15,000-Signature Bid May Help Transform Dying Greyhound Track Into Football Stadium

For Immediate Release:

2 February 2015

Contact:

Hannah Levitt +44 (0) 20 7837 6327, ext 235; [email protected]

15,000-SIGNATURE BID MAY HELP TRANSFORM DYING GREYHOUND TRACK INTO FOOTBALL STADIUM

PETA Rallies Supporters to Call for End to Cruel ‘Sport’

Wimbledon — With attendance tanking at cruel greyhound races across the country, PETA – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment” – has dealt the failing industry a new blow. Nearly 15,000 PETA supporters have signed a letter to Merton Council in support of a planning application submitted by AFC Wimbledon and Galliard Homes which would see the closure of Wimbledon Greyhound Stadium. If the bid is successful, the current greyhound stadium would be transformed into the new home of Wimbledon football.  

“As lagging ticket sales show, more people than ever are opposed to breeding dogs for speed at the expense of their health”, says PETA Director Mimi Bekhechi. “PETA encourages kind people everywhere to stick to sports featuring only willing human participants – which is exactly what we’d be able to enjoy at a new state-of-the-art football stadium.”

Greyhound racing is a profit-driven industry that has little regard for the well-being of the dogs involved. Many puppies are killed in the name of “selective breeding” before they ever touch a racetrack. Dogs who do qualify to become racers typically live in cages and are kept muzzled by their trainers. Many exhibit crate and muzzle sores and suffer from infestations of internal and external parasites. Once their racing days are over, many dogs are discarded like used betting slips. Some have their ears cut off to remove identifying tattoos and are then abandoned or killed.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.uk.

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