A fresh welfare strategy launched by the Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB) has been welcomed by Towcester Racecourse as part of our commitment to greyhound health and well-being.
‘A Good Life for Every Greyhound’ is a five-year strategy launched by the sport’s governing body designed to safeguard welfare and care standards for dogs before, during and after their racing careers.
The strategy sets out improvements that can be made to uphold five key animal welfare categories – nutrition, behaviour, health, environment and mental state.
Proposals will help advance the health and wellbeing of greyhounds from breeding and rearing to racing and retirement. A partnership has also been formed with The Kennel Club to promote high welfare breeding standards and the GBGB will work with animal welfare charities to promote responsible rehoming.
It forms part of the GBGB’s wider commitment to continuing to reduce the current 0.03% fatality rate and 1.23% injury rate recorded on UK tracks in 2021 to zero.
Kevin Boothby, Managing Director of Towcester Racecourse, said: “Greyhound welfare is our number one priority, so we welcome the GBGB’s A Good Life for Every Greyhound strategy.
“These initiatives will raise the already exceptionally high standards greyhound racing sets concerning welfare and ensure we are leading the issue globally. Greyhounds are the superstars of our sport and deserve to enjoy happy and healthy lives before, during and after racing.
“Anyone with any concerns regarding the welfare of greyhounds associated with Towcester Racecourse can contact our team and arrange a tour of our facilities to see first-hand how we operate. We have nothing to hide and are open to engaging with those who respectfully campaign against the sport.”
Jeremy Cooper, Chairman of the GBGB and former CEO of the RSPCA, added: “A Good Life for Every Greyhound is one of the most in-depth and comprehensive strategies for working animal welfare that has ever been produced in this country.
“As well as demonstrating our commitment to the welfare of the greyhounds within our sport, it sets out, for the first time, standards and initiatives that cover all stages of a greyhound’s life – not only the period they are racing.
“This strategy firmly positions us as a global leader in animal welfare and we are excited to work with greyhound regulators across the world to ensure consistently high welfare standards for all racing greyhounds.”
