- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
Greyhound racing needs reform. It’s needed reform for years. But before people cheer on the decision, and before I have a proper read of the document, have a think about what it means to a family like mine.
Since I started at The Roar I’ve had three avatars. Boris, Jackie and Julie, or to the racing public Funtastic Shiraz, Folksinger and Sapphire Shiraz. Born in 2008, they are living happy and healthy lives at my parents’ place.
Just last week I visited and made a special treat for the three of them, homemade ice cream. If you try and explain to them that they are the victim of systemic cruelty or an uncaring industry, they’ll probably think that you’re bonkers.
After all, they weren’t all superstars. Folksinger would’ve been great over a mile, but instead only won a few 700s at Richmond and I apologise to any punter that placed money on her at Wenty Park. Funtastic Shiraz could run, a dual Wenty Park winner that used to go from last to first with a devastating final sprint.
But my current avatar, Sapphire Shiraz, she’s what we’re arguing about. She never won a race, but now we’re saying that the life she’s led and the enjoyment we’ve had with her, and her with us, is wrong?
The thing is, to pay for these old, lovely pets, we use the prizemoney from our current chasers. Celestial Folk, for instance, who won at Wenty Park last week. Now that is gone, taken from us, leaving us with horrible choices.
Either my parents move interstate in their 70s, or we give our greyhounds, now our family members, to other people. Although the nice chap on the phone from the Special Commission told my parents, with no hint of the irony, that we could put them down.
That’s right, the state is telling us that because others are putting their dogs down, we have to do that to ours.
How angry would you feel if this was happening to you? They’re saying that the lives our greyhounds, our family, haven’t been worthwhile. The friendship between us and our greyhounds should be a matter for us, instead it has become a political football where the state wants to take them away for their popularity.
And at the end of the day, Mike Baird’s argument is primary school-grade crap. They shut it down not because the industry couldn’t solve these problems, to a large extent they have, they shut it down because they are people who didn’t want to be blamed for the problems they themselves have created.
Instead some overpaid upper-class prats in suits tell me that the way we treat my greyhound is wrong. But given the choice, I’m sure our greyhounds would choose us and our homemade ice cream over Baird’s generous offer of not existing any day of the week.
Have you ever tried your skills in a Racing daily fantasy competition? Put your best picks to the test for one day and see if you can scoop the pot with Draftstars. Looking for great odds on racing and sport? PlayUp is your best bet. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.