Dying, Chained, and Sick Dogs Found at Iditarod Champ’s Kennel
A whistleblower has come forward with disturbing photographs and video footage that apparently reveal dying puppies and injured, sick dogs at a kennel reportedly owned by Dallas Seavey, the four-time Iditarod champion who was recently implicated in a dog-doping scandal.
According to the whistleblower, operators at the Willow, Alaska, kennel allowed severely injured and ailing dogs to suffer—sometimes fatally—without veterinary care. The whistleblower reported finding a litter of seven newborn puppies who died within the past month without any veterinary intervention. One of them was apparently buried on site.
Many other dogs reportedly suffered from bloody diarrhea and vomiting, puncture and bite wounds, and torn ears. The whistleblower reported that handlers allegedly picked up dogs by their throats and threw them to “punish” them for fighting or not obeying commands.
The whistleblower also reported that dogs have been left for weeks in doghouses soaked by rain and snow and that a three-legged dog named Gott—who experienced a spinal clot during the Yukon Quest race and had to have his leg amputated—is perpetually chained and struggles to move around.
PETA forwarded the evidence to state police and local animal control authorities and has learned that officials inspected both of Seavey’s properties over the weekend.
Every day brings new revelations of routine cruelty in the sledding industry.
Just last week, veteran musher Zoya DeNure revealed that she believed that some trainers— including those at Seavey’s kennels—have killed “hundreds on top of hundreds or more dogs” because they were deemed slow or unfit for races. She wrote, “Sadly, this has been going on in the family ‘dynasty’ for decades.”
Seavey’s troubles began earlier this month after Iditarod officials revealed that he was involved in an opioid-doping scandal involving dogs he used for racing. Officials for the Iditarod have confirmed that during the 2017 race, several dogs tested positive for a “prohibited substance.”
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