Baba Bear had one modest race. He died on a treadmill three months later

An ex-trainer has been warned off greyhound racing for three years following a dog’s death. SportRacingGreyhound racingBaba Bear had one modest race. He died on a treadmill three months laterBy Danny Russell February 19, 2026 — 5.30amSaveLog in, register or subscribe to save articles for later.Save articles for laterAdd articles to your saved list and come back to them any time.Got itNormal text sizeLarger text sizeVery large text sizeAdvertisementGreyhound Baba Bear was just two years old and one race into his career when he was tied to a treadmill for humans and left alone to die.Details of the racing dog’s “horrible death” emerged at the Victorian Racing Tribunal earlier this month, where a Victorian ex-trainer was warned off the sport for three years for his involvement.And inquiries from this masthead have revealed that a second man was issued a trainer’s licence by South Australian greyhound authorities despite his involvement in the dog’s death.Baba Bear was bred by long-time trainer Graham James in Victoria in November 2021. Two years later, the dog had his one and only start for James – a modest sixth in a Ballarat maiden, above.But it was James’s decision soon after to send him to Shaun Ciavarella in South Australia, who had called looking to buy a greyhound, that would ultimately lead to Baba Bear’s “distressing” death.LoadingCiavarella was not registered at the time and had no previous experience training greyhounds.While the dog was in his care, the tribunal heard Baba Bear was tethered to a human treadmill for exercise. A lead was tied to the machine and hooked to the dog’s collar at “extreme tension”.Left unattended, the dog lost his balance while the machine was moving and died “most likely from asphyxiation or strangulation”, Greyhound Racing Victoria vet Dr Madonna Buiter said.Advertisement“Leaving this greyhound unsupervised on a human treadmill, without the safety features required of a greyhound walker, was dangerous and detrimental to its welfare and caused unnecessary and excessive pain and suffering,” Buiter said.GRV stewards obtained 13 pictures of the dead dog still attached to the treadmill, but Ciavarella refused Greyhound Racing South Australia officials entry to his property to investigate.Baba Bear - the black and white dog on the rail towards the rear of the field (top right of photo) - ran his one and only race in Ballarat. Instead, Ciavarella arranged for the dog to be cremated before an autopsy could be performed, the tribunal heard.South Australian police said they could not comment on individuals because of privacy laws.Greyhound Racing South Australia told this masthead on Wednesday they had no power to investigate Ciavarella at the time of Baba Bear’s death because he was not a registered person.LoadingBut the greyhound authority admitted he had been issued a trainer’s licence in January this year because of a “system shortcoming”.“Our licensing staff were not aware of the 2024 incident (in which the dog died), and so Mr Ciavarella’s licence to be an owner was approved,” GRSA said.“It is our understanding that Mr Ciavarella does not currently have any greyhounds in his care.“Following the findings of the Victorian Racing Tribunal, GRSA has served Mr Ciavarella with a notice to show cause as to why his licence ought not be cancelled.”GRSA said it had made a report about the dog’s death to the RSPCA. RSPCA SA was contacted for comment.James, who has since relinquished his trainer’s licence, was interviewed and charged by stewards for failing to notify them that Baba Bear had been transferred from his care to Ciavarella in December 2023. The dog remained registered in James’s name until its death on March 1, 2024.He was found guilty by the Victorian Racing Tribunal of three charges, including failing to exercise proper care and supervision, and failing to keep a greyhound at a registered address.He has been warned off the sport until February 5, 2029.James told stewards during their investigation he thought Ciavarella was waiting for kennels to be approved by a local council before he could become a registered person. It was then understood he would buy Baba Bear.“I sent the dog to him to train it with the intention of him buying it,” James told stewards. “I sent him a dog that would probably suit him for him to learn with.”Baba Bear (black and white dog, upper centre of photo) makes for the finish post in his maiden race in 2023.James told stewards he knew the man was working the dog on a treadmill, but it was not clear he knew it was a human treadmill.He told stewards he “never thinks twice” to check whether a buyer of his dogs is registered.“Clearly this dog has died a tragic death,” the tribunal found.Loading“While it is not suggested that Mr James had any direct part to play in placing the dog on the treadmill and so causing the death of the dog, it is clear that he had surrendered control over all aspects of the dog’s care.“Mr James must bear the responsibility for having put the dog in this position, resulting in a horrible death.”The tribunal found James