Greyhound racing

"Dog race" and "Dog racing" redirect here. For the winter sport, see Sled dog racing. For other uses, see Dog racing (disambiguation).

Several greyhounds before a race

Greyhound racing is an organized, competitive sport in which greyhounds are raced around an oval track. The sport originates from coursing. Track racing uses an artificial lure (usually a form of windsock) that travels ahead of the greyhounds on a rail until the greyhounds cross the finish line. As with horse racing, greyhound races often allow the public to bet on the outcome.

Animal rights and animal welfare groups have been critical of the welfare of greyhounds in the commercial racing industry for many years which has contributed to the reforms of the industries in recent years. A greyhound adoption movement spearheaded by kennel owners has arisen to assist retired racing dogs in finding homes as pets, with an estimated adoption rate of over 95% in the United States. In the UK, under the GBGB retirement scheme (introduced in 2020) greyhounds are ensured an approved GRS homing centre after racing.

In many countries, greyhound racing is purely amateur and solely for enjoyment. In other countries, particularly Australia, Ireland, the United Kingdom and the United States, greyhound racing is similar to horse racing in that it is part of the gambling industry.

History

Greyhound on a gallop

Greyhound race in 1939

Modern greyhound racing has its origins in coursing. The first recorded attempt at racing greyhounds on a straight track was made beside the Welsh Harp reservoir, Hendon, England, in 1876, but this experiment did not develop. The industry emerged in its recognizable modern form, featuring circular or oval tracks, with the invention of the mechanical, or artificial, hare in 1912 by an American, Owen Patrick Smith. O.P. Smith had altruistic aims for the industry to stop the killing of the jack rabbits and see "greyhound racing as we see horse racing". In 1919, Smith opened the first professional dog-racing track with stands in Emeryville, California. The Emeryville arena was torn down in February 1920 to make way for the construction of a modern racetrack using the mechanical lure, described in the press as the "automatic rabbit." The first race at the new park was on Saturday, May 29, 1920.

The oval track and mechanical hare were introduced to Britain, in 1926, by another American, Charles Munn, in association with Major Lyne-Dixson, a Canadian, who was a key figure in coursing. Finding other supporters proved rather difficult, however, and with the General Strike of 1926 looming, the two men scoured the country in an attempt to find others who would join them. Eventually they met Brigadier-General Critchley, who introduced them to Sir William Gentle. Between them they raised £22,000, and like the American 'International Greyhound Racing Association' (or the I.G.R.A.), they launched the Greyhound Racing Association, holding the first British meeting at Manchester's Belle Vue Stadium. The industry was successful in cities and towns throughout the UK – by the end of 1927, there were forty tracks operating.

Middle-class reformers were outraged, and the working-class delighted, with the emergence in the late-1920s of Greyhound racing as an entertaining new sport and betting opportunity. At first it seemed modern, glamorous, and American, but the middle class lost interest when working-class audiences took over. The working class appreciated the nearby urban locations of the tracks and the evening times of the meetings. Betting has always been a key ingredient of greyhound racing, both through on-course bookmakers and the totalisator, first introduced in 1930. Like horse racing, it is popular to bet on the greyhound races as a form of parimutuel betting.

Greyhound racing enjoyed its highest United Kingdom attendances just after the Second World War—for example, attendances during 1946 were estimated to be around 75 million based on an annual totalisator turnover of £196,431,430. The industry experienced a decline beginning in the early 1960s, after the 1960 UK Betting and Gaming Act permitted off-course cash betting. Sponsorship, limited television coverage, and the later abolition of on-course betting tax have partially offset this decline.

By country

Greyhounds rounding a turn on a track

Commercial greyhound racing is characterized by several criteria (varying depending on country) and can include legalized gambling, the existence of a regulatory structure, the physical presence of racetracks, whether the host state or subdivision shares in any gambling proceeds, fees charged by host locations, the use of professional racing kennels, the number of dogs participating in races, the existence of an official racing code, and membership in a greyhound racing federation or trade association.

Australia

Main article: Greyhound racing in Australia

Greyhounds Australasia was formed in 1937 (as the Australian and New Zealand Greyhound Association) and consists of governing bodies in Australian states and New Zealand, which regulate greyhound welfare and living conditions.

Ireland

Main article: Greyhound racing in Ireland

Greyhound racing is a popular industry in Ireland with the majority of tracks falling under the control of Rásaíocht Con Éireann (GRI) which is a commercial semi-state body and reports to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. The vast majority of greyhounds racing in the UK are imported from Irish breeders (estimated 90%). In the greyhound industry Northern Irish tracks are considered to be in the category of Irish greyhound racing and the results are published by the GRI. They do not come under the control of the Greyhound Board of Great Britain.

United Kingdom

Main article: Greyhound racing in the United Kingdom

Greyhound racing in Great Britain is regulated by the Greyhound Board of Great Britain and accredited by United Kingdom Accreditation Service.

United States

Ear tattoo on an American racing greyhound. Ear tattoos (along with microchips) are used for identification of greyhounds during their racing careers.

Main article: Greyhound racing in the United States

In the United States, greyhound racing is governed by state or local law, however, as of 2024 only two racetracks in West Virginia continue to operate. Greyhound care is regulated by the American Greyhound Council and the National Greyhound Association.

Other countries

Main article: Greyhound racing in New Zealand

Racing in New Zealand is currently governed by the New Zealand Racing Board (NZRB) in accordance with the Racing Act 2003 but on 10 December 2024, Winston Peters the Minister for Racing announced that greyhound racing was to be banned in New Zealand to protect the welfare of the racing dogs. The sport was to be phased out gradually over 20 months to allow time to rehome the estimated 2900 racing dogs.

There was formerly a greyhound racing track in Vietnam at the Lam Son Stadium in Vung Tau, Vietnam from 2000 to March 2023, but it has since closed.

There was a greyhound track called the Canidrome located in Macau, China, which conducted racing from 1932 to 1938 and again from 1963 to 2018.

There was one greyhound racing track in Mexico, the Caliente Hipodrome in Tijuana, that hosted races from 1947 to July 14, 2024.

Retirement

Generally, a greyhound's career will end between the ages of four and six – after the dog can no longer race, or possibly when it is no longer competitive. The best dogs are kept for breeding and there are industry-associated adoption groups and rescue groups that work to obtain retired racing greyhounds and place them as pets. In the United Kingdom, the Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB) has introduced measures to locate where racing greyhounds reside after they have retired from racing and as from 2017 records have been available to the public.

Several organizations, such as British Greyhounds Retired Database, Greyhound Rescue West of England, Birmingham Greyhound Protection, GAGAH, Adopt-a-Greyhound and Greyhound Pets of America, and the Greyhound Trust try to ensure that as many of the dogs as possible are adopted. Some of these groups also advocate better treatment of the dogs while at the track and/or the end of racing for profit. In recent years the racing industry has made significant progress in establishing programs for the adoption of retired racers. In addition to actively cooperating with private adoption groups throughout the country, many race tracks have established their own adoption programs at various tracks.

Medical care

The medical care of a racing greyhound is primarily the responsibility of the trainer while in training. All tracks in the United Kingdom have to have a veterinary surgeon and veterinary room facilities on site during racing. The greyhounds require microchipping, annual vaccinations against distemper, infectious canine hepatitis, parvovirus, leptospirosis, and a vaccination to minimize outbreaks of diseases such as kennel cough. All greyhounds in the UK must pass a pre-race veterinary inspection before being allowed to take part in that race.

The racing industry (in several countries) actively works to prevent the spread of doping cases. Attempts are being made to recover urine samples from all greyhounds in a race, not just the winners. Greyhounds from which samples cannot be obtained for a certain number of consecutive races are subject to being ruled off the track in some countries. Violators are subject to criminal penalties and loss of their racing licenses by state gaming commissions and a permanent ban from the National Greyhound Association. The trainer of the greyhound is at all times the "absolute insurer" of the condition of the animal. The trainer is responsible for any positive test regardless of how the banned substance has entered the greyhound's system.

A series of research papers have indicated that the greyhound racing industry played an important role in the rise of drug-resistant hookworms. Greyhound farms tended to treat greyhounds with dewormers even when the dogs did not have an active infection, thus enabling worms, which are constantly exposed to drugs, to develop immunity against the drugs among the surviving worms. The rise of drug-resistant hookworms poses a threat to pets and humans more generally.

See also

• Coursing