Greyhounds endure lives of confinement

Greyhounds endure lives of confinement at the state’s two racetracks, as more than 1,500 greyhounds are kept in warehouse style-kennels.1 At track compounds, dogs are kept in rows of stacked metal cages for long hours each day, with shredded paper or carpet remnants for bedding.2

State regulations require just a minimum cage size of 44 inches long, 32 inches wide, and 34 inches high,3 and do not limit the amount of time greyhounds can be left confined.4

During the month of February 2021, a total of 665 dogs raced at Mardi Gras and 1,028 at Wheeling.5



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Greyhound racing in the news

  1. This number is calculated by adding the number of inactive dogs kept at warehouse style-kennels to the monthly active racing dog total (“Trackinfo,” Trackinfo, trackinfo.com, accessed July 31, 2019).
  2. “Greyhound racing FAQ,” The Humane Society of the United States, humanesociety.org (accessed August 1, 2019).
  3. W. VA C.S.R 178-2-26.2b.
  4. Jon Amores (Executive Director of the West Virginia Racing Commission), Email to GREY2K USA Worldwide, July 15, 2013.
  5. “Trackinfo,” Trackinfo, trackinfo.com (accessed February 11, 2021).

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