https://www.facebook.com/bbcnews/videos/10155983664752217/
The plight of more than 500 greyhounds left in need of a new home following the close of Macau’s dog racing track, the Canidrome, has gone global.
News outlets around the world have been keeping track of latest developments, with the UK’s BBC producing the above video detailing the search for loving owners for 533 greyhounds left abandoned on premises by the track’s former owners, Macau (Yat Yuen) Canidrome Co Ltd.
Macau (Yat Yuen) Canidrome Co Ltd is controlled by SJM Co-Chairman and Executive Director Angela Leong.
As reported by the BBC, “Macau’s controversial greyhound racetrack, the Canidrome Club, is shutting down, leaving behind 600 dogs. City officials say they will take care of the greyhounds, but their ultimate fate remains uncertain.”
Australia’s ABC News also provided a detailed update on the Canidrome’s closure, quoting a weekend government statement claiming that, “Yat Yuen has been delaying the handling and placement of the greyhound dogs. The care of the dogs has been in an uncertain state, causing public anxiety and social problems.”
Macau’s Civil and Municipal Affairs Bureau (IACM), which took control of the Canidrome site on Saturday, has announced that the former owners will be fined between MOP$20,000 (US$2,475) and MOP$100,000 (US$12,370) for each of the 533 greyhounds abandoned under the Animal Protection Law. That could equate to a fine of more than MOP$53 million (US$6.56 million).
Meanwhile, the Macau Association for Stray Dogs and Animal Welfare (MASDAW) has called on volunteers to walk the abandoned greyhounds until 31 July over two shifts per day, with volunteers requested to check the health of each dog during the walk and take any sick or injured dogs to the vet for assessment.
“Do not be afraid of suffering or to be heartbroken,” MASDAW said in a Facebook note.
As reported by Inside Asian Gaming last week, the former site of the Canidrome will now become a land reserve for public facilities, including education, sport, offices for public departments and service centres.
