The second Richmond Riches Puppy Auction has been hailed a success, and a turning point for an industry which has had its darkest depths exposed for all to see.
A crowd in the hundreds braved the searing Richmond sun on Sunday to attend the auction, which saw 274 pups sold and more than $850,000 raised.
Richmond Race Club general manger Brad Adam said it was heartening to see the turn out on Sunday, after the turmoil the greyhound racing industry has been through.
“I believe the industry has come out and shown it is strong and it is here to stay,” he said.
“We are going to put the dark times behind and move forward with positivity like the support we got at the Richmond Puppy Auction.”
The dogs sold at the auction will be eligible for a 2017 race series, with a prize pool of $200,000.
The dogs come from both the local greyhound industry and trainers across Australia.
Adam said the number of people at the auction on Sunday proved the industry would survive the sickening live baiting scandal, which emerged earlier this year.
“The industry is coming through some of the dark days it has had,” he said.
“Our top lot was a genuine sale and it went for $21,000. The money people are spending is a good sign people still want to be involved in the industry.
“We had one client buy 18 pups and when I was walking meeting and speaking to everybody, I think I meet about 15 or 16 people who had never bought a pup before.”
While not all the money will go back to the local racing industry, Adam said plenty was going back to local breeders and trainers.
“It is something positive like this that we need the industry to get behind and support,” he said.
“We are supporting the breeders and the trainers. The Richmond Puppy Auction is supplying a mechanism to stimulate the businesses.
“Most of the people are small business owners at the end of the day. Some are larger than other but they are small business owners.”
Adam said the club had already started to plan the next auction, which will take place in 2016, for a 2018 race series.
