The Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB) is pleased to report on the strong progress that has been made in delivering its long-term welfare strategy for the sport, A Good Life for Every Greyhound.

In a report published this week, GBGB has set out in detail how it is working to strengthen regulation, enhance the sport’s veterinary expertise and enhance overall welfare standards across all stages of a greyhound’s life.

The Strategy, which was launched in May 2022, sets out GBGB’s blueprint for enhancing greyhound welfare across all life stages. Since its launch, significant progress has been made including:

  • The appointment of five Regional Regulatory Vets (RRVs) who oversee all GBGB-licensed racecourses and trainers;
  • Increasing the number of welfare checks licensed trainers receive each year from GBGB Stipendiary Stewards, RRVs and independent auditors SCI;
  • Doubling the number of visits to tracks by track safety experts STRI from twice a year to four times a year;
  • Achieving UKAS accreditation for the Greyhound Trainers’ Residential Kennels Certification Scheme which means that both licensed racecourses and trainers are awarded UKAS-accredited certificates;
  • Removing from the GBGB Retirement Form the option for retired greyhounds to compete in unlicenced greyhound racing;
  • Introducing additional checks on recently retired greyhounds who are awaiting homing in their trainer’s kennels as well as those who have been homed privately;
  • Commissioning research projects into greyhound nutrition, injury detection and the genetic factors influencing resilience and longevity in racing greyhounds;
  • Launching a new marketing campaign, ‘Share your life with a greyhound’ to promote retired greyhounds as pets;
  • Hosting meetings of international greyhound regulators to drive forward collaboration and share best practice;
  • Enhancing GBGB’s Continuous Professional Development programme to include a wide range of high-quality courses for all those working with greyhounds.

 

Commenting on the progress achieved to date, Mark Bird, Chief Executive of GBGB, said:

“When we launched our long-term strategy almost three years ago, we were clear that we wanted to bring about a further step change in the way greyhounds are cared for throughout their lives – not just the period when they are racing.  Thanks to the support of everyone in the sport, we have achieved a great deal and there have been significant changes in the way we care for our canine athletes before, during and after their racing careers.  Greyhound welfare is at the very heart of our sport and we are committed to realising the Strategy in its entirety to ensure that licensed greyhound racing continues to uphold the very highest standards of welfare.”

The full report can be read here.

Further detail on the Strategy can be found on the ‘Publications‘ page of the GBGB website alongside previous stakeholder reports.