The Original Coopers Alehouse refuses to comment after sponsoring a greyhound race in which a dog broke his leg
The Original Coopers Alehouse at The Earl in Adelaide. (Facebook)
CONVERSATION WITH SPONSORS #1: ORIGINAL COOPERS ALEHOUSE, ADELAIDE, SA
After sponsoring a dog race at a Greyhound Racing South Australia event in which a greyhound broke his leg last week, The Original Coopers Alehouse at The Earl—a pub and function venue in Adelaide—has refused to comment on the injury.
The Alehouse pub is managed by Nick Sando, who did not respond to multiple requests for comment, and would not clarify whether the pub would continue to sponsor dog racing in South Australia.
While participating in the first dog race of the night at the Angle Park racetrack on March 5, which was sponsored by The Original Coopers Alehouse, a greyhound that had been assigned a racing name of “Surfing Dyno” broke a joint in his back leg after colliding with another dog. The on-course veterinarian, Dr. Greg Moore, determined that the dog should be stood down from racing for 270 days.
The General Manager of The Original Coopers Alehouse, Nick Sando. (Instagram: Original Coopers Alehouse)
Several other dogs that have sustained broken leg bones during races this year have been euthanised by veterinarians employed by Greyhound Racing South Australia.
The dog Surfing Dyno is owned by Trevor Thiele—a board member of the Port Adelaide Football Club—and trained by Ben Rawlings, who has been the recipient of South Australia’s “Young Persons Achievement Award” and long promoted by local media as one of South Australia’s top racing greyhound trainers. Surfing Dyno is 4 years and 6 months old and has been made to race 110 times in his lifetime, earning his owner $64,760 in prize money.
Though The Original Coopers Alehouse leans heavily on the popular Coopers Brewery brand in its online advertising, a representative for Coopers stated that the Brewery has no affiliation with The Original Coopers Alehouse, which is independently owned and operated, and that Coopers Brewery “does not sponsor or provide any other support to greyhound racing in South Australia.”
The dog race sponsorship from The Original Coopers Alehouse at The Earl came 3 days after a dog died at the Angle Park racetrack on March 2, after colliding with another dog and breaking her leg before being euthanised by an on-course veterinarian, and just under 2 weeks after another dog lost her life after breaking her leg while racing at the Gawler racetrack.
Over170 injuries have been sustained by greyhounds on South Australian racetracks so far this year, and 6 dogs have been euthanised by veterinarians employed by Greyhound Racing South Australia.