Greyhound trainer Daniel Bicchieri banned for nine months

A Melbourne greyhound trainer has come up with an unusual excuse after his dog tested positive to traces of cocaine in a pre-race test at Bendigo.

Stock image of greyhound racing.

A greyhound trainer from Melbourne’s north claimed a person patting his dog was the reason cocaine was detected in a pre-race sample.

Daniel Bicchieri was disqualified for nine months by the Victorian Racing Tribunal last month for the incident which took place at Bendigo in November last year.

Tribunal documents reveal a pre-race urine sample collected from his greyhound Cachi by stewards detected a positive result for cocaine.

“You have no real explanation for the positive test,” the document said.

“A guess at the source being someone in the street patting the dog is just that, a guess, with no persuasive factual foundation.

“The bottom line is that you could not account for the positive test.”

On January 3 this year, stewards visited Cachi’s premises in Fawkner and conducted an inspection which found he failed to keep and retain written records detailing treatments to the greyhound in his care.

Greyhounds Australasia rules state “the person in charge of a greyhounds must keep and retain written records detailing all vaccinations, antiparasitics and treatments administered to the greyhound” from the time they enter their care.

Bicchieri was charged for failing to do so.

Stewards also established Bicchieri did not have an establishment and health management plan in place in line with the code of practice for the keeping of racing greyhounds.

On those two charges, he was fined $600.

The documents said Bicchieri represented himself in the hearing and while he formally pleaded not guilty “it became clear” he was admitting he had committed the three offences.

It was stated Bicchieri has a “very good record” in relation to prohibited substances before the incident at Bendigo.

His disqualification started immediately following the hearing.