sled dogs

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5-Time Iditarod Champ Takes a Big Hit on the Trail

Dallas Seavey gets a 2-hour penalty for not properly gutting moose he killed during Alaska race

(Newser) - Iditarod officials on Wednesday imposed a two-hour time penalty on musher Dallas Seavey for not properly gutting a moose he killed during the race earlier this week. Race Marshal Warren Palfrey convened a three-person panel of race officials to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of the moose, which became...

This Year's Iditarod Dogs Are Wearing Something Special

They'll be sporting light-up harnesses, necklaces in famous Alaska race after 5 dogs died while training

(Newser) - The Iditarod, the annual sled dog race celebrating Alaska's official state sport, is set to get underway Saturday with a new focus on safety after five dogs died and eight were injured in collisions with snowmobiles while training on shared, multiuse trails. For the first time, mushers who line...

Iditarod Scion Finally Wins on 16th Try

Ryan Redington, 40, is grandson of race's co-founder

(Newser) - Ryan Redington on Tuesday won the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, bringing his six dogs off the Bering Sea ice to the finish line in Nome. Redington, 40, is the grandson of Joe Redington Sr., who helped co-found the arduous race across Alaska that was first held in 1973 and...

Iditarod Rookie Describes 'Most Horrific 24 Hours of My Life'

Bull moose attacked Bridgett Watkins' dogs for nearly an hour during a training run

(Newser) - A woman training for the Iditarod in Alaska on Friday says she and her sled dogs withstood a harrowing, hour-long attack—not by a bear, but a bull moose. The state's Department of Fish and Wildlife says more moose-related injuries are logged each year than those inflicted by bear,...

Humans and Sled Dogs: a 10,000-Year History
Scientists Make Surprise
Find on Ancient Sled Dogs
NEW STUDY
Jun 26, 2020 12:33 PM CDT

Scientists Make Surprise Find on Ancient Sled Dogs

They were helping humans far longer than thought, at least 10K years

(Newser) - Ancient dogs specially adapted to the cold have been helping humans survive in the Arctic for a surprisingly long time—more than 10,000 years—a new study suggests. "Until now, we have thought that sledge dogs were only [2,000 to] 3,000 years old," says Mikkel...

He Won the Iditarod as a Rookie. Now, 'Yukon Fox' Gone at 79

Sled dog race legend Emmitt Peters Sr. dies in Alaska

(Newser) - Emmitt Peters Sr., an Alaska Native who won the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race as a rookie in 1975, has died at age 79 in his home village of Ruby. Peters died Thursday of natural causes, Alaska State Troopers said. Peters, an Athabascan, was nicknamed the "Yukon Fox” after...

Photo of Dogs Goes Viral, and Sparks a Conversation

They're walking through meltwater in Greenland

(Newser) - It's no wonder the photo went viral: The sled dogs appear to be walking on water. The story behind the June 13 image is making the rounds as well. It was taken by Danish scientist Steffen Olsen in northwest Greenland, where the dogs were traversing an ice sheet roughly...

For 2nd Year in a Row, Iditarod Leader Hits Bad Luck

Frenchman Nicolas Petit had to drop out after his dogs just refused to keep going

(Newser) - You could be the best dog-musher in the world, but if your canine charges simply refuse to move, those mushing skills mean nothing. Frenchman Nicolas Petit found that out Monday when he had to withdraw from Alaska's famous Iditarod sled dog race after he and his team got stuck...

Iditarod Racer Saw Dogs' Ears Perk Up. Then He Saw His Friend

Scott Janssen awarded for helping save stranded racer Jim Lanier

(Newser) - Scott Janssen hoped to win the world's most famous sled-dog race across Alaska. Instead, the 56-year-old took home a sportsmanship award for spending a chilly night with a friend in a sleeping bag he feared would become a body bag. Some 45 miles from the Iditarod finish line, Janssen...

Video of Polar Bear Petting Dog Goes Viral. Now the Bad News

A bear on Canadian landowner's property ate one of his chained-up sled dogs

(Newser) - A video of a polar bear petting a sled dog that went viral seemed heartwarming, but a new development casts the interaction in a different light. The Dodo has updated its initial post on the incident, which took place near Churchill in Manitoba. The video was shot on property belonging...

Fire Strikes Heart of Sled Dog Country

500 dogs rescued from Sockeye fire

(Newser) - A huge Alaska wildfire has prompted help from people offering their homes to scores of displaced residents—and their animals. The "Sockeye Fire" north of Anchorage has led to the voluntary evacuation of up to 1,700 structures and has struck the heart of sled dog country, including 15...

Iditarod Winner Is Race's Oldest Ever

Mitch Seavey scores 2nd victory at age 53

(Newser) - This year's Iditarod winner is its oldest ever—and he just happens to be the father of last year's winner , the youngest ever. Mitch Seavey, 53, and his 10 dogs finished the grueling 1,000-mile race in nine days, 7 hours, and 39 minutes, the AP reports. He...

Court Warns Artist: No Strangling Puppies

German artist planned to strangle them in creepy show

(Newser) - Two puppies in Berlin would be relieved to read this. A court in Berlin stopped an artist from staging a provocative theater piece yesterday in which he planned to strangle two puppies with cable ties, The Local reports. The show's theme: the plight of Spanish hunting dogs and Alaskan...

Sad Details Emerge in Sled Dog Killings

Vigilantes threaten to cull sled dog killer

(Newser) - A sled dog company employee who slaughtered around 100 huskies after tourism dried up has been receiving death threats, Canadian police say. Police and animal welfare authorities are investigating the killings, which came to light after the worker described the killings in grisly detail to obtain workman's compensation. The animals...

Feds' Lone Dog-Mushing Job Opens Up

Must like Alaskan wilderness, dog poop and bureaucracy

(Newser) - Love dogs? Pristine Alaska wilderness? Then you’ll be pleased to learn that the lone federal dog-mushing job is open. The position at Denali National Park pays up to $66,542 (plus cost-of-living adjustment), but it’s not all easy sledding. The kennel manager is in charge of 31 dogs,...

What We Can Learn From Being Dog-Tired

Sled dogs' metabolism may yield clues on fighting human fatigue

(Newser) - Alaskan sled dogs racing for days on end don’t get tired out the way a human runner would, the New York Times reports, and researchers eager to imitate this fatigue resistance in people—particularly soldiers—say it’s because they’re somehow able to change their metabolism. “Suddenly...

Mackey Defends Iditarod Crown
 Mackey Defends Iditarod Crown 
Mar 12, 2008 1:19 PM CDT

Mackey Defends Iditarod Crown

'They're the best dogs, hands-down,' winner says of Alaskan canine team

(Newser) - Lance Mackey won his second consecutive Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race today, crossing the finish line in Nome, Alaska, after 1,100 miles over 9½ days, the AP reports—despite unseasonably warm weather and occasionally quarrelsome dogs. "I don't know exactly how to explain it," said Mackey, a...

17 Stories