WA greyhound racing is costing the community millions

Gentle dogs are being bred and raced for gambling money — and a new independent report shows the community is paying the price.

Greyhounds are gentle, social dogs — the kind who curl up on couches and follow you from room to room. But in the racing industry, they’re treated as commodities. Dogs are bred into a system built around gambling, where they are pushed to perform, and too often left with injuries, trauma, and an uncertain future.

Now, a new independent economic analysis adds another truth: greyhound racing doesn’t just harm dogs — it’s also costing Western Australians millions.

With the WA Parliament examining greyhound racing, this is a critical moment to push for a managed phase-out.

Chart titled ‘Cost Benefit Analysis – WA Greyhound Racing (2026, $M)’ comparing $137.5m in total benefits with $173.8m in total costs, showing a net loss and a benefit–cost ratio of 0.79 — A cost–benefit ratio is a simple test: does this deliver more value than it costs? When it’s under 1, it means the costs outweigh the benefits — the community is worse off overall. This independent analysis puts WA greyhound racing at 0.79. In other words, it’s a losing deal for Western Australians — and dogs pay the price too.

Key findings of the report

Commissioned by Animals Australia and conducted by independent economist Stephen Walters, the report concludes that greyhound racing in WA reduces the state’s overall economic prosperity.

In plain terms, it concludes;

WA loses money overall by keeping greyhound racing going — with a net loss of $36.4 million in 2026
Over the next three years, the report estimates costs outweigh benefits — and projects that greyhound racing will lead to cumulative net loss of $116.7 million in economic value over the next three years.
The cost to WA taxpayers is substantial, with an estimated $39.3 million of government funding allocated to prop up greyhound racing in 2026, ballooning to $108.3 million over the three years to 2028.
The biggest cost the report identifies is gambling-related harm, estimated at $110.5 million in 2026.

Greyhound racing destroys economic value in Western Australia, costing the community more than it returns.

Stephen Walters

Independent Economist

Why this matters

Because harm is built in to greyhound racing.
Dog racing has a long history of cruelty — injuries, deaths, over-breeding, and a system that struggles to account for dogs from birth to death. No amount of tinkering changes the basic reality: dogs are raced for gambling money, and many pay the price.

Because the public is left to pick up the pieces.
When dogs are no longer profitable — because they’re injured, ageing, or simply not fast enough — the need for safe homes and long-term care doesn’t vanish. It lands on rescue groups, volunteers, and families who take dogs into their hearts and homes.

Because public money should serve the public good.
Australians increasingly reject the idea that taxpayer funds should prop up an industry built on gambling and suffering. WA now has the chance to choose a better path.

What now?

Western Australia is not facing this issue in isolation. Across Australia and around the world, momentum is building to end greyhound racing.

Aotearoa New Zealand is moving to prohibit greyhound racing from 31 July 2026.
Wales and Scotland have since both announced plans to end dog racing.
Tasmania is expected to vote within weeks on legislation to phase out greyhound racing by 2029.

In fact, Australia is one of four countries in the world with a commercial greyhound racing industry. Across Australia and around the world, governments are moving away from greyhound racing because the community no longer accepts this cruel activity as “entertainment”. That broader shift matters. It shows that ending greyhound racing is not fringe or unrealistic — it is part of a growing recognition that dogs should not be bred, used and discarded for gambling money, and that communities should not be asked to fund it.

A managed phase-out in Western Australia would mean fewer dogs bred into harm, fewer injuries and deaths, and a future where greyhounds are valued for who they are — not how much gambling money they make.

The costs of greyhound racing are substantial: long-term gambling harm, poor animal welfare, inefficient land use, and significant taxpayer funds that could otherwise fund hospitals, schools and essential services, but are diverted to the code.