Greyhound countdown.

• Author: Griffin, Jonathan
• Position: TRENDS & TRANSITIONS - Greyhound racing laws

Greyhound racing, popular 20 years ago but increasingly seen as cruel to the dogs, has been banned in 12 states, Guam and Puerto Rico. Iowa will join the list if lawmakers enact the bill making its way through the legislature.

Under a new Colorado law, residents can still bet on out-of-state greyhound racing via cable or closed circuit television. New Hampshire enacted similar legislation in 2010, and, like Colorado, the legislation came many years after the last dog track in the state closed for financial reasons. The last of five Colorado tracks shut down in 2008, as casinos and other gaming options surpassed greyhounds in popularity.

Thirty-seven dog tracks have closed in the United States since 2001, according to GREY2K, an organization dedicated to ending greyhound racing. A $3.5 billion industry in 1991, greyhound racing revenues had dwindled to just over $500 million in 2011.

In seven states, 21 tracks remain open, and over half are in Florida. Greyhound track owners in Arizona, Florida, Iowa, Kansas and West Virginia are interested in reducing the number of races and, according to a 2012 New York Times article, some are expanding the more lucrative slot and poker machines at their tracks.

Iowa's legislation would allow racetrack casino licensees to pay a "live racing cessation fee" of between $2 million and $8 million a year for seven years to discontinue dog racing activities at their casinos. The money would be added to a fund to support greyhound breeders, kennel operators, and other people associated with greyhound racing, along with no-kill animal adoption agencies.

In the past two decades, public concern has also grown over...