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PartnersWorking Together |
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Areas of Concern |
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This is the story of a greyhound that needed to be rescued from his rescuers. Indy, a 5-year-old red fawn male, has come a long way, both geographically and physically. The health he enjoys today is a testament to not only his recuperative powers, but to the love and support of those who nursed him back from the brink of death. Guardian Edward Souza of Fairfax shares Indy's tale.
Indy's father was Token Prince, a legendary racer in Australia. He won nine of his first 11 races. The 12th was career-ending due to a broken leg, but his racing prowess caught the eye of breeders. He was equally successful off the track, siring more than 4,200 racers. One of those was Indy, then known as El Fib.
Indy was shipped from Australia to the Guam racetrack, where he raced until the track abruptly closed in December 2008. Suddenly, 150 greyhounds needed to find homes and fast. But the adoption screening process was weak, to say the least. Pretty much anyone who showed up at the track got a dog. One family who thought Indy would make a good watchdog for their chicken coops adopted him, along with two other greyhounds. Well, that's like the proverbial fox guarding the henhouse.
Greyhounds are not watchdogs. And they certainly don't view chickens with a protective eye. Indy's owner tied him to a truck parked outside with no food and little water. There he remained for more than two weeks until a volunteer from Guam Animals In Need (GAIN), alerted by a concerned citizen, rescued Indy and the other two dogs from certain death.
By then Indy was in shock and about a day away from death. He weighed a skeletal 52 pounds and suffered from dehydration and open sores. The volunteers at GAIN nursed him back to health, and in January 2009, Indy made his transoceanic flight to Los Angeles.
Once in the United States, Indy made his way up to the Bay Area, where Golden State Greyhound Adoption (GSGA) took him in. He remained available for adoption for almost four months, most likely because he is not good with cats due to his high prey drive. He was also nicknamed "the Thief" by his foster mom for his prodigious counter-surfing skills. To this day, I can't leave any human food within reach of his ever-searching snout. He's very food-centric, due no doubt to his being starved. Nonetheless, he responds to "no." I once caught him with a block of pepper jack cheese in his mouth and upon hearing my "NO!" he dropped that thing like a hot potato.
Today, my boy weighs a solid 72 pounds and loves to run, not because he has to but because he wants to. At the Golden State adoption reunion picnic in October, he came in second out of more than 120 dogs in the side-by-side racing games. He's been timed at close to 40 mph. His dad, Token Prince, would be proud. Indy can be shy sometimes, but he has become very attached to me. Often I'll open the bathroom door only to find him waiting for me. And I love it when I come home and he flips his favorite stuffed lobster toy into the air and then does his joyous "happy dance."
Knowing all that this sweet dog suffered through has made it both a joy and a revelation to watch him blossom.
Guam - Among the bills debated this morning on the third day of session, was a measure that would ban dog racing on island.
The bill was introduced by Senator Tom Ada in the wake of the 2008 closure of the Guam Greyhound Park in Tamuning.
After the park closed, more than 200 dogs were given away and many were subsequently abandoned. That attracted negative publicity in the national news media for Guam.
Senator Ada said "the bill certainly hopes that by prohibiting Greyhound racing that we will not have a repeat of this particular incident where dogs are mistreated."
Senator Judi Guthertz rose in support of the bill saying the fallout from the closure of the Greyhound Park. She thanked Guam Animals in Need [GAIN] and Dave Davis for spearheading the effort to rescue the abandoned Greyhounds. "This bill is essential" she said. "Never again should we ever see money become more important than the credibility of this government in terms of how we treat people and how we treat animals."
Senator Ben Pangelinan also rose in support of the bill saying "it continues the progress that we are making in trying to enact public policy that provides a greater wholesomeness to our community ... it helps us get ride of a form of gambling in our community, pure and simple."
No Senator rose to oppose the bill and it was passed into the third reading file.
A dramatic increase in the numbers of greyhounds surfacing in the greater Guam community that are experiencing horrific injures and/or extreme starvation and dehydration health issues caused by neglect and/or abandonment is rapidly peaking and igniting an ongoing concern. There is serious worry of an eminent social crisis that promises to plague the region for decades. The situation initiated when a large number of racing greyhounds were irresponsibly “given away” without discretion or review by the Guam Greyhound Racetrack owned by Guam Greyhound Inc. which closed abruptly last month.
Greyhounds were handed out, after a broadcasted public announcement, to any person showing up wanting one. There were many cases of people taking as many dogs as they desired without any screening or clear application process to insure basic standard and reviewable care of the racing dogs. Pairs of male and female animals where distributed without being sterilized suggesting a desire by many to breed the dogs for profit in a marketplace of inflated values. Promises of supporting breeding and bloodline documentation offered by the track appears not to have been provided. There has also be reports of local breeders wanting to cross the greyhounds with typical fighting breeds to produce and faster competitive animal.
Also, a fundamental misrepresentation of the ability of greyhounds to act as guard dogs encouraged many local people to acquire these animals. It appears that many of this people are now faced with being unable or refusing to take even the most basic of care for these animals. Local animal rescue groups like GAIN are being overrun with these Guam Greyhound Track dogs which are being turned in, rescued off the street, or confiscated from neglectful owners. A sharp increase in calls reporting greyhounds sited running loose in the streets faced with starvation and hydration, magnified by the hot weather of Guam, are being recorded daily. The vast majority of greyhounds recovered still have their collars which were provided by the track showing “Guam Greyhound Inc.” printed on them clearly indicating the origin of these animals. Local Veterinarians are treating scores of greyhounds with injuries or health issues directly related to exposure to an inappropriate natural environment which includes the high potential for attacks by other dogs on the more vulnerable greyhound.
Three near death greyhounds were discovered tied to a truck without food and water in the hot sun on Monday. These dogs were immediately confiscated from a local youth by a AEGA (American European Greyhound Alliance) representative who was recently sent by the non-profit international organization to evaluated and support efforts already in motion to recover the Give-A-Way dogs. Another greyhound was captured and turned in to GAIN by a local club owner who stated “…we need to take responsibility for these dogs as a society”. Many dogs are being returned to GAIN by owners that have discovered that the dog is not going to provide them with the attributed promised.
Local News organizations are starting to report the story in more depth and there is an immerging social outcry demanding that those responsible for this situation take immediate financial action. The AEGA is requesting that the Guam Greyhound Inc meet with them and local agencies to help appropriately place the dogs that remain under their care.
There is an undetermined number of dogs still housed at the defunct track which will need to be processed into the adoption system. AEGA directors, with broad international support from other greyhound rescue organizations, is demanding full financial responsibility be taken immediately by track ownership to rectify the current situation, covering all the mounting medical cost connected to but not limited to, the recovery effort.
“Like any company that chooses to dump their waste product onto a community and in turn, causing fabric of that community damage, the Guam Greyhound Inc must take full responsibility both socially and financially for their actions at this time” said John Mottern, a consultant for the AEGA who is working in Guam. “We will continue to spotlight each and every horrific story resulting from the free give away debacle by track management until we are satisfied that acceptable
action is taken by those responsible” Mottern said.
Media Contacts should be directed to Louise Coleman at -
info@ameurogreyhoundalliance.org
(617) 817-6706 EST
Local Guam media contact Dave Davis at 671 653 2970
Guam Greyhound shut down its racing operation November 7, 2008, leaving approximately 200 greyhounds at risk. In the following weeks following the closure, the track began giving away the unaltered dogs to local residents. Three greyhounds are known to have died, two from malnutrition and dehydration after they were staked out in someone’s yard for approximately three days; a third was found with a broken leg and was euthanized.
Guam Animals in Need (GAIN), the only animal rescue organization on the island, is caring for about 15 greyhounds in their overburdened shelter and more dogs are being found alive almost day. According to GAIN, most of the rescued dogs are dehydrated and malnourished. The track is reportedly keeping 50 to 60 greyhounds for “exhibition” purposes.
The Greyhound Protection League (GPL), the American-European Greyhound Alliance (AEGA) and Greyhound Network News (GNN) sent out a joint press release which details the efforts being made by the three non-profit organizations.
AEGA co-founder Louise Coleman sent award-winning international photojournalist John Mottern toGuam on Thursday morning, December 4 to assess the situation and photograph the greyhounds. He is expected to arrive in Guam at 1:20 am Sunday (Guam time), December 7.
The Guam Greyhound Track announced today that they will be working closely with local and national greyhound organizations to formulate a responsible exit plan for the remaining retired greyhounds still living at the facility. Many of these national organizations have extensive experience in placing greyhounds into the domestic domain and will facilitate a screening and placement program to move these dogs into appropriate foster care as quickly as possible.
The Guam Greyhound Track will match funds donated by welfare groups, up to $50.00 per dog initially and will continue to cover all the expenses of the dogs day to day care. These donations are to help cover the veterinarian costs for basic health reviews and sterilizations which will be needed for responsible adoptions. Funding for transport will be reviewed as needed.
“We are very happy to work with the Guam Track to help them transition these retired racers into the community in a thoughtful and responsible manor. We have been successful in making this happen at other racetracks around the world which have needed to place dogs into the private sector.” Said Louise Coleman, of Greyhound Friends Inc. in Hopkinton, Massachusetts.
A positive dialogue and commitment for the responsible placement of these greyhounds has also been made possible through the efforts of the Guam Territorial Veterinarian’s office headed by Dr. Thomas Poole. The efforts of Staff and volunteers with the Guam Animals In Need (GAIN) animal welfare shelter have been instrumental in this process.
John Mottern, Photojournalist
Guam, December 9, 2008
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September 17, 2009-From Dave Davis:
Hello all.
It's been a while since I updated the status of the four greys remaining with GAIN. Hattie is fostered with Shirley Miller, Angel with the Partridge family (who've fostered four previously) and Lizzy and Sophie -- each 5 years old -- are with me. Lizzy -- a big, tall female -- is well into her heartworm treatment and shows no side effects whatsoever. She weighed 56 pounds when she came to live with me on July 14th. Today she's at 74 pounds and still has a way to go. She also arrived with a crushed hip joint -- most likely from being struck by a car -- that initially gave her lots of pain and made walking difficult. It has healed nicely without surgery. It makes for a peculiar gait when running, but doesn't seem to bother her at all. We're holding off on the spay and dental until heartworm treatment is finished. Sophie, a smaller dog, I found scavenging for food on August 17. She went directly to Dr. M for spay and dental, and came home the next day. She then weighed 52 pounds and is now at 62.6, in great condition and a real sweetheart. The group photo shows (L to R) Lizzy; Sophie; the rear end of my shy foster "boonie dog", Jilly; and Faith, Ashley and Charm, all local adoptions in wonderful homes. Faith and Ashley, members of the Kolowsky family (all in the photo), are moving to Hawaii this month (lucky them!) and Charm is one of the 3 greys we found tied to a truck in early December last year (John Mottern photo of Charm and yours truly attached). She lives with her mom Rachel, a Coast Guard member, and will remain in Guam for at least two more years. Regards to all-- Dave
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