News RSS Feed


click here for Your Neighbourhood

Dead greyhound upsets couple

7:48pm Thursday 24th January 2008

comment Comments (20)   Have your say »


A Balham couple are still in shock after witnessing the death of a greyhound during a race at Wimbledon Stadium last Friday.

Fred and Janet Baylis, of Heslop Road, had gone to the stadium with a group of family and friends as part of their silver wedding anniversary celebrations organised by the travel agents he works for.

Mr Baylis, 48, said: "Neither of us had been to the dogs before and I must admit that, as dog-lovers, we weren't particularly enjoying it, as the greyhounds were hurtling round the track very close together at breakneck speed.

"Then, in the third race a greyhound called Icecream Charlie went tumbling over at the third bend and was lying motionless on the track.

"On the way out of the stadium we were told by officials that the dog had broken his neck and had been put down."

Mr Baylis has vowed never to go near a greyhound track again and his place of work has vowed never again to organise any trips to the dogs.

Tony Peters, of greyhound protection group Greyhound Action, said: "The greyhound in question wasn't even two years old and has had his young life brutally ended by this terrible incident.

"The racing industry itself admits that over 3,000 greyhounds are put to death each year when their racing 'careers' come to an end. Six states in the USA have banned greyhound racing in recent years, so there is no reason why a ban shouldn't be imposed in the UK."

For more information about Greyhound Action call 01562 700 043 or 07703 55872 or visit greyhoundaction.org.uk

Print article » Email to a friend »

Your Say YourWimbledon Guardian

Tony Peters, Greyhound Action says...
2:22am Fri 25 Jan 08

What is even worse is that, in addition to the 3,000 ex-racing greyhounds that the industry admits are put to death every year, a further 15,000 pups and young greyhounds, bred for racing in Britain, are "put down" annually before they even reach the tracks, after being judged not suitable for the purpose.

That is why we are calling on the public not to attend or bet on greyhound races, so this death-industry fades away through lack of financial support.

Report this post »

halle, sutton says...
9:05am Fri 25 Jan 08

I have a lurcher that we got from battersea dogs home, she is a really beautiful and loving dog. When we got her we were told that they thought she had been illegally raced and was then dumped outside a police station. She is now living out the rest of her life like a queen with constant treats and happiness. I attended one greyhound race not to long ago and hated it. Just knowing the fate of a lot of those poor dogs really upset me. We need to put an end to it - these are living things like us, not an entertainment.

Report this post »

Ricky, Sheen says...
9:18am Fri 25 Jan 08

Is it a quiet news week or what? Yawn.

Can't we have a really headline-grabbing article on why, if you miss-type the security code, it removes all your details and you have to enter them again?

Report this post »

ric, kingston says...
9:21am Fri 25 Jan 08

ban horse racing while your there. exactly the same.


Report this post »

Angie P, Wimbledon says...
9:45am Fri 25 Jan 08

I agree about the horseracing - the number of horses getting killed or maimed every year is shocking. Having said that, if greyhound (and horse) racing is banned, what would happen to these breeds of animal? I'm sure there are plenty of loving greyhound owners, but not that many people would take on a horse. The horse population would probably be significantly reduced. That doesn't sound so bad, but when an animal has no place or purpose in society, they will have to be confined to zoos before they become extinct. Of course there's always dogfood...

Report this post »

ric, kingston says...
9:54am Fri 25 Jan 08

i just laughed out loud.




Report this post »

Peter Talbot, Merton says...
4:38pm Fri 25 Jan 08

And when you break your neck and have to be put down, I shall laugh out loud too, Ric.
Greyhound racing has only been going for about 80 years. Greyhounds as a breed have been around for centuries, so, Angie, I don't think you need worry that greyhounds will die out if greyhound racing is got rid of.

Report this post »

Tim, says...
9:39am Sat 26 Jan 08

Oh for heavens sake. It's sad, of course it is, but "Still in shock"? Get over it. At least it died while having fun.

Report this post »

Mick The Miller, 146-453 says...
11:42am Sat 26 Jan 08

As ex champion greyhound I used to love running round that track at wimbledon chasing that teddy bear thing (strange I never caught it considering I ran so many records). I believe greyhound racing should be combined with Clay Pigeong shooting with the last placed dog being used for target practice, lets see how many records get broken then eh?

Report this post »

RLG, Surrey says...
8:36am Sun 27 Jan 08

There are some sick people around, most of them commenting on this site. For those of you that think its funny and its an acceptable sport, I'd like to see you made to run around a track till your heart gives out or you injure yourselves, putting you guys down would be much kinder, for the rest of us. Its people like you that keep cruel sports like this alive. Saddo's.

Report this post »

Trudy Baker, middlesbrough says...
7:59pm Sun 27 Jan 08

The FBI considers animal cruelty to be one of the predictors of violence and considers past animal abuse when profiling serial killers and child abusers.
Draw your own conclusions.........


Report this post »

John Ratcliffe, Manchester says...
5:16pm Tue 29 Jan 08

Some of the comments about this article show us what kind of "person" we are dealing with within the Greyhound racing industry. It is the most barbaric and cruel activity still hiding behind the tag "sport". It will continue as long as you, the general public support it by your financial contribution every time you visit a Greyhound race. You have seen from the childish and un-caring comments above what these people are like, well if you visit a Greyhound race track and spend one penny of your money there, you are condoning and financing their activities.

John Ratcliffe

Report this post »

Errol, Sunderland says...
3:05pm Thu 31 Jan 08

John Ratcliffe wrote:
Some of the comments about this article show us what kind of "person" we are dealing with within the Greyhound racing industry. It is the most barbaric and cruel activity still hiding behind the tag "sport". It will continue as long as you, the general public support it by your financial contribution every time you visit a Greyhound race. You have seen from the childish and un-caring comments above what these people are like, well if you visit a Greyhound race track and spend one penny of your money there, you are condoning and financing their activities.

John Ratcliffe
Saying something does not make it true.

Quantify "cruel and barbaric" with citations. Convince us, don't preach at us.

Report this post »

Cate, UK says...
10:35am Wed 6 Feb 08

Errol,and those others innocent or ignorant of the facts, just take a look at the Greyhound Action site http://www.greyhound

action.org.uk/greyho

und.html
and I think you'll find quite enough material there to quantify " cruel and barbaric".
Now tell me that the Greyhound "industry" is "Sporting" in ANY sense of the word?

Report this post »

Ballyregan Bob, Herts says...
1:50pm Wed 20 Feb 08

cate : If We are plugging useless websites try www.ivenothingbetter

todothancomplainabou

tdogracing.com

Report this post »

Sally Hughe, Sunbury says...
12:22pm Thu 21 Feb 08

I worked for 3 years for a local trainer who told me never to get attached to the greyhounds. He said when they are no longer fit for racing they have to go. About 25 greyhounds ‘disappeared’ each year, all thought put-to-sleep and some less then 2 years old.

Report this post »

jill, nottingham says...
12:57pm Mon 3 Mar 08

Tony Peters is an extremist with extreme views,i home my ex racers as do many of my friends.

Report this post »

dogman cork, cork says...
6:10pm Mon 3 Mar 08

Tony Peters makes up different numbers every time he opens his mouth or types on his keyboard. Today I read figures ranging from 10,000 to 30,000 greys PTS each year. An extremist that spouts rubbish.

Report this post »

Nic, says...
4:02pm Sat 15 Mar 08

We have an ex-racer who was also used for breeding. These are working dogs and they love what they do. You only have to see them off the leash to realise that 14 000 years of breeding has formed a dog whose principal focus is to chase. Ex-racers are taken back to the tracks to encourage rehoming, which is what all responsible trainers, owners and breeders encourage; however people do not think of greyhounds as pets, and have a lot of negative misconceptions about them such as they need a lot of walking - they are known as 40mph couch potatoes to their owners! They only need a couple of short walks a day, the rest of the time they lounge around.
Banning greyhound racing will spell the end for this breed. Only 40 show greyhound puppies were born this past year, which the Kennel Club classifies as a breed on the verge of extinction.
The dogs love racing. They chase in packs so are bound to be bunched together. There will always be accidents. Humans have accidents when running. The challenge should be to ensure all racing animals are looked after humanely throughout their career, and that they have a happy retirement.
Go see Hersham Kennels and do something positive like helping to walk the ex-racers, or raising funds for their upkeep rather than having an attack of the vapours.

Report this post »

leanne, Ireland says...
6:23pm Sat 3 May 08

What a load of rubbish if this is the 1st time these people went racing what in the name of god do they know,ive been breeding greyhounds all my life and its a rare occasion that accidents like this happen.any body that thinks its cruel is talking s----,do u think walking ur dog for a mile r so aday is any differnt from these dogs running i dont think so.as for the person who wrote that they run until their heart gives up hasnt a clue.In all my years of doing this great sport never have i heard of it.If you dont like the sport just dont go.

Report this post »

Comments are closed on this article.

In this section

Sponsored Links



Local Links


Local Information

Enter your postcode, town or place name

House prices »   Schools »   Crime »   Hospitals »