Millionaire Greyhound Breeder Tells Group to Kill Dog

Millionaire greyhound breeder
Brad Boeckenstedt, photo by the NGA

In the next few days, Iowa Governor Terry Branstad will either sign or veto a bill to phase out greyhound racing in Iowa. The measure, Senate File 2362, will permanently end dog racing at one track and discontinue $14 million in annual subsidies for greyhound breeders. Even though the dog racing industry won major concessions, this bill is a big step forward for greyhounds.

Before Governor Branstad makes a final decision on SF 2362, he should take a moment to think about millionaire greyhound breeder Brad Boeckenstedt. Perhaps more than any other individual, Boeckenstedt personifies the problem that has been caused by current Iowa law. Even though greyhound racing is dying, Boeckenstedt has received at least $4.75 million in subsidy payments since 2009.

Since Boeckenstedt's private greyhound breeding business is heavily subsidized, you would think he would ensure positive outcomes for every dog he races. Sadly, that is not the case. Just yesterday, we received state records from the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation regarding greyhound deaths in the Sunshine State. One of these documents provides evidence about what really happens to greyhounds bred by Boeckenstedt.

On April 2, 2014 a greyhound named Boc's Velocity suffered a broken leg at Melbourne Greyhound Park. Melbourne is a low-end track where gambling is virtually non existent. The track is only open because it is required to hold races, by law, in order to operate a profitable poker room. A witness statement included in the official record of Velocity's death indicates what happened next:

"Velocity's leg was stabilized and splinted by the track veterinarian, Dr. Richard George."

The dog was then turned over to a local greyhound adoption group. Velocity was "comfortable" and "did not show any signs of pain." The adoption group decided to save the dog, and stated:

"(We) wanted to repair Velocity's leg as we have done hundreds of times before with other greyhounds."

When the group contacted the owner of Velocity, though, they were told to instead have the dog killed:

"The greyhound's racing owner, Brad Boeckenstedt, was contacted and it was relayed to me that he wanted the greyhound euthanized."

Unfortunately, Velocity died on the operating table while undergoing surgery to repair his leg. When he died, he was only two years old.

In Velocity, we see the real face of the Iowa dog racing industry. At the same time that greyhound breeders take millions of dollars in subsidies, they race their dogs at low end Florida tracks. When dogs like Velocity inevitably suffer injuries, they are simply discarded.

Is Governor Branstad going to let greyhound breeders get away with this? Greyhound racing has been a stain on Iowa for years, and the time has come for it to end. A powerful argument for change was made by the Governor himself, only a few months ago on February 26:

"Dog racing is a dying industry all over the country. A lot of dog tracks have closed, the information I've seen is that attendance has dropped dramatically ... we already have one that's closed in Waterloo, and we have two more in Iowa that want to close."

Please contact Governor Terry Branstad right away, and ask him to sign SF 2362. Tell him he should do it for Velocity, and all the other dogs who have suffered as a result of a bad law.