Shame on the McGrath Foundation

I must express my disgust at a foundation that is doing great things, but totally going about it the wrong way. The McGrath Foundation is a charity established by Jane & Glen McGrath to support sufferers of breast cancer and to raise awareness of the disease. I wholeheartedly support this cause, as breast cancer has affected people in my life, like all forms of cancer – it is a horrible, invasive disease. Unfortunately, Jane lost her battle with cancer several years ago but this Foundation lives on in her name.

The McGrath Foundation decided to make the month of February the month of ‘Go the Pink Dog’ – where they teamed up with Greyhound Racing Victoria and raised money. Innocent enough you think? Well, unfortunately not.

As you may know, I recently became vegan (about 4 months ago, and I’m about 95% there, just clearing out the cupboard of various non-vegan items) – best decision of my life. It also means that I’m in the process of taking my blinkers off, and seeing the truth out there about exploitation and abuse of animals of all shapes, sizes and ‘makes’. I’ve been doing a lot of reading, and am simply horrified of what really goes on in this big, bad world we live in.

Unfortunately, greyhound racing is one of the crueller things out there. Even though the McGrath Foundation claimed to have the support and backing from the RSPCA to support this campaign – in truth THIS WAS A LIE, and the RSPCA made a statement correcting this claim.

How can a bunch of tiny, thin dogs running after a fake rabbit be so bad?

Well, where do I start?

Injuries – The most common injuries are broken back legs, fractures and dislocations. Other reported injuries include cardiac arrest, spontaneous seizures, sudden collapse before or after racing, spinal cord paralysis, severed tails, bleeding toes, lacerated eyes, puncture wounds and broken necks.[1]

Amelia is one of the ‘lucky’ greyhounds. She sustained a significant wound that had been left untreated. She has undergone surgery and is now in the loving care of one of the most experienced foster carers who, being a Vet is able to provide the veterinary care and daily attention she requires.

WARNING – this first link shows the large wound on Amelia's back before being rescued by Friends of the Hound. Apparently from a dog bite suffered several weeks earlier – it was left untreated.

WARNING – this second link contains graphic images of Amelia after surgery.

WARNING – this third link contains graphic images of Amelia after surgery.

At one South Australian race meet on 26 February 2012, five greyhounds were injured; three were then killed by the on-track vet.

In fact, on Monday 21 February, a greyhound racing on a track in Tasmania broke his right hock - his owner chose for this dog to be put to death by the track vet, rather than let him live out his life as a pet. The dog's name was Whitney's World, he was two years old and he started from box 8, wearing a pink vest, as part of a campaign to raise money for The McGrath Foundation.

‘Disposal’ – It is not uncommon for unwanted dogs to be destroyed or abandoned with their ears cut off to prevent breeder and owner identification from their ear tattoos. It is estimated that 80% of the greyhound population ‘disappears’ once their career has ended (read: they stop making their owners money). Other common forms of disposal include drowning, beatings, and being shot.

But only a few of the estimated 20,000 greyhound pups born each year have the athletic capabilities and top speed to become a race winner. Bred for no other purpose than to race and win, many young and healthy greyhound dogs are discarded and killed without ever making it to the racing track.[2]

Simple abuse – Last year, an owner plead guilty to giving his greyhound cocaine (seriously).

Greyhounds are kept in tiny kennels, lack the social contact all dogs need and are pushed to their physical limits, soon to be unwanted and facing an uncertain future.  Information from greyhound rescue groups also indicates that many rescued racing greyhounds have been underfed, possibly because they have been kept on a restricted diet to keep them at a lean racing weight.[3]

There are literally thousands of people out there who oppose the McGrath Foundation supporting greyhound racing – and have tried contacting them asking them to reconsider this campaign. These people have been turned away, ignored and blocked from their Facebook page. I personally have been blocked as I wrote a comment about how I support their cause, but asking that they look into other ethical and humane ways to fundraise. What do you know – I’m now blocked.

Comments relating the greyhound racing on Facebook have been deleted (whether it be a negative or simply neutral comment about the practice) and anyone making these comments have been blocked – I bet those people who donate to the foundation must be really glad to know that their donations are being used to pay the salary of someone whose sole job is to delete Facebook posts. No kidding.

Apparently last year, Tracey Bevan didn’t even show up to collect a cheque for $125,000 (raised through Go the Pink Dog) due to the backlash of the Foundation supporting such a cruel practice. Yet, they do it all over again this year.

Fortunately there are other charities out there that fundraise through more ethical and moral ways – and who do not delete, ban or block people.

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[1] http://www.grey2kusa.org/pdf/injuryreport.pdf

[2] http://www.animalsaustralia.org/issues/greyhound-racing.php

[3] http://www.animalsaustralia.org/issues/greyhound-racing.php