Object GRNSW Animal Boarding and Training Facility
Many of you previously lodged an objection in response to Greyhound Racing NSW’s (GRNSW) Development Application (DA NO: 2021/129) with Muswellbrook Council to establish a 400 dog boarding and training facility for discarded racing greyhounds. You may have recently received an email notification from Muswellbrook Council confirming GRNSW has submitted additional information, that the DA is again on public exhibition and an invitation for you to lodge a submission by 20 July 2022.
We now have another important opportunity to submit informed public feedback on behalf of the greyhounds exploited and discarded by the NSW greyhound racing industry. This includes greyhounds who are deemed no longer viable or profitable by the industry, and those in need of meaningful rehabilitation and ethical re-homing.
We appreciate it can be daunting to wade through a large volume of lengthy and complex planning documents, with limited time to do so. Animal Liberation has continued to raise concerns about Muswellbrook Council’s management of this DA, including issuing selective communications, serious privacy breaches, and the inadequate three-week period to compile and lodge a submission. Conflicting information from council, the planning panel, and the NSW Department of Planning has only increased public confusion. Yet Muswellbrook Council’s General Manager has refused to address these valid concerns about misleading the community.
It is critical that we maintain our opposition to this proposed development, and continue to advocate for meaningful and transparent outcomes for discarded NSW racing greyhounds.
To assist you, Animal Liberation has compiled a further submission template which is intended as a general guide only. We strongly recommend you use this template to inform your own individual submission, drawing on any experiences or insights you might have, to provide a response written in your own words.
Public submissions can be made up until 5pm, 20 July 2022.
Background information
Independent inquiries and reviews into the NSW greyhound racing industry have exposed an exploitative industry built upon systemic animal suffering, an entrenched culture of poor animal welfare standards and cruel practices. Yet the industry continues to resist meaningful change or reform. It still contributes to the suffering and death of thousands of greyhounds every year. Millions of dollars of taxpayer money is wasted propping up this unsustainable and cruel industry while fueling problem gambling.
The current national rate of annual greyhound breeding is six times the industry’s capacity to rehome. NSW is one of the biggest racing states in Australia and yet community-run rescues still rehome more dogs than the cashed-up racing industry.
Greyhounds As Pets (GAP NSW) is a not-for-profit entity that recruits volunteer workers. This means they benefit from tax concessions and free labour. The GAP budget for 2020/2021 was a staggering $4.9 million. Meanwhile, self-funded community rescue groups primarily rely on donations and volunteer effort. Similarly, the Greyhound Welfare and Integrity Commission (GWIC) confirmed 1,418 greyhounds were “retired” in the same period. Yet GAP NSW only accepted 339 greyhounds (24%) while volunteer groups accepted 447 greyhounds (32%). Recent testimony given at the Select Committee on the Greyhound Welfare and Integrity Commission hearings included distressing accounts by volunteer organisations about the ongoing neglect of racing greyhounds and the overall performance of GAP NSW.
It’s been six years since the live baiting expose in 2015. Yet the Australian dog racing industry’s rehoming efforts are still failing greyhounds. Warehousing discarded NSW greyhounds at the proposed Muswellbrook Bylong Park facility is not the solution. Nor is it in the interests of the greyhounds who have been discarded by the industry.
Take action
To lodge a submission, please fill out your details below and personalise the submission template, drawing on any experiences or insights you might have.