On October 16, 2021, two-year-old greyhound Kaluk Kaluk was killed in Tamworth, the town where NSW Racing Minister Kevin Anderson was born.
Yes, the same Kevin Anderson who oversaw a sector where, in 2021, 53 racing greyhounds died, compared to 48 in all of 2020. A 43% rise from the same time the previous year.
Kevin Anderson, who bragged that “NSW already has the finest standards of greyhound welfare in Australia”, said so with pride.
And the same Kevin Anderson who said in a radio interview that straight tracks are “the way of the future” and that “the curves are too tight” at older tracks.
Kaluk Kaluk passed away in a manner that was “typical” of greyhounds: a collision at the first turn, a fall and a fractured leg, and eventually a needle from the on-track veterinarian—possibly stuffed into the track freezer as well.
Strangely, Mr Anderson has been quiet about the ongoing massacre of greyhounds.
Greyhound incidents during track turns accounted for 72% of fatalities in NSW.
Mr Anderson praised the new straight track at Richmond, which is close to Sydney, earlier this year as a safer method of greyhound racing. Have other racetracks moved their racing to Richmond, though? Obviously not.
Additionally, 87% of dogs perished on rails were put to sleep because they had broken legs.
The NSW Race Injury Rebate Scheme might have prevented some of these. However, we are unsure of its uptake.
Even though NSW is where greyhounds die the most, this is a problem everywhere (apart from the ACT). In 2021, 137 greyhounds now died while competing nationwide (all listed here).
Image shows Kaluk Kaluk in a previous race at Tamworth; there is no video of the fatal race.