RACING DOGS STRICKEN WITH KENNEL COUGH

Apr 01, 2003 - Florida Epidemic Spreads To Rhode Island and Alabama

Tuesday, April 1, 2003 - Dozens of scratches at Lincoln Greyhound Park and Birmingham Race Course evidence spread of the kennel cough epidemic that has killed two Florida racing greyhounds and caused sickness in thousands of other Florida race dogs.

GPL which has been monitoring the sickness and issuing media advisories for nearly two weeks attributes the epidemic to poor animal husbandry skills and disregard for health and welfare issues at the Florida racing facilities. "The outbreak could easily have been contained if the state had issued a statewide, mandatory quarantine and isolation of sick animals at the first sign of sickness," said GPL spokesperson, Susan Netboy.

Florida tracks continued to race dogs well after evidence of sickness was obvious; media scrutiny finally led to the cancellation of races at 4 Florida tracks. GPL cites profits as the motivating factor in jeopardizing the welfare of the dogs. The League is particularly critical of the Hollywood and Naples tracks who have continued live racing in spite of wide spread sickness in the kennel compound. GPL has tracked several dogs from a Florida kennel compound that recently arrived at Lincoln and Birmingham dog tracks.

A nationwide epidemic of kennel cough ravaged racetracks coast to coast in 1999, killing 20 greyhounds nationwide, including 13 at Seabrook. A distemper outbreak spread from state to state late last year and into 2003 and killed nearly 200 unvaccinated greyhounds.

Although some tracks recently issued quarantines on incoming dogs, Netboy alleges that the industry's response is classic case of "too little too late."

The Greyhound Protection League is national greyhound advocacy organization, specializing in the investigations of abuse, neglect and killing of greyhound racing dogs.

< back