Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am glad to get an opportunity to talk on behalf of the greyhound owners in Kerry who love their dogs. It is their culture and their sport and they are entitled to have it, like everyone else. To say that it is wrong to give this money to the greyhound industry is totally wrong. These people deserve and are entitled to their sport. RTÉ said that 6,000 dogs were destroyed but that is wrong. I can give an example of a father and two sons who had 35 old dogs between them. They rehomed the animals themselves. They are looking after them. The dogs have hot floors and are being bedded, fed and kept right. There is a care fund for injuries and welfare, with 10% of admission fees and 5% of the Tote going towards animal welfare. There are greyhound care centres in Kerry, Tipperary, Limerick, Cork, Clare, Belfast and Dublin. There is a demand for old greyhounds abroad in places such as Montreal, the USA and mainland Europe, with people taking them as pets. Dogs have not been destroyed in the way suggested. These people are paying their way in betting taxes that they pay every night when they place their little bets. A lot of that money is going to the central fund when it should be going to the industry. I support the money provided by the Government to make up for lost gate receipts and returns that the industry did not enjoy this year because of the coronavirus.

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