Dog racing “must come to an end,” says a pet charity looking to ban the sport.
Blue Cross has launched a campaign calling on the government to close down dog tracks such as Central Park Greyhounds in Sittingbourne and Crayford Stadium within the next five years.
The charity has pointed out that 2,239 greyhounds died between 2018 and 2022 while 22,284 injuries were reported in the same year, which it says “exposes the grim reality” of the races.
But the Greyhound Board of Great Britain claims that the charity’s evidence was “taken from the internet and is incorrect and nearly all outdated”.
GBGB says that race tracks such as Central Park and Crayford employ an average of 300 full-time and 1,600 part-time employees, with the industry having a direct value of £97 million to the UK economy.
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However, Kerry Taylor, education manager for the charity, told KentOnline that “now is the time” to ban the races.
She said: “We have been working for many years with the greyhound racing industry to improve the welfare of the dogs but we are still finding significant…
