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So.... the question asked was "is it worse than horse racing", and of course I never miss an opportunity to (hopefully) inform and advise 
I've got to say I didn't really question the background of the first couple of hounds that I adopted, so I didn't find out much about them (Jura came to me in 2002 and Ellen in 2004 both from Greyhound Rescue West of England as they were known then). As I started volunteering for GRWE I started finding out what greyhound racing was really like.
I adopted Islay in 2008 - she had done 5 1/2 years racing at Swindon and other tracks, and as usual she was cast aside when she got too old to race or breed from.
Flick also came to me in 2008 - bred in Ireland and picked up by the dog warden as a starving stray, she would have been PTS in an Irish council pound if GRWE hadn't offered her a rescue place. This was despite the fact she was tattooed and could easily be traced straight back to her breeder, who had simply thrown her out like rubbish
Hoover came to me a few years later, probably in the best condition I've ever had a rescue dog fitness wise - but he needed 18 teeth out on arrival in rescue, so he had obviously had no dental care in his life
Marty came to me last year, retired from racing at only 2 years old due to a muscle injury. His trainer was giving him ibuprofen, and he hadn't seen a vet despite having a hind leg like a banana. I have later found that the same trainer regularly 'retires' greyhounds at a simiar age with similar injuries....hmmm....
Ace came to me very quickly after coming into rescue kennels, and he is in horrible condition. He is covered in scrapes, scars, lumps and bad patches, and when I looked up his racing record I found out why - he was trained by the second trainer named in this article, Beverley Heaton:
http://greytexploitations.com/resources-reports/the-secret-slaves-of-the-dog-racing-industry/
I am sure that not every trainer keeps their dogs in conditions like this. I am sure there are responsible trainers who look after their dogs like the athletes they are, rather than as disposable money-making commodities. I just haven't found any yet.
One of the most heart breaking videos I have seen was a greyhound race in - I think - Australia. A few of the dogs go down together on a bend in the track, one gets up after the others and bravely sets off down the track after the others with his hind leg literally flapping, snapped clean in two at the hock. Dogs are not like horses, this is not a fatal condition by any means, but the greyhound was shot at the side of the track because neither his owner nor his trainer were willing to pay the vets fees for an operation (probably amputation in this case) and then make the effort of finding him a decent home.
I loathe greyhound racing and all those who profit from it. I'm sure there are appalling racehorse trainers too, but at least there are SOME good ones - as I said before, I haven't managed to find ANY good greyhound trainers
I've got to say I didn't really question the background of the first couple of hounds that I adopted, so I didn't find out much about them (Jura came to me in 2002 and Ellen in 2004 both from Greyhound Rescue West of England as they were known then). As I started volunteering for GRWE I started finding out what greyhound racing was really like.
I adopted Islay in 2008 - she had done 5 1/2 years racing at Swindon and other tracks, and as usual she was cast aside when she got too old to race or breed from.
Flick also came to me in 2008 - bred in Ireland and picked up by the dog warden as a starving stray, she would have been PTS in an Irish council pound if GRWE hadn't offered her a rescue place. This was despite the fact she was tattooed and could easily be traced straight back to her breeder, who had simply thrown her out like rubbish
Hoover came to me a few years later, probably in the best condition I've ever had a rescue dog fitness wise - but he needed 18 teeth out on arrival in rescue, so he had obviously had no dental care in his life
Marty came to me last year, retired from racing at only 2 years old due to a muscle injury. His trainer was giving him ibuprofen, and he hadn't seen a vet despite having a hind leg like a banana. I have later found that the same trainer regularly 'retires' greyhounds at a simiar age with similar injuries....hmmm....
Ace came to me very quickly after coming into rescue kennels, and he is in horrible condition. He is covered in scrapes, scars, lumps and bad patches, and when I looked up his racing record I found out why - he was trained by the second trainer named in this article, Beverley Heaton:
http://greytexploitations.com/resources-reports/the-secret-slaves-of-the-dog-racing-industry/
I am sure that not every trainer keeps their dogs in conditions like this. I am sure there are responsible trainers who look after their dogs like the athletes they are, rather than as disposable money-making commodities. I just haven't found any yet.
One of the most heart breaking videos I have seen was a greyhound race in - I think - Australia. A few of the dogs go down together on a bend in the track, one gets up after the others and bravely sets off down the track after the others with his hind leg literally flapping, snapped clean in two at the hock. Dogs are not like horses, this is not a fatal condition by any means, but the greyhound was shot at the side of the track because neither his owner nor his trainer were willing to pay the vets fees for an operation (probably amputation in this case) and then make the effort of finding him a decent home.
I loathe greyhound racing and all those who profit from it. I'm sure there are appalling racehorse trainers too, but at least there are SOME good ones - as I said before, I haven't managed to find ANY good greyhound trainers
