5 year old dog racing at Tucson Greyhound Park–raced 300 times
Subject: 5 year old dog racing at Tucson Greyhound Park – races 300 times
Question: How do you tell when a dog track is the end of the line?
Answer: When tired dogs are run and rerun who come in last over and over but are still racing for their lives.
One dog – AK’s Fruitcake – turned 5 on December 8, 2010 and will have raced 300 times as of tonight!
Is that a crime? It should be.
According to this KOLD-TV investigative segment , the GM of Tucson Greyhound Park said the dogs are treated well. They’re not treated so well that the GM would keep his pet there. If they were treated well, for starters these kennel operators would retire them.
In this recent article in the Arizona Daily Star, General Manager Tom Taylor says, “The dogs when they are on the track, in the kennel, they are taken care of wonderfully,” he said. Running a 5+ year old dog 300 times is not our idea of wonderful.
Are there no NGA (National Greyhound Association), AGC (American Greyhound Council) or ADOR (Arizona Department of Racing) standards for greyhound welfare regarding age requirements?
Tucson Greyhound Park is no better that the third world country Guam when it comes to racing old dogs. (Correction: Guam is a U.S. territory but when the Guam dog track closed, dogs were just given away like kittens on the corner. Dogs raced into old age.) At least the Guam lawmakers have come to their senses and voted to ban the cruel sport of greyhound racing on Guam again. Guam lawmakers trump Arizona lawmakers.
What you’re about to read was taken from Track Info website over a period of 14 days. As you can see these dogs are not winners and they can barely make it around the track and yet they are forced to race… for their lives.
Note: Unless specified, the regular race at TGP is 550 yards. The shorter race is 316 yards.
Rebell Riley DOB 1/06/09 25 races Kennel: Hale
12/17 bumped 1st turn
12/22 no factor
12/29 bumped 1st turn
1/03 pulled up backstretch – not on clock
Cookie Clover DOB 8/08/06 207 races Kennel: Hale (Owner: Roy A. Cook)
12/22 bumped 1st turn
12/28 no threat
12/31 jammed early – came in last
1/04 blocked 1st turn – came in last
On schedule to race 1/07
Red I Taps DOB 3/29/07 150 races Kennel: Eyler (Owner: Rex Redden)
12/23 fell 1st turn, not on clock
12/29 blocked front stretch – out of photo
1/03 dropped back early – came in last
On schedule to race 1/07
Sicilian Sal DOB 5/11/07 176 races Kennel: Gray
12/27 factor until late
12/31 bumped 1st turn – came in last
1/04 collided 1st turn
Flea’s Aesop DOB 1/02/08 114 races Kennel: Eyler
12/27 blocked 1st, no rally
12/30 bumped 1st turn
1/03 faded badly – came in last
300 races – 300 races – 300 races – 300 races – 300 races – 300 races – 300 races – 300 races – &%$#
AK’s Fruitcake DOB 12/08/05 Kennel: Eyler (owner – Stephen Valleta)
12/16 dropped back early
12/20 collided 1st turn
12/27 lost ground early
12/30 bumped 1st turn
1/03 dropped back early
On schedule to race 1/06 – 300 times. This hound raced approx every 3rd or 4th day, except for Dec 20 to 27 when TGP was closed for three days. She’s being raced more often than once a week.
Koyote Rikki DOB 3/01/08 116 races Kennel: Eyler
12/08 bumped frontstretch
12/13 early factor, faded
12/21 fell 1st turn
12/28 scratched – Where is this dog?
CDC Make Me Stop DOB 10/11/06 150 races Kennel: Eyler (Owner: Debra Chitwood)
2008 injury list 10/08/08 lame
12/21 not a factor
12/27 pulled up early – off the clock
1/01 trailed 8th place – shorter race
This dog appeared as “lame” on the 2008 injury list and is still racing.
Mississippi Mule DOB 6/15/07 150 races Kennel: Eyler (Owner: Robert Clark)
2008 injury list 11/25/08 dislocation, right toe
Look what’s been going on with this greyhound for the past few months
10/02 full race always back
10/10 full race poor effort
10/16 shorter race no mishaps
10/20 shorter race no mishaps
10/27 full race trouble 1st turn
11/13 shorter race held safe lead
11/17 full race faded throughout
11/20 full race bumped early
11/24 full race bumped 1st, no rally
11/27 shorter race up for place
12/06 shorter race steady fade
12/09 full race gave way late
12/14 full race outrun badly, homestretch
12/22 shorter race evenly for show
1/01 shorter race early effort
On schedule for 1/06 shorter race
This dog was on the injury list on Nov. 25, 2008 with a dislocated right toe and he’s still racing!
Mississippi Mule needs to retire NOW!
Supah Clean DOB 2/14/09 26 races Kennel: Gray (Owner: Cochran Greyhoundz)
These are all shorter races – 316 yards:
11/12 no threat
11/18 jammed in turn
11/23 faded some
11/29 always back
12/06 steady pace
12/11 blocked early
12/15 collided in turn
12/21 bumped in turn
12/30 never in it
On schedule for 1/06 – shorter race
Fast Az Phelps DOB 5/29/07 150 races Kennel: Eyler
11/22 trouble 1st turn
11/26 not prominent
12/02 blocked 1st turn
12/06 no factor
12/11 no factor
12/17 no factor
12/21 no threat
12/28 scratched – Where is this dog?
Skate Smyth DOB 9/25/08 22 races Kennel: Fune
12/21 brief try, faded
12/28 scratched – Where is this dog?
UCME Get Smart DOB 10/10/08 45 races Kennel: Hale
12/08 steady decline
12/13 lost ground early
12/17 faded badly far turn
12/21 early threat, faded
12/27 scratched – Where is this dog?
Greyt Sky DOB 1/19/07 135 races Kennel: ? Breeder: Larry Knott
12/23 pulled up early – off the clock – Where is this dog?
Koyote Reba DOB 3/01/08 105 races Kennel: Eyler
11/06 little gain
11/11 always varied
11/19 bumped 1st turn
11/24 no factor
11/29 little effort
12/04 back early
12/09 steady decline
12/13 gradual fade
12/17 varied little
12/21 no factor
12/27 no factor
Not scheduled to race – 10 days – Where is this dog?
The above is just a sampling of animal cruelty.
What can you do about this blight of a race track in South Tucson?
1. Print this article or email the URL your favorite news reporter or anchor person on TV and request they cover the story about greyhound racing injuries at Tucson Greyhound Park.
2. Contact to your legislators and Governor Jan Brewer and tell them why live dog racing in Arizona must end.
3. Schedule appointments with your legislators when they’re in Tucson and tell them face-to-face why live dog racing must end.
4. Receive alerts from GREY2K USA about what’s happening and how you can get involved in helping to end greyhound racing in Pima County.
5. Link this page to your Facebook and Twitter
That is absolutely insane that the greyhounds are being raced long past the so called “profitable” years. It appears more like a sign of desperation by an industry whose time is long gone and should be banned forever.
And about those scratched greys?
What a horrid industry run by greedy individuals. Terribly sad.
As the proud adopter of a 6 year old grey 6 years ago, that is no life. Ever.
This is an outrage. This is cruelty in the 1st degree, but the racing industry turns its head to this and all the rest of the abuse and neglect in dog racing. Enough is enough. The sad thing about racing these old dogs is that they soon will be broken beyond repair and will not be considered “adoptable” by the very industry who runs them into the ground.
These statistics say it all. The industry claims to care about the dogs but they are running them to death. Get these dogs off the track and into a home where they can run….only if they want to.
Great. I’m sure they’d like to run her ’til her heart explodes. Maybe then the’ll leave her alone. Greedy schmucks.
Great work on this – what a perfect illustration of the greed and cruelty in the dog racing industry.
I’ve cross-posted this to my blog – thank you.
It is my understanding this list is a sampling.
It is not a complete list of greyhounds struggling at TGP.
And it’s not just limited to the time period shown.
This is part of what the TGP greyhounds endure.
A travesty. Must end. Long overdue.
This is just so wrong. But what else is new? This is an industry that screams like a baby whenever anyone dares to question them about the dogs, yet they allow dogs to live in cages for years upon years on end and also allow them to be injured and worse while under their watch. That’s not “care” at all as I see it. So where is the protection for racing greyhounds that the NGA is always spouting off about!!?? The obvious answer is that there is none.
What the NGA tells the public and the media is nothing but whitewashed half truths and flat out lies. No one is this money driven industry cares a flip about the dogs other than how much money they are bringing in.
The dogs are always the losers in this race…. a race that sadly seems to be never ending for them at Tuscon Greyhound Park.
The quick way to end this would be to require all the dogs (and bitches) be licensed AND tax the business properly! Right now, the races that are telivised aren’t taxed at all.
We keep hearing Phoenix screaming about being broke: well, here’s a good place to start!