Victory: Hall Green Stadium to Close Following Campaign by PETA and Others

For Immediate Release:
21 July 2016

Contact:
Olivia Jordan +44 (0) 20 7837 6327, ext 229; [email protected]

VICTORY: HALL GREEN STADIUM TO CLOSE FOLLOWING CAMPAIGN BY PETA AND OTHERS

Birmingham City Council Approves Application to Demolish Greyhound-Racing Spot

Birmingham – Following a campaign by animal-protection groups and members of the local community – which included an almost 8,000-signature petition and a demonstration by PETA – Birmingham’s planning chiefs decided today to approve an application that will demolish Hall Green Stadium, which hosts weekly greyhound races. The site will be redeveloped to build much-needed housing.

“Finally, this old dog-racing track will be turned into a site which will actually benefit the local community”, says PETA Senior Campaign Coordinator Kirsty Henderson. “Greyhound racing is a cruel pastime from a bygone era, and the sooner Birmingham rids itself of this industry, which breeds dogs for speed at the expense of their health, the better.”

More images of PETA’s demonstration are available here and here.

Many greyhound puppies are killed in the name of “selective breeding” and never make it to the racetrack, and dogs who do qualify to become racers are typically caged and muzzled by their trainers and suffer from crate and muzzle sores as well as infestations of internal and external parasites. Once their racing days are over, many are discarded. Some dogs’ ears are cut off to remove identifying tattoos, and they are abandoned or killed.

As PETA – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment” – pointed out in its petition to Birmingham City Council, ticket sales for greyhound races have plummeted as modern audiences realise that dogs suffer when they’re exploited for profit.

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

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