The Irish Government should give greyhounds a break right now and end greyhound racing and hare coursing - Read John Fitzgerald’s letter in The Avondhu and please scroll down for action alert...
Wales about to ban greyhound racing
Letter, The Avondhu: Feb. 27th 2025
Dear Editor,
I welcome the news that Wales has opted to ban greyhound racing. The clock is now ticking, not just for the “sport” in the rest of the UK, but for the chamber of horrors that our own greyhound industry has become.
Racing dogs face the same the traumas and abnormally short life spans in Ireland as they did in Wales. We have the same story in a different setting: Vast numbers of dogs that go “missing” without trace year, illegal doping, blooding with live animals, and the sad spectre of dogs that underperform or whose racing days are over being led off to be bludgeoned or shot.
The same cruelty that members of the Welsh Parliament described so eloquently and so shockingly is an integral part of what we do to greyhounds here, except we do it on a far larger scale: We have more tracks than Wales ever had, and, worst of all, greyhound racing is subsidised by the State.
As if this weren’t bad enough, our industry encompasses hare coursing, which is hell on earth for dog and hare alike…one gets mauled or flung about like a broken toy, while the other is treated as a mere commodity, instead of a dog that has the same naïve trust (initially at least) in humans as that displayed by any other domestic canine.
The Welsh Government’s decision comes just weeks after New Zealand announced a ban. Once the industry folds completely in the UK, as now looks inevitable, the export market for Irish greyhounds will disappear, which would devastate Ireland’s industry.
This would in turn spell doom for hare coursing, which depends for funding on the continuance of track racing: All racing dogs in Ireland have to be registered with the hare coursing club, a source of revenue without which the organised setting of dogs on hares would no longer be economically viable.
Rather than waiting for the winds of change to banish this benighted industry, the government should give greyhounds a break right now.
At the very least, it should withdraw all funding for an activity that cries out for abolition.
Sincerely,
John Fitzgerald
ACTION ALERT
Don’t go greyhound racing. Since 2001, Greyhound Racing Ireland has received €366,986,146 in state funding, including €18.2 million for 2023, €19 million for 2024 and €19.82 million for 2025. This is unacceptable and must be stopped. Tell the leaders of Fianna Fail, Fine Gael and Sinn Fein to stop supporting the funding and back a ban on this dog-killing gambling activity.
Micheál Martin TD
Leader, Fianna Fail
Email: micheal.martin@oireachtas.ie; info@fiannafail.ie
Tel: 01 619 4000
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/michealmartintd/
X: http://www.twitter.com/@MichealMartinTD
Simon Harris TD
Leader, Fine Gael
Telephone: 01 281 3727
Email: simon.harris@oireachtas.ie; finegael@finegael.ie
X: http://www.twitter.com/SimonHarrisTD
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/DeputySimonHarris
Mary Lou McDonald TD
Leader, Sinn Fein
Tel: (01) 727 7102
Email: marylou.mcdonald@oireachtas.ie
X: https://twitter.com/MaryLouMcDonald
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/MaryLouMcDonaldTD
Please sign and share the petitions
GAA: Stop club fundraisers at greyhound tracks
https://www.change.org/p/gaa-stop-club-fundraisers-at-greyhound-tracks
Tell Gain Pet Nutrition to Stop Sponsoring Greyhound Racing
https://www.change.org/p/jimtracy-glanbia-ie-tell-gain-pet-nutrition-to-stop-sponsoring-greyhound-racing
Watch RTE’s award-winning “Greyhounds Running For Their Lives” documentary
https://youtu.be/ZYTb2qBjlMM
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