Idiotarod

Hello,

While people enjoyed the "Idiotarod," New York City's farcical take on the Alaskan Iditarod dog sled race, they should understand that the race in Alaska is brutal for the dogs.

In the Iditarod, dogs race 1,150 miles, the approximate distance between New York City and Miami, Florida, over a grueling terrain in 8 to 15 days.

Here's a short list of what happens to the dogs during the race: death, paralysis, penile frostbite, bleeding ulcers, broken bones, pneumonia, torn muscles and tendons, diarrhea, vomiting, hypothermia, fur loss, broken teeth, viral diseases, torn footpads, ruptured discs, sprains and lung damage.

On average, 53 percent of the dogs who start the Iditarod do not make it across the finish line. According to a report published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, of those who do finish, 81 percent have lung damage. A report published in the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine said that 48.5 percent of the dogs who participate in the Iditarod have ulceration, tissue erosion, gastric hemorrhage, or a combination of these conditions.

The claim that the dogs receive top notch health care doesn't square with the facts. Dogs are often sick before the Iditarod starts but are made to race anyway. While some sick dogs are dropped during the race, others are given massive doses of antibiotics to keep them going.

If the dogs could talk, they'd tell us the Iditarod is dog torture.

Margery Glickman

Sled Dog Action Coalition, http://www.helpsleddogs.org

Mrs. Glickman's organization, Sled Dog Coalition, is an organization based on lies and stretching of the truth. She states in tinterviews that the dogs are malnourished and are forced to run the 1000 mile long race, when in reality, the simple laws of physics proves that these dogs are not malnourished. If they did not recieve adequate amounts and quality of food, how would they be able to run the race in the first place? And how would you force a dog to run if it didn't want to? I have huskies - they are not dog motivated by fear. My dogs love to run and go crazy as soon as I bring a harness out and it's time to go to the races. And that's what the Iditarod is - a race and a way of life. It makes no sense to devote your life to dogs and dog racing if you are not able to properly care for these dogs. There is little abuse in the race: anyone who is convicted of abuse is immediately disqualified and banned from the race for life. If these dogs are not cared for properly they simply could not run the race: it's that simple. Gary Paulsen (an Iditarod veteran) who wrote "Winterdance" describes checking every dog's foot every half hour for the entire race. Not to mention the required physicals, EEG's, up to date vaccinations and a veteranarian's approval stating the dog is fit to race that are required before the dog even steps into the starting chute. The bond between man and dog is indescribable - here is a beautiful quote from "Winterdance" - "The bond that occurs between driver and dogs is truly wonderful. It is more than love, becomes something close to what a mother must feel for her child with the added fact that the bond with sled dogs is intensely symbiotic. The person gives care - warm meat broth, shoulder rubs, foot ointment and booties, vaccinations, nursing, and of fundamental and vital importance, protection." I strongly reccomend this book, it really describes what the Iditarod is really like, and that is something that Mrs. Glickman from Miami, Florida cannot and will not even try to understand. I have corresponded with her several times, and yet she still has not yet provided me with enough evidence to prove that the Iditarod is a cruel race, and instead takes to name calling and citing quotes on her website, moste of which are from sports news anchormen who have no more understanding of the Iditarod than an toddler. Make no mistake, there are bad people out there like anywhere else in life, and Mrs. Glickman plays off of their weaknesses and tries to make the whole sport look bad. What if we followed her logic? We'd have to ban all automobile transportation because cars kill animals, we'd have to ban veterinary care because hundreds more dogs die every year from adverse reactions than ever die in the Iditarod, and so on and so forth... I race dogs too and also work in a professional boarding and grooming kennel taking care of spoiled house pets, and often find that my own sled dogs recieve far more love and care than a spoiled Shih Tzu does. I could go on and on disproving almost everything she says, most of which are bald-faced lies (like sled dogs wallowing in their own feces - this is simply ridiculous, sled dog waste must be picked up twice daily according to Mush with PRIDE's ((provide responsible information on a dog's environment)) kennel regulations, and even so most dogs have a designated area they will urinate and defecate away from where they lie and spend their time. These dogs spend no more time in their own feces than did Mrs. Glickman's late golden retriever, cornflake.? If you have any more questions, please feel free to email me and I will be happy to answer any questions you may have.

Whitewolf