Greyhounds Australasia, on 2 September 2005, amended the
national rules to exclude antibiotics from the definition
of “drugs”. However, procaine penicillin will
still be regarded as a “drug” under the National
Rules of Greyhound Racing and the Racing Act 2002.
Infective
agents, such as bacteria and protozoa, cause a wide range
of diseases in a greyhound and antibiotics have a legitimate
role in maintaining the health of racing greyhounds. It
has been recognised that restriction of their use in the
racing greyhound could potentially adversely affect the
welfare of the racing greyhound.
This
amendment to the definition of “drugs” brings
the greyhound code into line with the two horse racing
codes and supports the animal welfare intent of the Racing
Act 2002.
Procaine
penicillin will still be regarded as a “drug”
under the National Rules of Greyhound Racing and the Racing
Act 2002. The procaine portion of procaine penicillin
is a local anaesthetic, which temporarily blocks sensory
nerves from sending pain messages to the brain.
It
should be reinforced that antibiotics are not to be regarded
as permitted medication and cannot be administered on
raceday without the permission of the Stewards.
As
with the use of any medication, trainers should consult
and seek advice from their veterinary surgeon as to when
to administer the final dose of a prescribed antibiotic
prior to racing.
Further
queries regarding this amendment to the definition of
a “drug” should be directed to the Greyhound
Racing Authority Chairman of Stewards, Mr Danny Ryan.
Phil
Bennett
Chair
Greyhound Racing Authority
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