Dear Haidee

RE: Evidence in relation to wastage and traceability of greyhounds in Ireland

Following comments made by Mark Bird of GBGB with respect to “wastage” and the traceability of Irish greyhounds in the Committee’s evidence session of the 23 October, I am writing on behalf of Greyhound Action Ireland to set the record straight.  

Mr Bird claimed that “Since 2021, Greyhound Racing Ireland, the semi state run regulator has a full traceability system in place to make sure all of their dogs from birth to when they finish racing are accounted for”.

However, this simply is not true. Analysis of the data produced from Greyhound Racing Ireland's own, Rásaíocht Con Éireann Traceability System (RCETS) shows that of the racing greyhounds born in 2021, the first year this system was operational, 5,150 (41%) are already dead or unaccounted for. The oldest of those dogs would not yet be five! In percentage terms, the number of dead and unaccounted for dogs remains the same as was revealed in the 2019 RTE documentary Running For Their Lives. 

Please note the 41% figure does not include greyhounds that are exported to the UK. These remain on the RCÉTS with an inactive status, specifically marked as "exported".  

This information is taken from a soon to be published report by Preferred Results Ltd on behalf of Greyhound Action Ireland analysing RCETS - Greyhound Racing Ireland's traceability system. Preferred Result Ltd is the business consultancy company which carried out a business analysis for the Irish Greyhound Board (since re-named Greyhound Racing Ireland) in 2017. Details of the report prepared following that analysis were subsequently leaked to RTE, the national broadcaster. The documentary Running for Their Lives broadcast on national TV in 2019 was based on the findings of that report – namely that the Irish greyhound industry was breeding 1,000% more dogs than it needed, resulting in 6,000 plus racing greyhounds being killed every year because they had become surplus to requirement.

If you require any further clarification on this point, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Yours

Nuala Donlon

Spokesperson

Greyhound Action Ireland

Email: greyhoundactionireland@yahoomail.com

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