About Dog Racing
There are currently two commercial dog tracks in Massachusetts: Wonderland Greyhound Park (Revere, MA) and Raynham Park (Raynham, MA). Commercial dog racing is cruel and inhumane, and should be phased out.
Dogs Endure Lives of Nearly Endless Confinement
A minimum of 1,000 dogs is required for the operation of each track. Dogs at these facilities live in warehouse-style kennels, in small cages barely large enough for them to stand up or turn around.
In Massachusetts, the minimum dimension for cages at commercial racetracks is 32 inches wide by 42 inches deep by 34 inches high. By comparison, the dog runs for similarly sized dogs are approximately five times larger at the MSPCA Boston Animal Care and Adoption Center.
Dogs are warehoused in cages for 20 or more hours per day at Wonderland Greyhound Park and Raynham Park.
Dogs are Seriously Injured While Competing
Over the past six years, more than 800 dogs have been injured while racing in Massachusetts. Nearly eighty percent of these injuries involved broken legs. Other reported injuries include paralysis, death from cardiac arrest and a broken neck.
These injuries are more than just statistics; they tell the stories of individual dogs that suffered and sometimes died while competing:
- On June 25, 2007 a two-year old female dog named Starz Voice was
euthanized after a race at Raynham Park during which she was bumped
by another dog and suffered multiple broken bones in her right front
leg.
Injury
Report for Starz Voice [pdf]
- On July 18, 2006 a one-year old female dog named RHF No Doubt “died
instantly” from a “probable broken neck” during a
race at Raynham Park.
Injury Report for RHF
No Doubt [pdf]
- On January 1, 2005, a two-year old male dog named Hibbert died during
a race at Raynham Park after hitting a post and suffering a “crushed
skull."
Injury
Report for Hibbert [pdf]
- On September 30, 2004 a one-year old male dog named FTK Sherman Tank
suffered “cardiac insufficiency” and “dropped dead”
at the finish line during a race at Raynham Park.
Injury
Report for FTK Sherman Tank [pdf]
- On July 3, 2002 a four-year old male dog named Die Cut was euthanized
after suffering “trauma to spinal cord” and “paralysis”
during a race at Wonderland Greyhound Park.
Injury
Report for Die Cut [pdf]
Other Issues
- In the Spring of 2005, nineteen dogs at Wonderland Greyhound Park died from a mysterious illness that was later proven to be a form of horse flu that had never before jumped species.
- To reduce costs, dogs are fed meat deemed unfit for human consumption. Because this meat is fed to dogs raw, it can cause dogs to be exposed to serious pathogens such as Salmonella.
- In late 2003 and early 2004, a dog tested positive for cocaine twice at Wonderland Greyhound Park.
- Dog racing is a dying industry in Massachusetts. Between 2002 and 2006, the total amount gambled at Wonderland Greyhound Park and Raynham Park declined by 57% and 35%, respectively.
Report
on Commercial Dog Racing in Massachusetts Large file size, 14 MB
Fact
Sheet on the Greyhound Protection Act
Text
of the Greyhound Protection Act