New Local Rule 42.6
On 1 October 2017, Local Rule 42.6 was amended to improve re-homing rates of greyhounds and reduce unnecessary euthanasia.
The first part of the new rule requires an Owner to give their greyhound a minimum of 28 days wind down from racing related activities; and undertake genuine and daily efforts to socialise the greyhound to non-training and non-racing settings and environments.
This rule applies to all Victorian Owners, regardless of where the greyhound is located.
The wind down period should help the Owner understand the type of pet home their greyhound may be suitable for. More information is available in GRV’s ‘Racing to Retirement’ guide.
The greyhound must not engage in any racing related activity during the wind down period. A greyhound can be re-homed at any time during the wind down period. Failure to comply with the wind down period, unless the greyhound is successfully re-homed without it, is a Serious Offence.
The second part of the rule requires an Owner to undertake specific minimum re-homing attempts to avoid euthanasia including:
• seeking to re-home the greyhound with at least two suitable third parties; and
• seeking the greyhound’s admission to the Greyhound Adoption Program; and
• seeking to re-home the greyhound through at least one other animal adoption, re-homing or rescue agency.
These re-homing attempts can be undertaken in any order. Detailed records of the re-homing attempts must be kept and provided if requested – a checklist is available to assist an Owner follow this process and record their re-homing attempts. Once a greyhound is successfully re-homed, the Owner is not required to pursue any other options.
The final part of the rule is the Notice of Intention to Euthanase. Where all attempts at re-homing are unsuccessful, and a decision to euthanase is made, an Owner must submit a Notice of Intention to Euthanase (NOI) via FastTrack at least 14 days BEFORE carrying out the euthanasia. The NOI on FastTrack requires the Owner to certify that they have undertaken the wind down period and made all the required attempts to re-home their greyhound. The wind down activities must continue throughout the NOI period.
Failure to submit a NOI or comply with the mandatory 14 day waiting period is a Serious Offence. If, after submitting the NOI, the Owner wants to trial or race their greyhound, the NOI should be cancelled before commencing training to trial or race. When the greyhound is ready to be retired again, the Owner will need to commence the retirement process from the beginning.
A retirement process checklist for Local Rule 42.6 can be downloaded here.
A fact sheet and FAQ’s on Local Rule 42.6 can be downloaded here.
