Go buy a dog

By Michael James

Dec. 8, 2009

(Side note; I need to be really, really careful here, lest I become known as a bleeding heart and an animal lover and any of those other similar horrible, horrible designations.)

I like going to the dog track. I like watching them run. I like betting on them. I like the challenge of trying to determine why I thought a dog would win, and then when I (usually) lose, I go back and try to figure out why that other stupid dog won instead. I will miss going Dairyland Greyhound Park when it closes in a couple of weeks.

And now there is a risk that hundreds of dogs could be abandoned and left for dead on January 1.

How we got to this point is not only a matter of debate, but also completely irrelevant. The Journal Sentinel’s Don Walker is covering the story, but short version is that the track is running racing on December 31, but because the gaming license will expire, the track closes immediately. There are no contracts with kennel operators past that point, so if the dog owners don't move them to other tracks (and dog racing is a dying industry, making that option less than appealing) or find adoptive families on January 1, they will be abandoned. While still alive. (Side note; let's hope it doesn't get to this point.)

Sure, there will be all sorts of animal groups assisting; aggressively trying to make adoptions happen, feeding and sheltering the dogs for awhile. The track even has a page on their website saying that the compound will stay open until all dogs are placed (however without contracts, who will actually tend to the dogs?) But while the State, the track, the kennel operators and the owners all look at each other and point fingers, there is a chance that Delray Chowder and Kwicher Bawlin will starve to death in early January.

My-Sugar-Na has already begun poking at me to consider adopting a greyhound. I wouldn't actually mind, except that we have a small yard, and with each of us working full time and teenagers ready to move out, there really isn't a good way for us to get a greyhound the amount of proper exercise needed to maintain its health.

But if you are considering getting your family a pet for Christmas, follow some of the links to adoption agencies and give these athletes a good forever home.

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Go buy a dog

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