No mass culls of dogs happening, Greyhound Racing Ireland tells TDs

The organisation that runs greyhound racing in Ireland has insisted that there are no mass culls of dogs.

At a meeting of the Dáil’s Public Accounts Committee, Greyhound Racing Ireland (GRI) also confirmed it does not track animals under 12 weeks of age but TDs were told by officials it is believed most of the dogs go on to be registered for racing.

The interim chief executive of GRI, John Tuohy, said the welfare of the animals is the “main priority” of the organisation’s board.

The industry has been the subject of controversy in recent years after a 2019 RTÉ expose of mistreatment of dogs. The programme highlighted a report commissioned by the Irish Greyhound Board - as GRI was formerly known - which was carried out by a company called Preferred Results Ltd.

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The report alleged that 6,000 animals are killed per year because they failed to make qualification times or their performances declined. This number has been disputed, and GRI has since been sued for defamation by the company that carried out the report.

At Thursday’s meeting, PAC chairman Brian Stanley asked GRI chairman Frank Nyhan if he disagreed with the main findings of the report. Mr Nyhan confirmed that he did.

I’m not saying there wasn’t an issue there in the past . . . but we have made significant inroads

GRI’s director of regulation Pat Herbert said the “chief impetus” of bringing in a traceability system in 2021 was the RTÉ Prime Time programme. He said that there had not been an accurate record of greyhounds in the country prior to that, and now there is.

Mr Stanley asked Mr Herbert if he accepts there is an issue to be dealt with in relation to the “mass killing of pups”.

Mr Herbert said: “I fundamentally don’t accept that.” He added that the traceability system and increased care and welfare programme “has addressed many of the issues. I’m not saying there wasn’t an issue there in the past . . . but we have made significant inroads”.

Earlier, Dublin Central TD Neasa Hourigan asked how many pups out from an average litter of six would be expected to be registered at 12 weeks.

Mr Herbert said there would be “some level of accidental damage” on the farms where they are raised, saying: “Dogs gallop and there would be accidents.”

Ms Hourigan put it to him that it would be rare for a dog to die on a farm, and he replied: “It happens and we need to recognise it happens.”

Mr Herbert said he didn’t have figures for the number of pups that would go on to be trialled for racing, but suggested that on average, it was “more than three or four” out of a litter of six.