Protestors at SOKC: "Death visits Sanford Orlando Kennel Club and every track throughout the United States."

http://www.seminolechronicle.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2011/07/06/4e14910021f4d

Protesters rally to save Greyhounds
By Laura Newberry, Seminole Chronicle - July 6, 2011

The Animal Rights Foundation of Florida staged a protest at the Sanford Orlando Kennel Club in Longwood, challenging bettors and greyhound owners to reassess the controversial sport of dog-racing.

Nearly 20 protesters stood outside as race-goers filtered into the stands of the racetrack June 25, brandishing signs with slogans such as "dog racing kills thousands" and passing out informational flyers that reflected poorly upon the racing industry.

"Death" made an appearance at the protest, donning a grim-reaper costume in an attempt to make a statement about the high number of greyhound casualties caused by racing.

"It's how we can demonstrate the truth," said Carla Wilson, coordinator for ARFF. "Death visits Sanford Orlando Kennel Club and every track throughout the United States."

According to Vic Harrison, the general manager of the Sanford Orlando Kennel Club, ARFF has held annual protests on the racing grounds for the past few years.

"I totally respect their right to meet in public and their views as long as they don't disrupt our business, which they didn't. The signs were pointed more at the greyhound industry than our site specifically," Harrison said.

Wilson said that she first became involved in activism when her and her husband, Bryan, adopted a former racing greyhound in 1996. The dog was initially left at a "kill vet" after it could no longer race.

The condition of their young but physically-drained dog motivated them to volunteer for the greyhound rescue, and they dealt with the Sanford Orlando Kennel club on a regular basis.

"We'd pick up dogs from the kennel. We saw firsthand what was going on," Wilson said. "They smell bad. A lot of them were infested with fleas, ticks, internal parasites. Their teeth were rotting out of their mouths. All of these things were very routine when we got the dogs."

According to Carey Theil, the executive director of Grey2KUSA, a national nonprofit greyhound protection organization, racing dogs generally live in cramped quarters.

"The greyhounds are kept inside windowless buildings in warehouse-style wooden or metal kennels, and there are two rows stacked on each side," Theil said. "Each building has as many as 100 greyhounds, and the entire compound has anywhere from 500 to 1,000 greyhounds."

Bryan Wilson, who is also a coordinator with ARRF, said that the greyhound bedding in the kennels includes scraps of newspaper or carpet remnants.

A Grey2KUSA research report states that racing dogs are confined to their cages for approximately 20 hours a day, and are "turned out" into an open area to relieve themselves about three to five hours a day.

"A lot of the dogs get "kennel rub," where the hair is rubbed off the back of their legs because they're pushed into these tiny little crates and their legs are pushed into the ground," Bryan Wilson said.

Although Bryan and Carla Wilson commented specifically on the poor conditions of the Sanford Orlando kennels, Harrison maintains that their facilities are suitable. 

"Our kennel area is clean and safe. It's a warm environment when it needs to be, and cool when it needs to be," Harrison said.

According to records, a state investigator that visited the Sanford Orlando kennel compound in April 2006 reported that 18 adult greyhounds were cramped into nine crates designed to hold one dog. The kennel helper stated that they were there for three days, and there was no water in the cages.

The fliers that the ARFF protesters passed out at the Orlando Sanford facility described similar kennel issues.

"There are people that are just casual bettors, and those people that see our protests might be persuaded not to come back," Carla Wilson said. "There are so many other forms of entertainment that don't involve animals racing and watching man's best friend go around in a circle so you can throw money on his back."

According to Harrison, a greyhound's racing career usually ends before the dog reaches five years old. When the dogs are no longer in racing condition, the majority of owners decide to give them up.

"We work very closely with six local greyhound adoption agencies. Last year we sent 700 greyhounds to be adopted out by the agencies," Harrison said. "We're happy to promote that. These animals make wonderful pets."

Carla Wilson said that ARFF does not consider this to be an adequate solution to the over-breeding and racing of greyhounds.

"There are not enough foster groups and agencies to handle so many dogs being bred and discarded by this industry. To say that they're all getting adopted, that's virtually impossible. It's not the case," Carla Wilson said.

Marilyn Varnberg, founder of Greyhound Adoptions of Florida, has been rescuing greyhounds in the area for more than 18 years.

Varnberg said that most of the dogs she sees come to her with career-ending injuries.

"We do a tremendous amount of broken legs. Most race-dog owners won't pay to repair them," Varnberg said. "It's a constant battle to fundraise and care for these dogs. It has become the norm that it isn't the responsibility of the owner or trainer."

"When you have a pack of 8 dogs running at 45 miles per hour, they collide into one another," Bryan Wilson said.

According to Carla Wilson, dog racing is a dying industry. Since 2001, the number of dog racetracks in the U.S. has fallen from 49 to 22. 

Thirteen of these tracks are in Florida.

"The greyhound racing industry in terms of attendance and revenue is down by 90 percent from 20 years ago," Carla Wilson said. "At some point, dog racing is going to cost more to manage, operate and monitor than is bringing in money for the state. You can't operate that sort of business in hard economic times."

Grey2KUSA reports that the number of greyhounds being bred to race is shrinking with the revenue. 12,801 dogs were registered to race in 2010 as compared to 26,207 in 2005.

According to Theil, eight states have banned dog racing completely, including Pennsylvania and Virginia.

"Orlando management and kennel ownership is really out of touch with what the majority thought is today on dog racing," Theil said. "They are stretching greyhound racing to the very end, even though there are an overwhelming majority of Central Florida residents who support greyhound racing ending."