At 17:00 on 22nd August, 8 members of the local community – including supporters of Harlow Green Party – gathered to protest outside Harlow dog track. Those demonstrating held a number of signs and banners, with some reading: ‘Every Track Has a Freezer for Dogs Killed Racing’ and ‘Greyhound Racing is Killing Dogs’.
This action comes as part of a collaboration between Animal Aid[1] and local campaigners, with protests targeting every single one of England’s 17 remaining dog tracks in the span of one week.
Yarmouth Dog Track was also targeted by a similar 8-person protest on the same night, in East Anglia. Another track, Birmingham Perry Bar, is closing its doors for the last time after the protest there on Saturday 23rd August[2].
This week of action coincides with the launch of Animal Aid’s Government petition to ban greyhound racing[3] which has already amassed thousands of signatures.
The campaign is in response to the industry’s own statistics[4] showing:
Over 1,300 greyhounds died on UK tracks between 2017–2024.
3,200+ more dogs were ‘destroyed’ off-track due to being “unwanted” or “too expensive” to treat.
35,000+ injuries were recorded in the same period.
Racing injuries greyhounds can endure include: broken necks, spinal paralysis, torn tendons, twisted stomachs, and shattered hocks.
Founder of Shut Down Campaigns, Robert Gordon, said:
“This week of action is just the beginning. Our government has indicated they have no plans to ban this cruel industry, but local communities have the power to close their tracks, one by one. The reality is, greyhound racing has been in decline for years because people love dogs and they don’t like to see them suffer.”
Harlow greyhound stadium is 1 of the 17 remaining dog tracks in England, whilst Wales is introducing a ban for its last remaining track[5].
