Wagga veterinarian Dr Mark Sayer "stands vindicated" after clearing his name at NSW's Racing Appeals Tribunal.
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Sayer hopes months of abuse, including death threats to his family, friends and staff, can finally come to an end after having his name cleared in Sydney this week.
Sayer had his two charges overturned on appeal, stemming from the euthanasia of the greyhound Better Cruise in the back of a car at a Wagga race meeting last year.
His penalty of being 'warned off' was lifted and the two charges, one of improper conduct, and the other of engaging in conduct detrimental or prejudicial to the interest, welfare, image or promotion of greyhound racing, were both dismissed.
Wagga trainer Ben Talbot also had one of his three charges overturned on appeal.
Racing Appeals Tribunal head David Armati found that Sayer had used his professional expertise to assess "that the welfare of this greyhound was such that the request to euthanase was fairly made and an appropriate outcome".
While he had earlier assessed the greyhound as "uninjured", the tribunal heard Sayer based his conclusions very strongly upon the personal circumstances of the owner and her husband and, in key terms, an inability in the short term for them to properly care for the greyhound, such that its welfare would be at risk.
Sayer maintained his innocence from the outset and felt vindicated by the appeals decision.
"I stand vindicated because I've said all along what I did was for the right purposes and the welfare of the animal, it was not done for the purposes and reasons that were given, inferring it was for racing reasons," Sayer said.
"It's not nice to have your reputation trashed. The biggest issue has been that my family, friends and staff have been the subject of unbelievable attacks and death threats.
"I was just doing my job to the best of my ability. It's a situation in which I acted appropriately and I've done that for 36 years."
Talbot also had his penalty appeal upheld and altered to a four month disqualification from January 18, 2019.
Read the full decision here.
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