Sled dogs question

[nancyweNW]

I have a question about sled dogs as I've seen some great pictures on PT. I had a friend who had two malamutes who were wonderful. He had a sled and would take them out in the winter and they loved it. He'd also "rent" a couple dogs from someone local for the winter to fill out the team. I went w/him one time to pick up the dogs which is where my question/thought comes in.

All the dogs were on a short chain to a stake. I asked the two owners if that's where they always stayed and they said yes. I understand that is not uncommon practice for mushers but I felt awful seeing all these dogs living their lives chained to a stake just for sport. It's not like we need to go out and gather food here in Washington. Safeways are pretty ample around here.

This is my only exposure to this so I wondering if anyone comment on this.

[Glacier]

It is the most common way to keep sled dogs. It's cheap; it's easy; you can keep lots of dogs without much land; makes kennel management simple; prevents unwanted breedings; prevents fights; reduces vet bills and makes it easy to monitor who is eating what and adjust their diets. Much easier to get a dogsitter for a tethered yard than for one like mine!

Done properly sled dogs do fine tethered--properly means they get daily exercise off their chains; can socialize with other dogs; area is scooped at least once or twice a day; they have toys, bones ect to keep them occupied; holes are filled in regularly; decent houses with insulation and flat roofs so they can lay on top.

Do most mushers do it properly? Subject to debate. Most competitive mushers have handlers who do the daily grunt work in a kennel. An unhealthy, unexercised dog is not going to be a good sled dog.

Most sled dogs don't know any different and are actually quite comfortable being chained. My Sundin came from a long distance racing kennel. On a tether, he's a confident, easy to handle, happy dog. Unchained, he's equally happy, but impossible to handle, has to be lured into a trap to catch him again! When I first got Sleet, I put her in a big pen thinking I was being nice to her. She howled for 3 straight days. She never stopped! I finally called her first owner, a tour operator musher. She told me that the only time Sleet had been fenced, she was in trouble, sick or pregnant! I snapped Sleet on a chain and she shut up and settled in. In her mind, I was punishing her by putting her in a fence! Took months for her to adjust to being loose. Course now she's a 14 year old couch potato!

[buttercup132]

Done properly sled dogs do fine tethered--properly means they get daily exercise off their chains; can socialize with other dogs; area is scooped at least once or twice a day; they have toys, bones ect to keep them occupied; holes are filled in regularly; decent houses with insulation and flat roofs so they can lay on top.

I would think most do. They want good sled dogs right? So don't they have to keep them healthy (and they sled so they run and get exersise). And I would think they would be better to be well socialized because they have to go side by side while running. I don't know much about sledding but it just seemed that anyone who wants a good dog then they should do those things.

[Glacier]

I would think most do.

The vast majority of mushers are good, dog loving people who take exceptional care of their animals. Like any sport, activity, ect, there are a few bad apples. Part of the problem with the public perception of mushing is that those of us who do take good care of our dogs, well, we don't make good news stories!