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Cover Stories Fall 2001 State Implements Stringent Adoption Rules in Wake of Shonka Scandal Hudson: After a decade of declining attendance and mounting losses estimated at more than $32 million, the St. Croix Meadows Greyhound Racing Park officially closed its doors Aug. 10. The Hudson track had 475 greyhounds on site as the closing date neared. Fifty of the dogs were adopted locally through the track adoption program, and 225 were sent to race at the state’s two remaining tracks in Kenosha and Delavan. Left behind were 250 greyhounds in need of homes. State regulators implemented what they called the nation’s toughest greyhound adoption rules to prepare for the shutdown of the track. Scott Scepaniak, administrator of the Wisconsin Division of Gaming, said the regulations, which went into effect Aug. 1, were intended to give the state the tools it needs to ensure that retired greyhounds go through legitimate adoption agencies to homes, rather than be diverted to research facilities or blood-donor programs. The rules required adoption groups to complete four-page applications, provide lists of all Wisconsin dogs they handle, keep records of all adoptions, obtain owners’ permission for adoptions, and open their files and premises to Wisconsin regulators. Several private greyhound adoption groups criticized the new rules as too cumbersome and intrusive. “I think it’s reasonable to ask these questions,” Scepaniak said. “We’re opening ourselves up for another disaster if we don’t,” he said. The new adoption rules, Scepaniak said, are intended “to prevent another Shonka-type incident.” In April 2000,
state regulators were stunned when information surfaced that Daniel Shonka,
a kennel operator at the St. Croix track, had sold nearly 1,100 greyhounds
for between $300,000 and $400,000 to a St. Paul, Minn. cardiac research
lab. More than 950 greyhounds died in the lab; 108 dogs were ultimately
rescued and adopted. At the time, Scepaniak said an investigation into Shonka’s records indicated the greyhounds “went directly from the racing kennel to the lab” although owners “were under the impression that the greyhounds were going to be adopted out.” Shonka ran an adoption program from his residence in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and also held a U.S. Department of Agriculture Class B dealer license. The USDA filed an administrative complaint against Shonka in January 2001, accusing him of at least 341 violations of the Animal Welfare Act for selling animals after they had been obtained by deception. A hearing will be held in Cedar Rapids before an administrative law judge next April. “Blacklist” Surfaces Weeks before the Hudson track closed, individuals claiming to be supporters of dog racing created a blacklist of “anti-racing” adoption groups. The list was e-mailed to a racing official at a Florida track, who in turn forwarded the list to every greyhound track in the country, including the Wisconsin tracks. The e-mail message read, “This is a list of adoption groups that are anti-racing. We feel that all tracks should be concerned that adopting dogs to such organizations is only hurting the industry. Giving dogs to groups that want to abolish racing must be quelched. Please forward this to as many track people as possible. Let your owners/trainers be aware of these groups.” The 37 adoption groups listed are responsible for the majority of greyhound adoptions nationwide. Fearing the possibility that the blacklist might condemn the 250 St. Croix ex-racers to death rather than place them with blacklisted groups, a coalition of greyhound advocacy organizations sent out a press release Aug. 8. “Since most greyhound and animal-protection groups nationwide do indeed speak out about the immense suffering involved with greyhound racing, the effect of this blacklist would be to cut off most avenues for the adoption of ex-racing greyhounds,” said Susan Netboy, director of the Greyhound Protection League. Several of the blacklisted groups, including Minnesota-based Rochester REGAP, which took in several St. Croix greyhounds, have since confirmed that the blacklist has had no effect on their adoption programs. Rescue Haul Fatality A rescue haul organized by the Division of Gaming left the St. Croix kennel compound late Friday night, Aug. 10, carrying 57 greyhounds bound for adoption groups in Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Delaware, and Pennsylvania. A van driven by gaming division personnel followed the converted Greyhound bus for the entire trip. Although the bus was air-conditioned, one of the dogs on board for approximately 14 hours suffered heat stress and died despite all attempts to revive him. Outlaw Music, a 4-year-old white and fawn male, was one of 15 dogs destined for adoption through Michigan REGAP, the third stop on the route. Lisa Zalenski, Michigan REGAP’s transportation director, and Pam Bafile, a retired nurse, were among the group of volunteers who met the hauler at a truck stop outside of Toledo, Ohio, at about noon on Saturday, Aug.11. As the 15 dogs were being unloaded, Outlaw was in obvious distress. Using her van’s navigation system, Zalenski located the nearest emergency veterinary clinic ten miles away and rushed the dog in for treatment. En route, Bafile followed the vet’s emergency instructions via cell phone. According to the vet’s report, Outlaw’s temperature was greater than 107 degrees and his pulse rate was in excess of 240. The vet was able to bring the dog’s temperature down to 102 degrees, but Outlaw went into convulsions and died two hours later. According to Lenka Perron, Michigan REGAP’s co-founder, it was later determined that Outlaw was a known “fretter” and should not have been put on the haul. Constant agitation and barking for the entire journey exacerbated his stress. The Wisconsin Division of Gaming paid the vet bill, and, at Zalenski’s request, paid for Outlaw’s cremation. Fight for Casino Continues Fred Havenick, CEO of Miami-based Southwest Florida Enterprises, owns the St. Croix track and three other dog tracks in Florida and Texas. Havenick decided to close the Hudson facility after Gov. Scott McCallum rejected a plan to develop an off-reservation casino at the track. A federal lawsuit filed against the U.S. government by Havenick and three Wisconsin Chippewa bands is pending. The suit challenges the constitutionality of the federal law granting final veto authority in casino applications to state governors. “We expect, in the end, to prevail,” Havenick said, “and will use the money [saved in suspending track operations] for court.” Havenick said he hopes to reopen the track if he wins the lawsuit. The $40 million St. Croix Meadows track was the last of five greyhound tracks to open in the early 1990s and the third to close. Declining attendance forced the closing of Fox Valley Greyhound Park in Kaukauna in 1993 and the Wisconsin Dells track in 1996. Only Dairyland in Kenosha and Geneva Lakes Kennel Club in Delavan remain in operation. In 1991, the first year all five tracks were open, combined attendance totaled more than 3.5 million. In 1992, attendance dropped to 3 million and in 1993 attendance fell to 2.3 million. Last year, about 800,000 people visited the three tracks then operating, a 75 percent decline since 1991. The yearly wagering handle dropped from a high of $345 million in 1991 to $137 million in 2000, a 60 percent decline. Sources: Wisconsin State Journal: Andy Hall |