In the U.S. today, just 19 dog tracks remain active. The sport has been outlawed or shut down in 40 states due to declining profits and concerns about cruelty and dog deaths. Wagers on dog races dropped from .5 billion in 1991 to 0 million in 2014, according to the Association of Racing Commissioners International. This decline is due to gambling and entertainment options, younger people’s lack of interest and growing awareness about the dogs’ welfare.
But despite decreasing attendance and profits, Florida hosts 12 of the nation’s 19 operating tracks, which lose about $30 million annually on dog racing. That’s because Florida law requires the tracks to offer dog racing in order to operate their highly lucrative card rooms. In 1997, the Florida legislature passed a statute requiring licenses to only go to existing parimutuel betting facilities — horse racetracks, jai alai courts and dog tracks.
As a result, about 7,000 greyhounds in Florida race to keep the poker rooms open. Carey Theil, executive director of Grey2K USA Worldwide, a greyhound protection organization, said, “Greyhound racing is a Depression-era relic that happens to still exist today. We’re seeing dogs suffer and die right now at Florida tracks in races that the tracks don’t want to hold.”
According to state figures, nearly 400 dogs have died at Florida tracks since 2013. Grey2K USA and other animal protection groups have said the dogs are confined to cramped kennels for 20-plus hours a day; sustain frequent injuries including head trauma and broken legs; and are sometimes given drugs such as anabolic steroids to prevent females from going into heat. In April, a veteran Florida trainer lost his license after five of his dogs tested positive for cocaine.
Florida Greyhound Association lobbyist Jack Cory said those claims are “misconceptions.” He said racing dogs “do what they love to do — they run—for two or three years, then they get adopted out to a loving family.”
