Thank you! I have no doubt we're going to have a wonderful life with our beautiful boy. :)
Yeah, it seems weird when you compare TB racing with greys. I used to gallop racehorses, and also own an ex-racehorse that I adopted(sense a theme here? ;) ). Greys race very frequently, sometimes weekly or more...they are sprinters, so their races are very short. The better they are, the more often they race, which is counter-intuitive to what you and I are used to as horse racing fans. Also, unlike the horses, they only have six tries to break their maiden...if they don't, they are "culled." :( Hopefully that results in adoption and not something horrible.
I am not sure if there are very many popular grey racers. I think that there are some stars at certain tracks that regulars recognize, but I don't think it's likely you find something like your boy Flower Alley, you know? I could be wrong, though, and I am sure there are exceptions.
Racing dogs are kept in double-stacked kennels on the track itself. I don't think any of them ever live with their owners. Most times their owners may not ever have even seen the dog, except on a simulcast. I am still a bit undecided how I feel about greyhound racing. I think it's much like horse racing in that there are some good barns with good trainers, and bad barns with horrible, cruel trainers, yanno? I do know that it costs a lot less to keep a racing dog on the track, and it is, unfortunately, a lot less of a profit loss to "dispose" of a dog than a horse. It breaks my heart, but it is true. The figures are estimated between 10-30k each year that are either euthanized once they retire, or hopefully go into adoption. Sad. :(
Questions are great, ask away! I didn't know much about greyhound racing either when I first volunteered, just that I liked the dogs and wanted to help. It's not as strategic as racing to learn about, but still pretty interesting.
Yeah, it seems weird when you compare TB racing with greys. I used to gallop racehorses, and also own an ex-racehorse that I adopted(sense a theme here? ;) ). Greys race very frequently, sometimes weekly or more...they are sprinters, so their races are very short. The better they are, the more often they race, which is counter-intuitive to what you and I are used to as horse racing fans. Also, unlike the horses, they only have six tries to break their maiden...if they don't, they are "culled." :( Hopefully that results in adoption and not something horrible.
I am not sure if there are very many popular grey racers. I think that there are some stars at certain tracks that regulars recognize, but I don't think it's likely you find something like your boy Flower Alley, you know? I could be wrong, though, and I am sure there are exceptions.
Racing dogs are kept in double-stacked kennels on the track itself. I don't think any of them ever live with their owners. Most times their owners may not ever have even seen the dog, except on a simulcast. I am still a bit undecided how I feel about greyhound racing. I think it's much like horse racing in that there are some good barns with good trainers, and bad barns with horrible, cruel trainers, yanno? I do know that it costs a lot less to keep a racing dog on the track, and it is, unfortunately, a lot less of a profit loss to "dispose" of a dog than a horse. It breaks my heart, but it is true. The figures are estimated between 10-30k each year that are either euthanized once they retire, or hopefully go into adoption. Sad. :(
Questions are great, ask away! I didn't know much about greyhound racing either when I first volunteered, just that I liked the dogs and wanted to help. It's not as strategic as racing to learn about, but still pretty interesting.
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