Séighin Ó Ceallaigh

RTÉ recently aired a documentary entitled "RTÉ Investigates: Greyhounds Running For Their Lives", which looked at malpractices in the greyhound industry, the economy of the greyhound racing , and the euthanising of greyhounds. There were scenes in the documentary that distressed some viewers, and angered them at the thoughts of taxpayers' money propping up the industry, and sparked protests outside greyhound stadiums. But while some of scenes were simply undefendable, others need more clarification, which I hope to look at in this piece. The title of this article is not a rhetorical question, there needs to be answers to the questions posed following the documentary, some of which I hope to shed some light on. This article isn't about taking sides in an argument about the programme, but rather to look at what can be done to reform the industry, and what really happens with greyhounds who no longer make the cut. One major talking point on social media following t