Nicholas Arena wrote:
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Darren I don't think it is a matter of "whinging" many , including yourself, are pointing out the problems that are holding the Industry back and to0 most , why breeding is in decline. Yes you are right the Industry will only prosper if sufficient Breeding is being undertaken to sustain the racing. But,using your 3 litters in 12 months as an example and an assumption NSW's life cycle ownership and Euthanasia rules are rolled out Nationally ,in conjunction to the ban on exports ,unless you can answer positively to the following questions participants need to be very concerned about the financial impact.
" Do I have sufficient financial resources to breed - rear - break in - pre train 20 pups? Can I place 20 dogs post racing or at a point they are deemed unacceptable for racing? Can I afford to look after up to 20 dogs for 8 plus years at my expense , either on my own property or with someone else? How much prize money will I need to earn to pay for these 20 dogs life cycle?Will I be breeding in years 2 and 3 - if so how many litters and at what cost? - That is rerun the above questions. Bottom line Darren IMHO if you cannot get dogs through a system and place them efficiently at whatever point required eg - Fail to chase - break down - not of sufficient ability - Trainer calls you "I need this dogs out asap it is not up to my standards" etc the financial model for breeding and racing greyhounds is irrevocably broken. If all any one is doing is breeding in the hope they will exploit a shortage of greyhounds that may lead to higher prize money returns ,without considering the after racing cost/regulations, I would caution them to consider carefully the personal and financial costs associated. As Anthony says unless you have Deep Pockets and your own facilities to re home your stock be very careful. |
These are the big questions for all participants and the very reason why all breeders are reducing their operations In my opinion the things that need to be done urgently that will go a long way to keeping more dogs on the track and lessening the need to breed more litters are: These are things that relate to NSW as I live here but could easily be introduced Australia-wide with a bit of effort 1. Equitable spread of prize money from the top to the bottom grades. Lets face it 90% of dogs that race don't make it to city class and 90% of dogs run more placings than win races. For most owners and also trainers, it is inequitable to race these dogs with trainers on the current prizemoney levels and fee/split models that are employed in NSW. These lower levels need to be increased at the expense of the higher levels of prizemoney to encourage trainers to drop the fees and go on a prizemoney split only We need to give the incentive to owners and trainers race slower dogs and keep them on the track An adequate/even split of prizemoeny for 1st to 3rd place, which is already in place in NSW is working well e.g. some people I know have a stayer that has had no wins but run 5 placings in its last 7 TAB/City starts but has picked up over $3k in prizemoney. In time it will also lead to an increase in the DIY trainer or owner/trainer ranks as keeping such a dog competitive at lower levels will become enjoyable to train dogs as a hobby and not as costly due to prospect of higher returns It's a model that will suit both pro trainers with high volumes of greyhounds and those with 1-6 greyhounds as well, prize money ticking over is the key 2. The Finish on lure option should be available on at least 50% of all meetings with a standard hoop lure in operation at trial & education tracks and race tracks on trial days Its been proven time and again that a reward for a greyhound will keep it interested in chasing for an extended period of time It's about time the blockages were removed by those trying to hold onto the old world I saw two dogs pull up in winning positions last night at Albion Park. Races with no rewards are no not working. 3. Grading should be more staggered Maiden, 2 Novice Grades and 6 other grades with entry to Non-Novice grades based on a time standard from its previous 3 wins and then an adequate drop down procedure either based on non-winning starts or failure to maintain time standard Group racing stays as is, but with sponsorships sought to bolster prize money to much higher levels rather than from the general prizemoney pools, which currently starve the lower levesl 4. Safer tracks with less bend starts. Potentially, development of at least one horseshoe track in each region 5. Six dog fields & FOL compulsory for Maidens and Novice Class racing. Most of these dogs are young and learning and thus would benefit from a smaller field & incentive at the end of the race. As they learn and gain confidence they move to 8 dogs fields in graded races and trainers can choose a finish on option or not as per Point 2 6. Breeding statistics & standards also to be kept for sires as well We have restrictions & standards for females, but there are two sides to every equation, its not always the bitch's fault, like its not always the sire's fault if a litter doesn't hit the heights They produce more pups than a female. If a sire produces non-chasers or low class stock then its breeding services should be limited Market forces generally sort it out. But at times, too late. However, there should be some standards in place, sires with higher standards are allowed to serve more bitches, sires with poor records can also serve a smaller number after 20 litters over 2.5 years of age start having their services reduced These are some of my thoughts on the matter Hopefully we get some smart people on the new boards with some vision for the industry
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Do you have questions about breeding theories? 
