That was the impression Greyhounds Transition Taskforce coordinator general John Keniry said he received after a meeting with the industry in Dubbo on Tuesday.

“From the two meetings we’ve had so far (one in Wallsend) it’s clear people are not happy with the decision. The people involved in the industry say they prefer it not too stop,” Dr Keniry said. 

“But I think they’ll also see that the legislation has passed and there needs to be assistance so they’re quite happy to engage with us.”

Dr Keniry has been tasked with gathering the views of those directly and indirectly affected by the ban to then inform the NSW government’s  transition package.

Most questions people had were around when they should stop breeding and training  their dogs, what would happen to their businesses and what’s going to be available to them, he said.

“A lot of the questions like when will breeding end and when will training end, there aren’t answers yet.

“The taskforce was set up a couple of weeks after the ban was announced so we’ve just been given the job to work out the package.”

For a lot of the issues raised, Dr Keniry said people would have to “wait for the government” before there was an answer. He said the details of the package and the dismantling of the industry were still being considered, and awaiting his feedback.

The taskforce will make recommendations to the government at the end of September. A transition package is then expected to be announced in November before the ban comes into effect on June 30 2017.

“There’s no doubt that a lot of people ... their lifestyle is about greyhounds and that lifestyle is going to be interrupted so we’ll need to be talking to them about what the options might be,” Dr Keniry said.