Dogs lose at the polls
January 30th, 2008 by admin
Voters in Miami-Dade County have approved the addition of slot machines at dog and horse tracks and Jai-Alai frontons in the county. Slot machines will draw new customers to the Flagler Dog Track, and although the machines will likely be busy, the stands outside will remain empty. If state law allowed the track to operate slots without live races, the dogs would be gone in a heartbeat.
The results of yesterday’s election are disappointing, but greyhound advocates can be proud of the fact that the cruel treatment of greyhounds was part of the debate over slots. Dogs were on voters mindS. The Miami Herald and Sun-Sentinel newspapers spoke to voters exiting polling places on Tuesday. Voter Barbara Zimbler told the Herald, “I don’t like the idea of dog racing.'’ Even skeptics addressed the issue. The Sun-Sentinel quoted Josie Gems, a supporter of slot machines, “I don’t think they are hurting the animals. And people are going to be addicted anyway.'’
The opposition of “animal protection advocates” was included in almost every article about the referendum in recent weeks. On Sunday, the Miami Herald covered a demonstration at the Flagler Dog Track. In Saturday’s paper, a racetrack spokesperson was forced to defend the industry after news broke that Florida’s Division of Parimutuel Wagering was investigating the death of four greyhounds at a racing kennel in Hialeah partly-owned by the Flagler Dog Track.
Our thanks to the 141,961 county residents who voted “NO” on the slots referendum!