Bendigo track over the weekend, doubling the track’s annual death toll.
Son Of Brock’s killing has renewed calls from welfare advocates for the track and industry to be shut down.
According to the 28 June 2024 Bendigo stewards’ report for race 12, four-year-old boy greyhound Son Of Brock faltered on the home turn and pulled up in the home straight, suffering a right tarsal fracture. The on-track vet euthanised him.
In his lifetime he won a total of $16,130 in prize money.
Coalition for the Protection of Greyhounds (CPG) Victorian director, Harry Rothenfluh claims even champion greyhounds face a grim future once they stop earning money for their owners.
“Even dogs that have won tens of thousands of dollars, as soon as they have an injury like this, often they’re just put down,” he says.
“For example, Son of Brock was euthanised on track; he had won over $16,000 in prize money, but he was still put down because it’s cheaper to put them down than to pay to correct the leg fractures.”
Earlier this year, greyhound In Range was also killed at Bendigo after suffering left and right radius fractures in race 12 on 16 February.
CPG collates and analyses every stewards’ report released by Greyhound Racing Victoria (GRV).
Research by the Coalition shows that so far this year, 25 dogs have been killed on Victorian tracks, with 1,538 injured (281 of those were classed as serious injuries by GRV).
In race 11 on the same night as Son Of Brock’s death, greyhound Idaho Evie also suffered a tarsal fracture and a 90-day stand-down period was imposed, but no further information was provided by Greyhound Racing Victoria (GRV).
Rothenfluh says he and the coalition believe there is no need for greyhound racing in Bendigo and independent research shows Australian taxpayers don’t want to subsidise it or agree with Government support for the industry.
“Nearly 70% of Australians do not support government funding for Greyhounds Racing,” Rothenfluh says.
“That’s another thing people need to be aware of, the Victorian Government and all Governments with racing commit millions of dollars to racing.
“Australians including Victorians are struggling through the current with the cost of living crisis, and I think there’s much better ways for governments to spend that money [currently going towards the industry].
“Why is it that Victorians should have to pay to maintain this industry?”
Rothenfluh says Bendigo’s track inherently dangerous as the racing industry says in its own research that curved tracks are more lethal than straight tracks.
Rothenfluh says one option is to put in straight tracks but data collected by the Coalition – based of previous stewarts reports – shows that straight tracks can be just as lethal to racing greyhounds.
CPG is a group of volunteers from across Australia that works to inform the public about what it says are the cruelties of greyhound racing. It’s calling for the industry or government to step up to ensure the safety of Greyhounds nationwide.
Rothenfluh wants the government to support the dogs who come out the racing industry.
Rothenfluh says while there are greyhound racing tracks in every part of Australia, most racing is concentrated in the eastern states.
There are 58 active greyhound tracks in Australia. By comparison, the United Kingdom has 21 tracks, Ireland has 17, New Zealand has six, US has two and Mexico has one.
