IntenseDebate - wolfmoonsiberians

15 years ago @ Daily Camera.com: - Guest column: Iditarod... · 0 replies · 0 points

VERY good and important point about the runner plastics. I completely forgot to mention that. Yes, regularly replacing runner plastics keep the sleds gliding well. And the different types function better in different temperatures and conditions. Nothing quite like driving a sled with brand new plastics and a charged dogteam! It's awesome.

15 years ago @ Daily Camera.com: - Guest column: Iditarod... · 1 reply · -1 points

Again, check out those links I posted in my first comment. I tried to cover a lot of stuff. The SDAC quotes tend to be misleading and I HAVE tracked many of them to their original sources. Some of them have leading captions, others are outdated, irrelevent, etc. Again, I encourage anyone to visit kennels and races and get some first-hand experience.

15 years ago @ Daily Camera.com: - Guest column: Iditarod... · 0 replies · 0 points

But I've been in the inside. I've been "far from public view" where the dogs are being trained. I've been one of the ones training them. And I've just not seen "awful things" happening. People visited kennels I've worked for (one was even a tour kennel at a B&B so everything was right in view of MANY visitors) and met the dogs, visited with them. You know how many complaints we had from visitors? Zero. Because they saw how the mushers and handlers interacted with the dogs, met the dogs in person and saw how they interacted with them as well. And at the Iditarod kennel I worked for, we routinely let the dogs free-run in the play yard, so they got to see that too. Nope, never had a complaint from any people who visited.

One of the mushers I worked for was a vet, other mushers I know are techs and even those who aren't are very concerned with their dogs veterinary care. They totally ARE spending a lot every year on their dogs' vet care. It's a big factor and another reason it's nigh impossible to make a profit running dogs.

15 years ago @ Daily Camera.com: - Guest column: Iditarod... · 1 reply · 0 points

Correct me if I am mistaken but I understand you are opposed to those races as well, despite their shorter lengths, for many of the same reasons you are opposed to the Iditarod, which would include the alleged "overdriving" and "overworking". Maybe I'm reading too much into that?

In any case, whether the dogs are being overdriven or overworked is the issue of debate in the first place...

15 years ago @ Daily Camera.com: - Guest column: Iditarod... · 2 replies · 0 points

How does weather affect a smaller dog differently than a larger dog if they have the same coat type, etc?

Yes, you are right about the proportion of the load, although I've not seen injuries from dogs pulling too much weight (but honestly, haven't seen dogs pulling too much weight in the first place). But keep in mind that a good dogsled slides easily when pushed on its own, so none of the dogs are really pulling THAT much weight most of the time. I've had to run up hills that larger dogs might have powered up with less running on my part but those little dogs are stronger than you'd think!

No, we weren't running the Iditarod (though I gotta' brag that the little leader I had on the races I did run with the puppy team was a Yukon Quest veteran) but the concept is the same.

15 years ago @ Daily Camera.com: - Guest column: Iditarod... · 6 replies · -2 points

I was actually wondering about this earlier today - what is the complaint with having smaller dogs? My two main leaders probably don't top 40 pounds but they are nothing if not strong. Their mother, who ran with me a lot when I was training puppies (2-year-olds) in Minnesota was not much bigger. I've NEVER had a problem running small dogs and they do not seem to stress anymore than larger dogs or have a problem keeping up.

15 years ago @ Daily Camera.com: - Guest column: Iditarod... · 3 replies · -3 points

But what about all the other (less famous) distance sled dog races that ARE held legally in other states? The Beargrease, Cam-Am, Race To The Sky, IPSSSDR, UP 200, Atta-Boy 300, etc?

15 years ago @ Daily Camera.com: - Guest column: Iditarod... · 4 replies · +3 points

I would encourage anyone who questions whether sled dogs are treated well to visit kennels and races themselves. I too am a musher who has had deep involvement in the sled dog community and been to numerous kennels and met many mushers and dogs. I even worked for two Winters as a full-time handler at an Iditarod kennel.

My experiences were nothing like those described by Keith or Stevens. And it upsets me when people I know are good to their dogs are wrongly accused of cruelty. I have a much longer response to cruelty claims made against sled dog racing here http://sleddogsupport.wordpress.com/general-infor... and here - http://sleddogsupport.wordpress.com/general-infor...

I'm not saying that every musher is good to his or her dogs, just as not every pet-owner is good to his or her dogs. These few individuals who are abusive draw a lot of attention, but these horror stories are NOT the norm in the sled dog racing world and do NOT reflect the behavior of most mushers. Most mushers love their dogs (that's why they got into the sport in the first place) and put their health and well-being first and foremost.

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