In under a month, mushers will force teams of huskies to race a brutal 1,000 miles across the Alaska tundra. This team of man and dogs is not a partnership, but instead exploitation in the name of prize money from the few corporate sponsors cruel enough to still sponsor the race.  

And the race is cruel: teams can race for up to two weeks with mushers often ignoring veterinary advice in favor of a chance to cross the finish line first. As someone who has been involved in sled dog sports for over two decades, I have witnessed countless animal deaths firsthand in preparation and training for this race. Dogs are pushed so hard they suffer bloody diarrhea, paralysis, lung damage, frostbite, and even death. In the 2017 race alone, 5 dogs died in horrific pain, and at least 147 dogs have died over the course of the Iditarod’s 45-year history.

As one of the last major corporate sponsors of the Iditarod, Alaska Airlines is funding this cruelty. Sign and share today to urge the airline to break this corporate partnership before more dogs race to their deaths.

Even when the race is over, these sled dogs often live their entire lives chained outside and are abused as a means of “enforcing” their training. Sled dogs are factory farmed at competitive kennels and chained in endless rows in barren fields - a practice that is against internationally accepted humane mushing standards. Dogs who get sick or fail to perform to the standards of their mushers are killed. The Iditarod claims to care about the welfare of sled dogs but fails to enforce regulations, providing guidelines that even the most respected mushers often fail to meet with no repercussions.

After learning of this cruelty, Wells Fargo pulled out of its sponsorship. However, the Iditarod is still allowed to continue and thrive because of its last remaining corporate funders. By sponsoring this race, Alaska Airlines condones the brutal conditions in which these sled dogs live and race, and endorses the idea that a race is more important than animals’ lives.

Please sign this petition to show Alaska Airlines that animal welfare matters, and that no race is as important as sled dogs’ lives.