Originally posted by Samantha Puppy
Cool, thanks for the reply. I'm just curious - how are they not treated like 'pets'? And how come?
Most sled dogs aren't like mine. Mine are spoiled pets who work a couple times a week. Most serious mushers have way more dogs than I do. The dogs are kept outside, usually on chains, with their own houses, close enough that they can play and interact with their neighbor dog, but far enough apart that they can't fight or breed. (mushers aren't great about spay and neutering! but that's another post!) The dogs aren't allowed inside, they don't sleep on the couch--all that stuff that many pet dogs get to do. Some mushers let their favorites inside or move their retired dogs to the house.

I have a friend who does "dog of the day"--every day one of his dogs gets to be in the house with him, goes for truck rides and gets free roam of the yard, treats ect.