Dog deaths at the Iditarod are renewing calls to end Alaska's famous race

A major Alaskan tradition has arrived for its 2024 installment, as Dallas Seavey won the Iditarod sled dog race on March 12 for a record sixth time. However, the dog musher's victory was overshadowed by a series of tragic canine deaths at the race — on and off the course — that has renewed controversy over the ethics of the Iditarod.

The harsh winter elements of the Alaskan wilderness proved deadly for three dogs who died during the race this year. In all three instances, Iditarod officials said life-saving measures were unsuccessful and that they would "make every attempt to determine the [dog's] cause of death." And these were just the dogs that died during the race itself; five other dogs died and eight more were injured after colliding with snowmobiles while training for the Iditarod.

While debate over the Iditarod's ethics has cooled in recent years, these deaths have renewed longstanding calls to shut down the race. But many in Alaska have pushed back against these calls, noting that the state has a long and rich history of sled dog culture.

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What makes the Iditarod dangerous? 

The course stretches from Anchorage to Nome, Alaska, made up of "nearly 1,000 miles of unforgiving, rugged and breathtaking terrain," said Travel Alaska. Though the dogs used by the mush teams are built for snowy weather, many have died due to "overexertion, spinal injury and forms of pneumonia such as aspiration pneumonia, which can occur when an exhausted dog gags, then inadvertently inhales vomit," Sentient Media said. Dogs that survive the race's subzero temperatures often face subsequent health issues.

Wildlife can also prove dangerous for both dogs and humans throughout the Iditarod; During this year's race, mushers were "forced to punch, shoot, kill and dress a moose that attacked two mushers and their teams of dogs," said The Sporting News. While no dogs had died at an Iditarod since 2019, the 2024 race has "proven to be a far more dangerous trek than recent editions," the outlet said.

Who is calling for the Iditarod to end?

The main party calling for a shutdown of the Iditarod is the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). Seavey "literally wrote the book on abusing dogs" and has "cemented his legacy as a champion of pain and suffering," PETA's Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman said in a statement. The blood of the deceased dogs "is on the hands of the mushers, [Iditarod sponsor] Liberty Media and every other sponsor of this death race," Reiman said.

PETA's anger toward the Iditarod is not new, as the organization has long called for an end to the race. But the recent deaths have seemingly turbocharged these calls, as "only in the Iditarod can people force dogs to run to their deaths and be caught on video trying to force a collapsed dog to stand and carry on," Reiman said to The Washington Post. These are "reprehensible actions that PETA points out would bring cruelty-to-animals charges anywhere else in the country," she said.

Another organization, Humane Mushing, has also called for the Iditarod to be stripped of its sponsorships, and has published photos allegedly depicting cruel, inhumane conditions in which the sled dogs are kept. The organization claims that more than 100 dogs have died during the 51-year history of the Iditarod — the race organizers themselves have never provided official statistics on dog deaths.

Who is calling for the Iditarod to stay?

Sled dog racing has long been a part of Alaskan culture, and the race's supporters "say the Iditarod should remain as a celebration and reminder of a time not so long ago when the main way to travel was by sled," The Associated Press said. Sled dogs have "also played an important role in connecting Alaska to the outside world," the outlet said, and the race itself was "established ... as a way to save sled dog culture and preserve the Alaskan husky breed" after snowmobiles eclipsed mushing as the wilderness means of transportation.

People who participate in sports with their dogs "promote and foster and create the greatest human-animal relationships this planet has to offer," Seavey said to GQ, and "what we do beyond that is promote healthy pet ownership." And while PETA's criticism remains strong, a state trooper examined Seavey's kennel in 2017 and "found nothing at the location to suggest the animals were not being cared for properly."