KENNEL COUGH STRIKES FLORIDA RACING GREYHOUNDS : THIRD YEAR IN A ROW

Jun 18, 2004 - Greyhounds at the Flagler dog track were the first to succumb to this year's kennel cough outbreak. The Greyhound Protection League has now learned that race dogs at the Ebro and Orlando tracks have also been afflicted.

Although Pari-Mutuel regulations require inoculation against common canine diseases, Florida dog tracks have a long history of not being able to control sickness in the state's racing dogs. The Greyhound Protection League (GPL) has closely monitored the spread of distemper, kennel cough and other deadly respiratory diseases over the last few years. The following disturbing pattern has emerged:

* 1999- A Kennel Cough epidemic spread from Florida throughout the country. Ultimately, 5,000 greyhounds were infected and 70 greyhounds died nationwide.
* 2002 - After a greyhound with distemper was hauled from Florida to a Kansas breeding farm, 100 young greyhounds on the farm died from distemper.
* 2003 - Several south Florida greyhounds were euthanized by a Hialeah vet who said the symptoms were consistent with the distemper virus. Five Sarasota race dogs died of distemper during the same outbreak.
* 2003 - Kennel Cough spread throughout Florida dog tracks over a three-month period in the spring of 2003.
* 2004 - In what is believed to be the first scientific report of equine influenza virus jumping the species barrier, University of Florida veterinary researchers say the virus is the likely cause of a respiratory disease outbreak that killed eight racing greyhounds from kennels in Jacksonville in January of 2004.

"The tracks claim that they inoculate their greyhounds against these hazardous diseases, and yet, large numbers of greyhounds succumb to the illnesses. The tracks claim that they impose quarantines, but the diseases spread.......Something is very wrong with this picture," said GPL President, Susan Netboy.

"In spite of recommendations by experts that racing be suspended to spare exposed animals the stress of racing and contain the disease, the affected tracks are continuing their normal racing schedules," said GPL representative, Lenka Perron. "I can only hope that dogs don't die as a result of this irresponsible decision."

During last year's epidemic the Greyhound Protection League submitted recommendations to the Pari-Mutuel Division to exercise more controls over health issues in racing greyhounds. The Division concluded that it had no authority in this area. In addition, there are no regulations requiring the reporting of greyhound deaths that occur at tracks or on private breeding and training farms. An accurate count of greyhound deaths from these illnesses is not known.
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