The future of greyhound racing is under threat if a powerful body at Holyrood backs calls for a crackdown on the sport.
The death knell for “the dugs” could come within days if the Scottish Government’s advisory group on animal welfare recommends a ban to the Scottish Parliament’s rural affairs committee. The Scottish Animal Welfare Commission (SAWC) is expected to side with charities such as Dogs Trust and the Scottish SPCA who have been calling for the sport to be outlawed.
Calls for a ban were branded “ludicrous” by those involved in the traditional sport but campaigners say it is “inherently cruel” to the dogs. An all-out ban would require a change in the law but the Scottish Government last night said it was open to “all options”, including new legislation and said it “shared concerns” over the welfare of dogs.
The committee launched a probe into greyhound racing after a petition asking for a ban was submitted by Gill Docherty of Scotland Against Greyhound Exploitation (SAGE). The committee asked SAWC to issue new guidance on dog racing by Wednesday of next week, which could lead to a Scottish Government crackdown.
Docherty said: “This could be the real pivotal point, as the rural affairs committee is clearly looking for a clear direction to be laid down. I would very much like to think the end is coming. They are responding to calls by the Dogs Trust, Blue Cross and SSPCA to end greyhound racing and we are very hopeful there can be only one likely outcome from this.”
Paul Brignal, the owner of one of Scotland’s last greyhound tracks in Thornton, Fife, hit back at calls for a ban on the sport, accusing Docherty of “exaggerated and untrue claims”.
He added: “We have people coming from Glasgow, Edinburgh, Ayr, Dundee, all over. But once we’re gone there will be nothing. That is lamentable because the dogs that race here are well looked after and they love their sport. Yet the Scottish Government is being told that we are the epicentre of cruelty against dogs in Scotland and must be shut down. It’s utterly ludicrous.”
Brignal, 63, took out a mortgage when he paid £220,000 for the track in 2002. At that time there were up to seven bookies working twice a week but now there is only one. Brignal insisted activists are unfairly entangling Scotland in problems that only exist across the Border.
He said: “This is a tiny hobby sport and every dog that comes here loves to race. SAGE keeps banging on about there being 18,000 injured dogs and 3000 deaths but we only have around 70 dogs left in racing.
“We’ve had two serious injuries this one year and one dog sadly died. But accidents can happen in every sport. My main concern is SAGE takes stats that come from all of the UK and the reality is that big tracks in England operate entirely differently to Scotland.
“They can have some trainers with 100 dogs and there can be far greater incentive for malpractice, due to bigger prizes and bigger gambling opportunities, coupled with the fact the dogs are primarily racers and not pets. There are English tracks running races from 10am to 8pm, mainly for the benefit of Asian gamblers, which could run up a million runs by dogs a year, all totalled up.
“In Scotland we’re lucky to get 1000 runs from all Scottish dogs in a year, yet it looks very much like the Scottish Government is going to ban us. It’s just madness.”
Brignal scoffed at the notion of trainers “doping” dogs – an accusation levelled by campaigners.
He said: “Where are these people going to get drugs from? And why would they spend cash on drugs when they don’t even get a prize for winning a race? The most you’re likely to get on a dog if you want to bet is £100 absolute maximum. You’re generally lucky to get more than £30. So who is going to drug a dog under those conditions?”
Docherty’s group has claimed that inherent cruelty in the sport means Thornton should be closed down. SAGE cites data from the Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB), which reported more than 3000 dog deaths from 2017 to 2020, with an estimated 18,345 dogs injured from racing in the UK.
Over the same period, 97 dogs were injured and 15 deaths were recorded at Shawfield Stadium, Glasgow, the only track in Scotland licensed by GBGB. SAGE pointed to stats that said 13 dogs at Shawfield were found to have been doped from 2018 to 2019, with cocaine found in five of them to make them faster.
Other dogs were allegedly drugged to make them slower. Shawfield has not held any races since before the Covid pandemic, and its owners are looking into demolishing the historic stadium, once the home of Clyde FC and the Glasgow Tigers speedway team.
The 2019 petition to the Scottish Parliament called for an end to greyhound racing in Scotland. It led to debate in Parliament and earlier this month the rural affairs committee gave the SAWC, which advises government, a deadline of Wednesday for its written opinion.
Docherty said: “The numbers we know from the last five years from licensed tracks are appalling. If we consider the cruelty that would have gone on at unlicensed ‘flapper’ tracks, it paints a terrible picture. If I am one of the people to bring this sport to an end in Scotland I will feel pride and certainly not one bit of regret. Greyhound racing does not belong in modern society.”
The Scottish Government confirmed it has concerns over animal welfare in greyhound racing and was considering “all options”.
A spokesperson said: “We share the concerns raised by the committee on greyhound welfare and will carefully consider all advice and recommendations made. The Scottish Government takes animal welfare very seriously and is committed to ensuring the highest standards in Scotland.
“We are liaising closely with the Scottish SPCA to understand challenges faced on the ground. We remain open to considering all options including legislative measures and plan to consult on greyhound racing in due course.”
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