So this is my idea to generate massive funds towards rehoming and the cost unfortunately is on us and rightly so after all they are our dogs ok the rehoming of every dog starts when its born the litter must then be registered through the igb rehoming program costing the breeder 500 the litter must also be sold through the program costing the buyer 500...breeder can not breed a litter unless he is registered with this program and buyer can not buy a pup or sapling unless he is registered with the program this will also make traceability very accurate...now my figures might be way off the charts lads but it only an example...for instance 2200 litters born averaging 5 pups per litter will generate a massive 6,600,000 per year...even to cut these figures in half it would still be a huge help towards rehoming...

I don't think you need to re-invent the wheel here. Most jurisdictions with greyhound racing have largely solved this problem. The UK with the greyhound trust, the US do it through their tracks and Victoria, and now NSW, have very strong adoption programs run by the authority.

Here in NSW it was largely a financial problem where the old governing body hadn't appreciated the importance of welfare reforms.

I would suggest that whoever runs the joint in Ireland take the time to find out how other jurisdictions handle their adoption programs before tailoring a solution that works locally. Co-operating with local charities didn't work here as well as it did elsewhere, for instance.

But when you've turned everything around in under 5 years, just don't expect any of your critics in the press admit they were wrong and that people could turn things round. That, I guarantee, won't happen.

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Continually asking the grass roots greyhound people to take cuts or to dip into the little money they have will only result in more welfare problems as eventually they will not have enough to feed their dogs.

Brian, if prizemoney was dramatically increased right across the board your idea would carry merit but unfortunately this is not the case.

Every aspect of expenditure needs to be examined and money saved wherever possible.

Brian, it has to go this way and after the recent TV show the public will put pressure on the politicians who in turn will put pressure on the board. The board are now it a very hard position as sponsors will pull out, the public as well as those involved in the sport will want answers. There is two solution:

1. Turn the pyramid structure we now have so that the welfare of the greyhounds is on the top, or:

2. Stop Greyhound Racing.

Lets hope everyone in the sport can forget all personal vendettas and agendas and move forward together in a positive way. Greyhound racing did end in NSW, Australia for a short period so anyone thinking "It won't happen in Ireland" is fooling themselves.

As stated earlier we are at a crossroad, lets hope we take the right path.

Interesting thoughts - but it's not the right analogy. Try horses and carts.

1. Welfare is already at the top of administrators' thoughts and actions - by government decree.

2. Consequently, they tend to look for brownie points only in the welfare area.

3. This is a business, not a welfare organisation, but to run a good business you must look after your stock as well as do other things. Management is a package deal.

4. If conventional management measures are downgraded or overlooked the business will suffer, and therefore deliver smaller resources to handle welfare.

5. The welfare position is clouded because of inconsistency in allocating resources to a few measures over others. The prime examples are poorly designed trips or tracks where high interference is virtually guaranteed but management attention is weak.

6. The industry has paid little attention to convincing the public that the canine athlete is always going to be subject to injury, albeit that they get far more and better attention than any other animal bar racehorses. Injuries affect family pets in the backyard, footballers on the weekend, or even occur from accidental or incidental causes. To say nothing about animals in the wild.

The desirable outcome is safe and profitable racing. Both are necessary.

Did you even watch the programme on Irish TV re welfare? Bruce in this instance you are 100% wrong.

The grass roots Irish greyhound owners, trainers and adoption groups are fighting to have massive changes made which are required to keep the sport going in Ireland.

Last time I was in Oz people with retired dogs were present inside the the stand in Wentworth park. It was a great way of allowing people to meet ex racers and promote them. Kids and adults were very enthused. I've never seen it here but its a great touch.