Clarification to document sent by Irish Greyhound Board on 30 November 2017

I refer to the document sent to all members of the Oireachtas by the Irish Greyhound Board on 30 November outlining work being carried out by the IGB on regulation and welfare issues within the greyhound industry. The IGB has been contacted by the ISPCA and Dogs Trust regarding the use of their logos in the document. We wish to clarify that neither organisation was consulted on the content of the document and the use of their logos does not reflect endorsement of any content in the document.
The ISPCA and Dogs Trust logos were used as both welfare organisations, along with Irish Blue Cross and Paws Animal Rescue engage with the greyhound industry in Ireland through the International Greyhound Forum, which was established almost 13 years ago to ensure the welfare of greyhounds is at the core of the industry. The logos were included under this bullet point in the document. Significant improvements have been achieved through the work of the Forum which has developed an atmosphere of mutual respect and understanding between the industry whilst rigorously pushing for improvements in welfare standards at all levels.
Further, the ISPCA would like me to point out that whilst their inspectors cooperate with IGB welfare officers on welfare investigations that this does not, in its view, constitute a close working relationship with the IGB as indicated in the document. The IGB has offered its apologies to both the ISPCA and Dogs Trust for any misinterpretation implied or otherwise - of their positions on greyhound racing.

By the sounds of it no one wants to be associated with this outfit.

The news broke at lunchtime but when contacted a few hours later trainer Gerry Holian said that he still hadnt been notified by the track or by the GBGB and that he had learned of the matter through friends in Ireland.

The latest word suggests that she tested positive for the metabolites of pentobarbital. Earlier this year the IGB decided that metabolite findings, in the absence of the parent drug, no longer constitute the basis for an adverse analytic finding.

A disillusioned Holian said, I did nothing out of the way. I buy all my meat out of the factory where they kill all the animals themselves and I have never had a positive test after running dogs on the track and up the field all my life. I feel like packing up the whole thing.

Never failed a test in his life, I stand to be corrected,Was this the same trainer who trained Cash Dream who failed a drug test in the UK Wimbledon derby 2009 for stanazolol and was sent home in disgrace, where he continued racing without any sanctions being applied by the IGB?.

After making contact with the Director who controls 2 of the Top Laboratories in the world in Australia who test for banned substances in greyhounds, I asked him if there was a threshold for Morphine anywhere in Australia, he categorically said no and that their Government refused to allow such a threshold for a class A Drug, he answered my question without any hesitation and gave me the clarity I was looking for, There is no Threshold for Morphine to be found anywhere in the greyhound world, ONLY in Ireland.

What are peoples views on having a threshold in place for such a potent Class A Drug in greyhound racing in Ireland, if a greyhound needs morphine surely he is totally unfit to be racing.Please give your views and it could help get this ludicrous threshold removed from greyhound racing, your views are greatly appreciated, thanks.

Now what system would that be????? Would it be the same system where samples taken at certain venues end up being contaminated when they arrive at the lab, Now that is some system,its called total incompetency, 114 samples taken in the St Ledger, 40 in the Independent Laurels but only 14 in the BIF Produce stakes, if they tested the 12 dogs in the semi finals and the 6 finalists thats 18 samples where are the other 4 samples???

EXTERNAL LINK

In the last 3 weeks I've won 13 races mostly AAO which is top grade I've won bout 800 in prize money which I receive 80 in commission, I've travelled to cork ,Tralee, & Shelbourne to win these races, I won 5 heats of the kingdom derby at 50 entry fee & 50 for winning each heat, first round of Ted hegarty marathon 100 of which I receive 10 so don't put on talking dogs trying to mislead the greyhound people of Ireland telling them bout 25% increase a load of bullshit Phil, all the staff in igb will take a fine wage packet home this Christmas and get holidays, Phil it's time you and the directors stop misleading the greyhound people and it's time you and some of you're fellow directors Mattie & Billy what good are they doing for the sport political appointees spending government funding wasting all this fine money and this great sport you and you're buddy directors are destroying so I and the greyhound people of Ireland don't want to listen to you're bullshit anymore make a New Years resolution for the sake of greyhound racing resign you and you're buddies.

(Edited by Admin)

I never comment on these things but I think my old man is spot on. Let me give you an insight into my time in Australia and the comparisons between both countries.

I arrived here in September 2016 and started working for the Dailly's, the same people who trained Fernando Bale. I spent 3 months there just getting to learn how the system worked in Australia. After that I went training on my own. I rented kennels and had about 2 decent dogs with the rest being what would be classed as graded runners. It was very tough getting going because no one knew me. I did not know one person when I arrived in Australia, just one mutual friend. I had about 50 winners in 6 months and trained roughly 15-20 dogs like my old man. My 50 winners earned me well in excess of 130,000 in six months. There are no training fees in Australia. You train on a 50/50 basis with the trainer covering the costs. A normal race in a country grade track ( say your Limerick, Thurlas, Clonmels etc) pays a minimum of $1405 for a win and the prize money is paid for 2nd and 3rd also. You also get $70 for fuel no matter what track you go to and then an extra $10 a dog after that. So if I had 2 runners I'd receive $90 run/fuel money. Sandown and the meadows which would be like Shelbourne our premier track pay a minimum of $5,000 to win on a Thursday and Saturday night. That's 24 chances to race for a minimum of 5k a week. Yes they are slightly more difficult to win but your Saturday night Shelbourne dog is what you need to be taking to win these races.

After 6 months training I got head hunted by Australia's leading trainer who was forced to step back from training until next year. I joined the kennel and we have had a lot of success. The Biggest win being this years Melbourne Cup. The Melbourne cup is worth $420,000 to the winner of which the trainer receives half. Dogs from our kennel this year have earned in excess of 2.3 million. Tonight I will take 4 dogs to the Meadows for the heats of the silver chi.
Happy Christmas to you all
Regards
Jack

(Edited by Admin)

Someone has a problem and they Just cant see it.

Free from crippling Debt, how much will the high court cases and the case that is ongoing cost this industry???, [Thousands]
Opportunities will be wasted by looking back, if the IGB are serious about saving this industry they should all take a good look back and work out for themselves where and what went wrong and learn from their multiple errors and serious blunders it would not be a waste looking back, Chairman suggests its time for Unity, what's the point in being United when we are never listened to only classed as Third Party Obstacles in the way, When an industry works as a team they are generally very successful at accomplishing their goals, unfortunately this industry only ever scores Own Goals due to the lack of inability to progress forward as a Unit.
To suggest that spectators have enjoyed a Feast of excellent racing is somewhat confusing, if the chairman considers Cocaine Fuelled dogs running and winning Classics out of their brains on Class A Drugs as excellent racing God Help us all.
We also have the problem of dealing with dodge pots who are unable to take a simple Sample without it leaking all over the shop and destroying valuable information and other Samples.

Please Santa Bring us a new board, Merry Christmas to you all.

(Edited by Admin)

Ger Dollard, CEO of the Irish Greyhound Board, has issued the following message for the New Year:

Early on in my new role, I was invited out to RT studios to discuss the regulation of our industry. As I waited in the Green Room, two other participants on a different panel were enthused when I mentioned where I work. Both had a close relation who had owned greyhounds and won numerous competitions. That such a coincidence would occur belies the fact that our sport reaches into every small village in urban and rural Ireland.

While there is understandably much frustration after a challenging period, I believe we have solid foundations to rebuild our industry to its full potential. The essential improvements in finances, regulation, welfare and governance enacted in recent years place us in a strong position to develop in the term ahead. Rebuilding public confidence in the areas of regulation and welfare is essential to see attendances grow.

While I acknowledge that prize money is the life blood of our industry in supporting owners, trainers and breeders, - and much progress has been made in boosting prize money - like any business, getting customers into our stadia has to be an equal priority.

The future survival of our 16 tracks is dependent on all of us working together to deliver a quality product to our customers. We all must acknowledge that public opinion has changed in recent decades and there is a growing focus on animal welfare and rightly so.

A minority have damaged our industry in recent years through the use of prohibited substances or poor welfare standards. Where such instances occur, the heaviest penalties should apply. Three Disqualification and Exclusion orders have been issued for doping or welfare offences - these individuals are disqualified from owning, training or managing a racing greyhound or visiting one of our tracks. There is no place in our industry for anyone who wishes to undermine the integrity of greyhound racing.
In 2017, IGB kennel inspections resulted in one Welfare Notice and 43 fines being issued while in 2016 there were two Welfare Notices and 20 fines issued. A case taken by IGB before a District Court in Limerick resulted in fines of 1,250 on an individual for failing to notify where the transfer of greyhounds had occurred.

STRONG WELFARE ETHOS

This strong welfare ethos is to ensure the public can have confidence in our industry and is essential if we are to attract younger patrons into our sport. I must acknowledge the excellent work of the volunteers in the Irish Retired Greyhound Trust (IRGT) and the Friends of Cork Greyhounds.

No sport is immune from the challenges of doping. Recent coverage in the world of athletics and cycling highlights the complexities that arise in the sporting arena. No sport does more testing than ours to combat doping and demonstrate the integrity of the sport. Some criticise IGB for being too transparent in the area of regulation, while others criticise us for not being transparent enough! Across all human sports in Ireland in 2016, there were 1,003 samples taken to combat doping. In the equine sector, there were 3,540 samples taken from horses. From January-November 2017, there have been 5,348 samples taken from greyhounds with 28 adverse findings.

In the Irish St. Leger all 114 samples taken from 60 greyhounds at race meetings and private kennels returned negative. This included the 12 samples taken on the night of the Final each greyhound was sampled twice, pre-racing and post-racing. All 150 samples taken throughout the 2017 Irish Greyhound Derby returned negative, this included out-of-competition testing at private kennels.

In our 90 year history, our anti-doping regime has never been stronger due to: the unannounced and intelligence-led testing now in place at race meetings, sales, private kennels and trials, 400,000 invested in a new machine that measures substances in parts per trillion and the intelligence sharing with the Irish Turf Club, Investigations Division of Department of Agriculture, Horse Sport Ireland, Irish Sports Council and the State Laboratory.

As I visit our stadia and speak to the owners and trainers, there is a distinct nostalgia for times gone by. Ten years ago under-18s could bet on the Tote, there were no iPhones for betting online and there was no social media megaphone for those anti-racing to criticise us so freely.

CORE STRENGTH

In the same way that our industry was reinvented with high quality dining and marketed as a Night out at the Dogs, our offering has to be reimagined again for modern times with increasing focus on regulation, integrity and welfare.

In early 2018, our Five Year Strategic Plan for the period 2018-2023 will be published but this will only be as successful as the buy in we receive from all owners, breeders and trainers nationwide. The sale of Harolds Cross will clear our legacy debt and provide much needed funds to reinvest in our industry.

Only a few years ago, to be here developing a plan of reinvestment was unimaginable. However to come through the worst recession in the history of the state, vast improvements in regulation and welfare and reforms in other areas, I believe this highlights the core strength and commitment that exists among our community.

The Greyhound National Consultative Forum will meet in two weeks time. The Forum allows for essential dialogue between all groups and IGB. In the last four months since I took up duty with IGB, I have been struck by the deeply held commitment of owners, trainers, breeders, grounds people to stadia management, each one is 110% committed to our sport and industry. Our sector would not have come through this challenging period were it not for the hard work and dedication of our staff at all levels and the owners, trainers and breeders, without whom we would not have the core product which attracted 640,000 patrons to our sport in 2016.

The improvements in regulation, integrity, welfare and the opportunity for reinvestment now available presents unparalleled opportunities for our sector to unite and be confident of our future. Far from seeing our best days as being firmly in the past, I believe our industrys best days are still ahead of us.

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The essential improvements in finances, regulation, welfare and governance enacted in recent years place us in a strong position to develop in the term ahead.

This industry would not survive without the Horse & Greyhound fund therefore there has been little or no improvements made regards financial status, to many part timers on ridiculous salaries and to many staff to sustain this industries future IMO, Welfare & Governance is another issue,
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In our 90 year history, our anti-doping regime has never been stronger due to: the unannounced and intelligence-led testing now in place at race meetings, sales, private kennels and trials, 400,000 invested in a new machine that measures substances in parts per trillion and the intelligence sharing with the Irish Turf Club, Investigations Division of Department of Agriculture, Horse Sport Ireland, Irish Sports Council and the State Laboratory.

With all of the above in place our industry should be one of the cleanest sports in the world, unfortunately our own IGB Regulation Dept is not fit for purpose and serious changes need to come about if the Integrity of our sport is to be restored, no one believes in this Regulation Dept anymore and if they did we would not be having trainers taking high court proceedings against the IGB, JMO, in my own personal opinion an independent body involved within the laboratory must be put in charge of overseeing that ALL samples taken are tested and that all results are Published by the laboratory and not by individuals from IGB, then Integrity would slowly but surely start to be restored, JMHO.