International News Spring 2004

Irish Hounds Kept in Horrific Conditions at Rescue Shelter and Racetrack in Spain

Alicante, Spain: Hans Smet, a Belgian national who worked as a volunteer for the El Galgo Senor greyhound shelter in Alicante for four months in 2003, compiled a 10-page dossier describing atrocious living conditions for more than 200 greyhounds kenneled at the complex. Most of the dogs are Irish greyhounds bought at auction and sold for racing to private owners and the Meridiana racetrack in Barcelona, the last remaining dog track in Spain. The dossier includes photographs of starving greyhounds devouring the bodies of other greyhounds.

The Sunday Mirror published excerpts of the dossier and the photographs accompanying it on Feb. 29. Smet outlined filthy conditions in all parts of the vermin-infested shelter: open moldy bags of donated dog food were left on the floor of a storage room and had been gnawed on by rats; medical supplies including needles, syringes, antibiotics and other drugs, kept in an "infirmary" were stored on open shelves at floor level accessible to the hounds. Males and females were not separated and pregnancies common; the puppies quickly became food for the starving dogs. The dogs were mangy, covered in fleas and ticks and bite wounds were left untreated. "Animals would fight to the death and while I was there I managed to stop fights and prevent the defeated animal from being eaten. Except for one morning when I arrived to find a number of dogs eating the remains of a recently torn-up dog," Smet said.

According to the Mirror, conditions are so appalling the Spanish Regional Ministry of Agriculture and the Service for Nature Protection plan to shut down the shelter if conditions do not improve. Smet told the Mirror, "Even though there were plenty of separate kennels, many animals were locked in the same kennel to reduce cleaning for the owner." He added that it was impossible to see the floor because of the accumulation of excrement. Smet referred to the shelter as a "canine concentration camp."

Patricia Osborne, 62, originally from Warwickshire, England, has owned and operated the shelter for four years. Osborne denied the allegations and said she loved "every one of my dogs." The owner of the track pays Osborne 100 Euros for each greyhound she takes.
Bernie Wright, spokesperson for Greyhound Action, said, "The only way to prevent the suffering and killing of greyhounds is to abolish greyhound racing. These unfortunate dogs are simply bred to die, whether it be here in Irish dog pounds, in horrific conditions in Spain, or after a lifetime of changing trainers or owners. Greyhounds are mere commodities in a cruel industry, propped up by the Irish Government."

SOS Galgos' president Anna Clements, based in Barcelona, confirmed the allegations are true and that efforts are being made to shut down the shelter. "However, the root of the problem lies at the Barcelona track," she said. Clements outlined appalling conditions at the track and the nearby kennel compound that houses approximately 800 Irish greyhounds, in a letter to the mayor of Barcelona. She wrote, "The dogs are kept in cages measuring one-sixth the legal minimum size, exposed to extremes of cold and heat, caged for 23 hours a day, scarcely able to move, and received no adequate exercise or veterinary care. Local authorities seem to be turning a blind eye."

SOS Galgos organized a protest march to call public attention to the plight of the greyhounds at the Barcelona track and kennel compound, which was supported by more than 50 animal protection groups throughout Spain,Europe, and the American European Greyhound Alliance (AEGA), among others. On Sunday, April 18, more than 500 people, many of them accompanied by their dogs, took part in a 90-minute protest march that started at the La Maquinista shopping center and ended at the Meridiana track. Protesters demanded that the track observe existing laws or be shut down. News of the unprecedented protest event was reported in every major newspaper in Spain.

[Editor's Note: Smet's dossier and photographs taken at the Alicante shelter can be found on the AEGA's website www.ameurogreyhoundalliance.org Eyewitness accounts by three other individuals who volunteered at the shelter in 2001 and 2002 follow Smet's account. Warning: graphic photographs]

How you can help: Write or email Barcelona's mayor: Excm. Senor Joan Clos i Matheu, Alcalde de Barcelona, PI. Sant Jaume, 1, 08002, Barcelona, Spain; alcalde@bnc.es

Sources: Sunday Mirror: Michelle O'Keefe;
La Vanguardia: Luis Benvenuty