Action Alert: Lismore Council

Below please find sample letter for you to send to the Lismore Council councillors who supported an increase in the number of races at the Lismore track

To copy and paste this letter, please print it as a pdf file first. Ideally, you will make your own personal changes for more impact.

Email to:
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]

Dear Councillors of Lismore,

I am disappointed that you have voted in favour of allowing extra greyhound races at the Lismore greyhound racing track.

At the moment Lismore reports an average of 2 injured greyhounds per race meeting. The injuries range from muscle tears to broken bones, the latter usually resulting in euthanasia as it costs several thousands of dollars to fix fractures.

Compare this to the rest of the state. In the first 6 months of 2017, the NSW quarterly injury reports recorded a total of 1,100 injuries across the state. 184 of those, or 17%, were classified as ‘major injuries’ (those with a standdown period of 21 or more days).

In Lismore, 22 of the 51 injuries (43%) sustained to date this year are major injuries. Injuries sustained at the Lismore track are 2.5 times more likely to be major when compared to the NSW statewide injury statistics.

What is wrong with the Lismore track and why isn’t that being investigated first before a decision is made on whether or not to put more dogs in harm’s way?

I would also like to point out that, as already uncovered in the Special Inquiry into Greyhound Racing last year, post-race vet examinations are not foolproof as they are conducted in a hurry while the dogs are still hyperventilating and amped up on adrenaline, which can mask pain. In Queensland, a greyhound was deemed uninjured but was later found to have a broken hock (ankle) once the trainer returned home.

Given the large number of collisions, heel checks and bumps that result in dogs faltering or stumbling at Lismore track, it is likely that there are even more injuries which go undetected and the track is more dangerous than the above statistics show.

Here are the 4 most recent Lismore stewards reports for your perusal – a quick once-over will show you how dangerous greyhound racing is:

In sum, supporting more races at Lismore means that you support:

• more track injuries
• more animal suffering
• more live baiting
• more greyhound breeding
• more greyhound killing
• more dogs for volunteers and charity groups to re-home

Please vote NO to an increase in the number of races at Lismore track.

Thank you,