, I dug out the VHS tape containing the Grey2K lies.
Paula Zahn was on the Fox News Network then and she did a segment on the first failed attempt by Grey2K to shut down Greyhound racing in Massachusetts. (Why they think horse racing is
and Greyhound racing isn't is clearly liars' logic.)
This was from the Paula Zahn Show on FNN, June 6 (appropriately D-Day), in 2000.
Ms. Zahn: "Just before I went on the air I received a FAX from Grey2K. They say:
1) there are 20,000 Greyhounds killed per year when they are no longer profitable.
2) they are caged 20 hours per day
3) they are fed diseased meat
4) they are regularly infected with fleas, ticks and internal parasites.
Is this true?"
This is what Thiel does. He makes stuff up.
In the first place, we do not feed our dogs "diseased" meat, or meat that in any way posses a significant health hazard. This is an out right lie, and Thiel knows it. I've fed it and I've talked to PhD veterinarians who have researched it. There is no significant health risk from the meat regularly fed to racing Greyhounds. And it's pure beef, providing them with excellent nutrition. But Thiel will falsely call it "diseased" to further his campaign of hate.
The number of 20,000 "killed" is pure, malicious, false, propaganda on Grey2K's part. They make this stuff up as part of their hatemonger campaign.
In 1998 there were 5,034 litters of racing Greyhounds born. That would be around 32, 720 pups. Now here's part of the rub -- pure bred puppies have a high mortality rate by human standards. I'll dig out the reference, but a pathologist with the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine puts the puppy mortality rate at over 30% for all breeds. Anti-Racing hatemongers like Thule regularly claim we "cull" (read kill) those pups.
They're lying.
Since the racing Greyhound breed has been kept healthy, unlike other breeds, we loose fewer pups. But we do have a puppy mortality rate. (Just as there is an unavoidable human infant mortality rate.)
About 20% of the pups born don't go to race. Not all die, some get placed as pets, but most of those numbered as not racing are the result of unavoidable puppy mortality.
Take out the deceased 20% from the 32,720 born and you get 26,177. Thiel's lying group says we killed 20,000 of 'em. That leaves around 6,500 alive.
Now we've got to keep some back for breeding. You need Greyhounds to create more Greyhounds. Let's say 10% of the "survivors" get kept for breeding. That would leave about 5,850 available for adoption in the year 2000.
Now do any of you think that there were only 5,850 Greyhounds adopted in alll of North America in 2000? If so, I've got some ocean front property in Arizona to sell you. It's another Grey2K lie.
The racing Greyhounds are kenneled and live in their crates. Thiel has zero evidence that this is harmful to the dogs in any way, either physically or mentally. It's like keeping a horse in a stall. He plays on the publics' lack of knowledge to present this as something bad. It isn't.
Then the liars go on to say that they are regularly infected with parasites. So?
They are also regularly treated for parasite control, which is something his group leaves out. You can't keep a bunch o' animals and not have parasite problems. That's why flea and tick control, and regular worming are part of a kennel's routine. Thiel's group left that out to intentionally mislead Ms. Zahn and the public.
I've owned racing dogs, I've bred racing dogs, I've worked in track kennels and I've done a lot of volunteer work for Greyhound adoption. There is only one thing wrong with the animal welfare aspect of Greyhound racing. We don't have full adoption yet. But we're going to get there real soon. Like, this year.
And when we meet that standard we'll be light years ahead of any other breeders.
But Cary Thiel makes his living saying lies like we feed 'em "diseased meat". That's the bottom line.
Ken Strawbridge
to race horses but not Greyhounds. 
