Wheeling Island Hotel, Casino & Racetrack in West Virginia hosts one of America's final two commercial greyhound racing venues, a sport that once generated $3.5 billion in annual bets during its 1980s peak. Delaware North operates the track, which stages roughly 500 races yearly but has seen attendance drop 60 percent over the past decade.

Animal rights groups led by GREY2K USA Worldwide successfully pushed 44 states to ban the sport since the early 2000s, citing concerns about kennel conditions, dog mortality rates, and performance-enhancing drugs. The Florida ban in 2018 delivered a major blow to industry revenues.

West Virginia keeps racing alive through a 2007 law requiring casinos to maintain live tracks to offer table games, funneling $15 million to $22 million annually from slot revenue into race purses. A Ball State University study commissioned by GREY2K found the industry provides minimal economic benefit beyond this subsidy.

The Greyhound Protection Act, now attached to the $390 billion Farm Bill awaiting Senate consideration, would end racing nationwide. Even longtime supporters acknowledge the sport's inevitable conclusion, with one regular attendee stating he expects it to end soon.