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An Alaskan dog apparently didn’t want to miss all the fun when he joined a pack of pups running the famed Iditarod Sled Dog Race.
As sled dog teams running the Iditarod passed the Finger Lake checkpoint Sunday night, they caught the attention of a canine fan of the sport. A loose dog, said to live at the Winter Lake Lodge in Finger Lake joined in the race alongside Pete Kaiser and Ryan Redington and their sled dog teams.
The dog stayed with both teams, alternating between them, for the entire 30-mile leg of the race overnight. Both mushers said the dog seemed happy and healthy during the race and when they arrived at the checkpoint in Rainy Pass.
“It was a good looking dog,” Redington told KTUU. He suspects the stray pooch may share the same bloodline as his grandfather, Joe Redington, Sr.’s dogs.
After arriving in Rainy Pass, the Iditarod-hopeful was flown by plane the 30-miles back to Finger Lake. In all their years of racing, neither musher had seen a dog join alongside an entire leg of the race.
Caroline Burton
Mar 10, 2019 at 12:45 am
The Iditarod is certainly no fun for dogs. You should look at what happens to these dogs during racing as well as when they are not racing. They suffer, they die – when not racing they exist on chains, no love, no fun, no socialising with each other. Stop condoning the cruelty of Iditerod, there are many of us around the world trying to put a stop to this cruelty. It’s all about money, the dogs are exploited and they suffer!