A few weeks ago, the greyhound racing lobby quietly began an advertising campaign to try to save their extremely profitable industry. This included posters so out of touch that they were almost laughable.

They featured AI-generated images of sad-looking people (like 'Colin', who actually looked like your typical greyhound lobbyist - white, old and confused), saying they were being "left out in the cold".

It took less than a day for the posters to be pulled down after the bill sticker company were contacted, because when it comes down to it, there is absolutely no support from the general public for greyhound racing.

This is something the industry refuses to face. They might have very deep pockets, but that's not enough. They can throw all the money they like into a misinformation campaign, but it won't work. Nobody is impressed by the industry breathlessly stating that, actually, in 2023/2024 no greyhounds were dosed with meth!

I mean, that's their bar for success!! Truly. They managed not to poison any dogs with METH!

What is surprising though, is media publishing disinformation and advertorials without declaring them as such.

Disinformation in a New Zealand Herald opinion piece prompted me to reach out to Dr Helen Beattie,  Director of Veterinarians for Animal Welfare Aotearoa (VAWA), a veterinarian-led group of animal welfare advocates.

There are few people more qualified to talk about greyhound racing than Dr Beattie.  She was previously Chief Veterinary Officer at the NZ Veterinary Association and, in that capacity, was, for a period of time, on the Greyhound Racing New Zealand (GRNZ) Animal Welfare Committee.

Thank you, Dr Beattie, for sharing your expertise with us to help us understand what’s going on and push back against the propaganda campaign spreading online.

Time to kill … this time the industry, not the dogs. 

Dr. Helen Beattie, Managing Director, Veterinarians for Animal Welfare Aotearoa

In my career as a veterinarian with a special interest in animal welfare, I never thought I’d say it, but arguably Winston Peters has done more for animal welfare than the Minister with responsibility for the portfolio, Andrew Hoggard.

In words that seldom pass my lips, thank you, Winston.

With the imminent closure of the greyhound racing industry and the fireworks ban petition being put on the ballot, NZ First has contributed to the safety of animals in an unexpected way. 

Supporters of greyhound racing are against the ban, which is understandable, as it is a sport from which they profit. Misinformation around the industry must be challenged. “For the first time, a New Zealand Government is shutting down a sport”, a recent opinion piece breathlessly stated. But that simply isn’t true. We no longer allow cock fighting, dog fighting, sheep riding, hare coursing, and other animal sports. They lost social licence as society’s sensibilities changed, and prohibition followed via regulation. That’s how we roll.

Rodeo is facing the same dilemma, with the New Zealand Rodeo Cowboys’ Association opting to ban calf roping in its traditional form, given the lack of social licence. And given that there is no science to refute the immensely negative experiences young calves have, being stopped at full gallop by a rope around the neck, only to then be thrown to the ground and leg-tied. 

Greyhound racing doesn’t have those challenges, though. Arguably, it isn’t so obviously barbaric as letting fighting animals maim and kill each other, or be torn to pieces by dogs. Yet we allow live hare hunting. And we let dogs chase, bail, and bite pigs, before the pigs are ‘stuck’ with knives in their hearts or throats, to complete a horrifically violent death under immense stress and terror. 

Let’s be clear – this argument is not about whether all the decisions we make and how New Zealand animal welfare law works are consistent or fair. Put simply, it’s not, and it doesn’t. 

The myth that the industry's closure is sudden is easily debunked. Over the last decade, three reports on greyhound racing have found major concerns, and the last put the nail in the coffin. The reports showed a consistent failure to take meaningful action to address welfare issues and keep dogs safe. 

The 2013 WHK review was followed by the 2017 Hansen Review, which found many WHK recommendations had not been met. Recommendations to improve the welfare of greyhounds were again made. The quarterly progress reports to the various Ministers and the National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee abruptly stopped in May 2020, citing completion of the Hansen recommendations. The Robertson review followed, and again highlighted non-compliance with prior (Hansen) recommendations and lack of improvement. The industry was put on notice, meaning its wind-up now is no surprise.

The Hansen Report laid bare serious animal welfare issues. It found disturbingly high rates of injuries and euthanasia. Race day injuries ranged from muscular tears and sprains to fractures and haemorrhaging, with approximately 7% of dogs suffering injuries so severe that they had to be euthanised immediately. 

It revealed that many dogs never even reach the racing stage. Only around 59% of pups born ever make it onto the track, and of those that do, a significant number are later euthanised or ‘disappear’ from records without explanation.

This pointed to a culture of disposability - animals are bred, raced, and discarded once they are no longer profitable. Not great for social licence, as the dairy industry well knows, given that it kills 1.8 million bobby calves annually in New Zealand. 

Again, perhaps that’s not fair given the vast numerical difference in animals killed, but we also know that companion animals get a better deal than farmed animals, so a better comparison is how many thoroughbreds are killed as ‘wastage’ – the answer is not many, because the thoroughbred industry knows that would kill (pun intended) their sport.

The Hansen findings showed that the industry operated on a model in which risk, injury, and premature death are built-in features rather than exceptions. By any reasonable assessment in a fair and civilised society, these outcomes are unacceptable.

The 2021 Robertson Report again assessed compliance, this time with the Hansen Report’s recommendations. The verdict was blunt - many of the recommendations had not been implemented. Three fundamental issues still need to be addressed: data recording, transparency and animal welfare practices.

Greyhound Racing NZ failed to provide comprehensive, accountable records that showed meaningful progress. The industry’s reluctance to share data meant independent assessment was impossible in some areas, and without transparency, there can be no assurance that welfare standards are actually improving. 

The industry knew what was coming because the Robertson Report made it clear that failure to improve animal welfare practices would risk closure. In 2025, that warning was ultimately upheld when the government moved to ban the sport.

Rehoming is no panacea. Ex-racers often arrive with behavioural difficulties, chronic stress or health problems, and not all can be successfully rehomed. Even where they are rehomed, the process requires significant resources and cannot address the root causes of harm inherent in the racing model.

Public acceptance of greyhound racing has eroded dramatically. Attitudes and expectations change over time, and industries need to be agile and meet changing needs. We just need to think about how mulesing of merinos (cutting off skin around their backsides, with shears, and no pain relief), and tail docking of cows and dogs, are no longer acceptable, nor legal. 

As New Zealanders began to understand the fates of unwanted greyhounds, the injuries, euthanasia and the failure to enact reforms, they reached a logical conclusion. Exploiting sentient animals for entertainment and profit while their welfare is unacceptably compromised is increasingly incompatible with contemporary social values. 

New Zealand’s decision to phase out commercial greyhound racing reflects a long journey of repeated failures to protect dog welfare. Repeated independent reviews showed inadequate progress and the loss of public trust in the sport. 

When a leisure activity results in unacceptable outcomes for animals and the industry repeatedly fails to fix it, it is both humane and ethical to end it. 

Closing greyhound racing is not just the right decision for the animals involved - it aligns with modern ethical standards and acknowledges that our society places a higher value on the welfare of sentient beings than on entertainment and profit rooted in avoidable harm.

Share my stuff to your social network of choice!