In September last year the Commission placed the industry on notice that the use of contaminated meat from knackeries could be responsible for positive swabs for prohibited substances banned under the racing rules, particularly ketamine, xylazine and oxazepam. This advice can be found on the Commission’s website.

These drugs are sometimes used to tranquilise and/or euthanise livestock, which then is provided to abattoirs for processing into animal meat.  Apart from being banned substances under the rules of racing, the ingestion of these substances is harmful to the wellbeing of racing greyhounds.

As indicated in some recent disciplinary decisions, while the Commission has not banned the use of knackery meat within the greyhound racing industry, it is strongly recommended that participants who wish to avoid positive swabs for these substances and subsequent disciplinary action, source meat for their racing greyhounds from suppliers who do not supply knackery meat, therefore reducing the risk of contamination.

In recent disciplinary decisions the Commission has taken a lenient approach to these matters but also communicated an intention to impose stronger penalties into the future in line with the position adopted by other greyhound racing jurisdictions, including Victoria.