Greyhound trainer banned for life after dishonestly transferring injured dog
Quick Look
Greyhound Racing SA has issued a lifetime ban and $5,000 fine to Jack Clayton Trengove for dishonestly transferring an injured greyhound without disclosing an unhealed hock fracture, deeming him entirely unfit to participate in the industry despite the dog avoiding catastrophic injury due to timely intervention.
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Why It Matters
Jack Clayton Trengove, from a prominent Broken Hill racing family, had been suspended since June 2025 following animal welfare-related charges from an investigation sparked by kennel photos, and had prior racing-related infringements in 2024 including failure to present a greyhound for veterinary exam, striking a greyhound, and failing to maintain treatment records.
A greyhound trainer has been found "entirely unfit" to participate in the industry, with the governing body in South Australia issuing a lifetime ban and a $5,000 fine for dishonestly negotiating the transfer of an injured dog to another trainer.
Jack Clayton Trengove, who is from a prominent Broken Hill racing family, was already suspended for previous animal welfare-related matters.
In a sentencing decision handed down by Greyhound Racing SA (GRSA), an integrity hearings panel said Mr Trengove discussed the transfer of a greyhound named "Arctic Girl" to a trainer in NSW without disclosing an "unhealed hock fracture" on the dog's hind leg.
"We found that Mr Trengove knew of the fracture and that his failure to disclose it was dishonest," GRSA said in its decision.
"Arctic Girl was transferred to a trainer who was unaware of the true condition of her hock and commenced preparing her to race, thereby placing Arctic Girl at significant risk of catastrophic injury."
The panel said that although the dog did not ultimately suffer such injury, "that outcome was due in significant part to the timely intervention and positive action of GRSA officers".
"Accordingly, the [panel] have concluded that this offending not only strikes to the core of the values upon which greyhound racing in South Australia operates, it has also concluded that his conduct makes him entirely unfit to continue participating in the industry."
The panel said it accepted the new owner's account that Mr Trengove had told her over Facebook Messenger that Arctic Girl had been off with a sore hock but was "good to go now".
It rejected Mr Trengove's account that he separately disclosed the fracture by telephone to the new owner.
The decision states the greyhound was returned to SA and rehomed.
Mr Trengove has been suspended since June 2025 when charges relating to animal welfare rule breaches were laid against him, after an investigation stemming from photos taken inside his kennel.
In the latest ruling, the panel also noted several racing-related infringements Mr Trengove had accrued in 2024 which included a failure to present a greyhound for veterinary examination, striking a greyhound and a failure to maintain a treatment record book.
In response to the outcome, Mr Trengove told the ABC he felt he was being targeted.
The panel's decision document, states Mr Trengove did not attend a hearing related to the latest counts on which he had been found guilty, but had attended other hearings related to separate counts.
Open Questions
- What specific penalties apply to the trainer in NSW who received Arctic Girl?
- Whether Arctic Girl has fully recovered and been cleared for future racing activity
- If GRSA will review its transfer protocols to prevent similar nondisclosure incidents