The Waiting Game

We had a few pups entered for racing this weekend but unfortunately they aren't on the card. I know from speaking to a few friends in England that this is a very common phenomenon at NGRC tracks and to a lesser extent this side of the water, especially with lower grade dogs.

I'm not sure what the solution to our problem is as at the minute there is far more racing than 20 years ago where two night a week maximum for each track was the norm, and a ten race card to boot. Taking Lifford for example there are an average of 42 races a week, times six gives 252 dogs which is a lot of dogs but there seems to be plenty still not getting a run. This leads me to the conclusion that we are breeding far to many dogs.

As pointed out by John Moyles on his excellent blog, http://bantissgreyhounds.blogs.com/ , the number of matings has fallen sharply, however, the number of pups is at a steady level due to vast improvements in pinpointing when a bitch is most fertile. I wont quote the exact figures as I prefer to refer you to John's blog as he has down the leg work in finding the stats.

I have talked to a few other breeders and they have suggested putting another nights racing on. This wont work in my opinion. Again, using Lifford as an example. They race Fri, Sat and Sun. Their neighbours at the Brandywell, Derry, race on Mon and Thurs which rules those nights out. This leaves Tuesday and Thursday, neither of these two nights will attract non-dog people, by this I mean those that will fill the restaurant and bars. It has become reality that unless the hospitality facilities are being made use of then the race night will fail to turn a profit and I for one wont condemn any business man for throwing good money after bad.

It is approaching the stage where a limit on breeding will have to be set. I'm not sure how this could be achieved without massive upheaval and fallout but the way the market is for pups at the minute it may become more and more self regulating. The major problem as I see it is owners who have a nice bitch that they are very attached to. They think they want a litter of pups out of their pride and joy. Many of these bitches would be better served laying on the sofa beside their owner that breeding a litter of pups that in all likely hood will be filling the lowest grades are not even grading in. This experience can actually drive owners away from the game as breeding a litter is a very expensive undertaking and their money would be better spend on buying another race dog or a better bred pup. I could well be slated for this opinion but its the harsh reality of the game at the minute that far too many unsuitable bitches are being bred from by people who have neither the facilities or the experience to do it.