Greyhound racing injuries continue to mount in Tasmania, with two dogs suffering leg fractures in Hobart on Thursday night.
Welfare Alliance for Greyhounds Tasmania spokesperson Anne Boxhall said both dogs were hurt in the final race of the evening at Elwick.
“In the final race of the night, Elko and Pop’s Girl were both checked and subsequently found to have suffered fractures to the radius and ulna,” she said.
Both greyhounds have been stood down from racing for 90 days.
Their current condition is unknown.
Boxhall said Tasracing should confirm whether the dogs will be rehabilitated, retired or put down.
She said 19 deaths or serious injuries had already been recorded on Tasmanian tracks this year before Thursday night.
“Serious or fatal incidents are happening every ten days or so,” she said.
“It’s Russian roulette for the greyhounds each time they race.”
Greens MLC Cassy O’Connor called on Tasracing to provide an immediate update on both dogs.
She pointed to the case of Memphis Rains, a greyhound that fractured her right hock in January and was later killed in Victoria.
“This industry survives on the taxpayers’ tear to the tune of about $8 million a year,” O’Connor said.
Pulse contacted Tasracing today, but they declined to comment on the incident.
The latest injuries follow an incident at Mowbray in Launceston on August 13, when greyhound Rojo Coco fell at high speed during a race that was subsequently abandoned.
Tasracing said at the time that Rojo Coco suffered only a small graze and minor nosebleed.
Government minister Bridget Archer last week said the Launceston incident was “outside of community expectations” and the government would continue pursuing its phase-out legislation.
The phase-out bill was pulled from the upper house in April after lacking the numbers.
Treasury earlier this month told a parliamentary committee the economic impact of ending greyhound racing would be “manageable.”
Racing Minister Roger Jaensch told the same committee greyhound racing “is inherently risky and dangerous to the wellbeing and the lives of the animals involved.”
Labor leader Josh Willie has maintained his party supports the three codes of racing, previously accusing the government of betraying industry workers after the election.
