Friday Hound Blogging

Well, here's an interesting headline: Euthanized Racing Greyhounds Prompt Concerns.  Really? Concern from whom? Are you concerned track racing director Thomas Bowersox?

"It is just as in any racing sport that animals or things are asked to turn left at the speed (sic) are running, sometimes collisions occur with serious results," Bowersox wrote in the April letter to the state Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering.

Animals or..."things"? So the welfare of the dogs is right up there with, what? Cars? Motorcycles? Speedboats? Things, Mr. Bowersox, sir, are not alive. They don't feel pain. They don't suffer as a result of a collision. Or die.

OK so the headline doesn't refer to Mr. Bowersox. Anyone else got something to say? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Uh oh. Look over there, it's Cary Theil, well known animal rights wacko. She's* He's bound to harsh Mr. Bowersox's mellow.

"That dogs are seriously injured on a regular basis is one of the greyhound racing industry's dirty little secrets," said Carey Theil, the executive director for the Massachusetts-based group GREY2KUSA -- a national nonprofit group that advocates for greyhound protection laws and eliminating greyhound racing.

 Hey, come on lady dude. How can it be a secret if they're writing newspaper articles about it, huh? Answer us that.

Florida's lack of policy on the reporting of greyhound injuries leaves Theil and other advocates questioning how many other dogs are being injured and euthanized at the Sarasota club and the state's 12 other tracks. "If the public understood how many greyhounds are being seriously injured and even dying at these racetracks, I think they would reconsider their support of this facility in their community," Theil said.

Oh don't you start with that tip of the iceberg stuff now, lady brother. There's a perfectly logical explanation for all this, right Mr. Bowersox?

Bowersox attributed the clashes to poor track conditions caused by heavy rains. A refresh of the racing surface was completed immediately after the collisions.

See? Problem solved. And, as Mr. Bowersox is compelled to point out, it's not really a big problem to begin with.

Bowersox pointed out in the letter that the 14 euthanized greyhounds were a "very small percent" of the dogs that raced at the Sarasota Kennel Club this season.

Right on. NASCAR can lose more cars on a percentage basis in a single race than the overlords lose dogs in a whole season. Let's get some perspective here people. And when a car wrecks, you can sometimes swap out parts so it isn't a total loss. Can't do that with dogs, so the overlords suffer a greater economic hit because you can't just put a new leg on a greyhound and send him back out there. Come to think of it though, you can soup him up a little.  OK, that's not our point.

"Tracks don't want to talk about dogs," Theil said. "They make them into statistics and numbers. Those are dogs that suffered and died."

Right. Numbers, see? Like Mr. Bowersox says, "things." You know, expendable and stuff. Wait, why are you looking at us like that Demur?

Demur is all girl. She is delicate, easygoing, sweet, well-mannered, quiet, mellow and feminine. She is a happy girl; her tail propellers when she is happy and she will wag when you talk to her. She loves to be petted and will rest her head on your knee. She enjoys playing with squeaky toys. She will throw the toy in the air. She loves to be outside. She likes to lay in the grass. She will “talk” to her foster mom from time to time. She wants to be near her foster mom and is a bit of a Velcro dog with her foster mom when she up and moving. She wants to please and is easily corrected with a slightly raised voice. Demur would do well in a working family home with well-mannered children, 6 and up. She is good with other dogs and is also fine as an only dog. For more information about this dog, and other rescued racing greyhounds looking for homes, go here. If you don't know about the plight of racing greyhounds go here.

*Edited for clarity. Through no fault of our own, because we seldom blog sober,  we inadvertently assigned Cary Theil the wrong gender. The staff at Ironicus Maximus regrets any inconvenience this may have caused Mr. Theil and assures him, he can return the dresses for a full refund.