Parc Cwm Daran, near Bargoed, South Wales

On Sunday, May 2nd last year, a black male greyhound (later found to have been called Rusty) was discovered by a dog walker, who heard him whimpering in agony in a rubbish tip on Fochriw Mountain in the Rhymney Valley, South Wales.
Rusty had been injured in several ways, including being shot in the head with a captive-bolt pistol, and his ears had been hacked off (presumably, because they contained tattoos that could identify him). Despite this appalling torture, Rusty was still alive - and wagging his tail - but his injuries were so extensive that he was later "put to sleep" by a vet. At Caerphilly Magistrates Court on December 22nd, greyhound "executioner" Andrew Gough was sentenced to 6 months imprisonment for torturing Rusty and banned from keeping animals for life. It emerged during Gough's trial that Rusty's owner and trainer had handed him over to Gough to kill, after a toe injury had ended the greyhound's racing career.
On Sunday, May 1st this year, we will be holding a special Remembering Rusty ceremony at the place on Fochriw Mountain where he was found. The Reverend James Thompson, founder of Christians Against All Animal Abuse (see www.foresta.free-online.co.uk/james/Page_1x.html), has offered to officiate at the ceremony and there will be speakers from Greyhound Action and various greyhound rescue and animal protection organisations. Wreaths and flowers will be laid and a minute's silence held in memory of Rusty and of all the other dogs that have suffered and died at the hands of the greyhound racing industry in South Wales and elsewhere.
Arrangements for the ceremony are that all participants should meet at the nearby Parc Cwm Darran (see www.caerphilly.gov.uk/leisure/countryside/countryparks/parccwmdarran. htm) at 12 noon and proceed from there in vehicles to Fochriw Mountain. There is a car park at the parc and a café in the Visitors Centre. Maps of the parc's location can be found at tinyurl.com/69vst and tinyurl.com/5qz8e and directions are as follows:- From the South - A469 through Bargoed. Turn left to Deri. Follow signs to Parc Cwm Darran. From the North - From A465 take A469 towards Bargoed. At Pontlottyn go through traffic lights and turn right a little further on at sign marked "Recycling Site". Follow sign marked "Fochriw". Go through Fochriw and follow signs to Parc Cwm Darran.
Please do your very best to attend this event. In addition to showing respect for Rusty's memory, it is a vital part of our campaign against the greyhound racing industry in South Wales and very important to our efforts to get the three dog tracks there closed. The more people who are in attendance, the greater the publicity will be and the stronger the impact of the ceremony.
Do bring along rescued greyhounds, lurchers and other dogs, if you can. Their presence will greatly enhance the ceremony. But do remember that dogs must be kept on leads on Fochriw Mountain, because of the presence of sheep. They can be exercised, both before and after the ceremony, at Parc Cwm Darran.

More info on the Justice for Rusty campaign and the fate of greyhounds and lurchers in Wales can be found at www.greyhoundaction.org.uk/justiceForRusty.htm.

Tony Peters, Greyhound Action
www.greyhoundaction.org.uk