by Shaun T. Koh

Created on: February 28, 2007   Last Updated: February 03, 2008

James Potter made more than $270,000 at an auction in Abilene, Kan., one Saturday.

Whoopee! That is a lot of money.

Then I caught myself and winced as I read beyond the headline.

Potter sold 10 greyhounds, one of which set a new record of $70,000 at a National Greyhound Association auction. The association is the official registry of racing greyhounds in North America. It holds meets and auctions twice a year for young pups.

The record-setting sale was for a 16-month-old named Rooftop Gizmo that Potter had bred. Gizmo's littermate Rooftop Rip Cord went for $45,000.

Gizmo's buyer was Gary Weber of Colorado who told the Associated Press he plans to send the dog to Wheeling, W.Va., where racing purses are 10 times higher than in Kansas, where the dog was bred.

"I liked the way he ran," Weber said. "He changed lanes and didn't miss a stride. He drove hard and went around the lead dog. In the turns dogs will slow up a bit, but he just drove past."

I didn't think I'd be writing about greyhounds this soon. Not after my earlier encounter with a racing greyhound owner. Not too long ago, I wrote a column about ex-racing greyhounds and the organizations that promote their adoption on retirement from the track.

Ken Strawbridge, an NGA member and a spokesman for the Greyhound Racing Association of America, had read that column on a Web site. He called and demanded I show convincing proof that there are abuses in greyhound racing. After all, greyhound racing is fun for all, he insisted. He suggested, instead, I was playing into the hands of animal rights activists who are prone to misleading exaggerations.

Strawbridge has been trying to pull more people into his pro-racing corner. In a letter to the editor of the St. Augustine (Ill.) Record earlier this year, Strawbridge took offense to a letter by Vera Kramer.

"In her letter Ms. Kramer made several vicious, untrue statements regarding people like myself who are proudly involved with breeding, training and racing the most magnificent animal on earth, the greyhound."

But look at the facts. Why is greyhound racing banned in several states? Why does Ohio not have a greyhound racing track?

According to the Greyhound Racing Association of America, the state ban does little to prove that racing is inhumane.

"The animal rights movement has never been successful in banning greyhound racing in a state where the sport actually existsThese groups oppose all animal use, whether it's for food, clothing, medical research, entertainment or any other

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