A four-year-old female dog died Friday during the Iditarod, the famous long-distance sled dog race held in Alaska.
The dog, named Ventana, collapsed eight miles outside a race checkpoint in Galena, a city in western Alaska, at noon local time, and attempts to revive her were unsuccessful, according to race officials. The dog’s body was flown to Anchorage for a necropsy to determine the cause of death. Daniel Klein, Ventana’s musher, was later scratched from the race, in accordance with event rules.
The death was the first of this year’s event, which officially began last Monday. A dog has died in 37 of the Iditarod’s 53 years.
Sled dog deaths at last year’s race renewed calls to end the event. After no reported deaths from 2020 to 2023, three dogs died during the 2024 race and five more died during training.
Dog sledding has deep roots in Alaskan history. Since the first edition of the race in 1973, at least 118 dogs have died, according to the animal rights organization, Humane Mushing. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) says the number of dog deaths is more than 150.
Race organizers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
This year’s race spans 1,128 miles, across which teams of dogs carry 400-pound sleds, including their musher. This year’s field included 33 mushers, tied with 2023 for the fewest in the race’s history.
Racing conditions have been found to have adverse impacts on dogs’ health.
Huskies and other sled dogs are not big, typically weighing around 50 to 60 pounds, yet they will lose about 9 percent of their body weight in a week. Clinical research shows the majority of dogs will get diarrhea from the distress of racing on the trail, while others may develop sores in their GI tracts. A 2008 study examining the medical records of sled dogs that died in the race over 15 years found their most common causes of death were gastric aspiration, acute stomach bleeds or sled-dog myopathy – a term that essentially describes working to the point of collapse.
Elsewhere in the race, another musher named Brenda Mackey dropped out Wednesday, writing on Facebook that one of her dogs collapsed, prompting her to reverse course and seek “immediate veterinary care.” Race officials later issued a statement, noting that Mackey’s ailing dog, Jett, appeared to be doing well.
Last year’s winner, Dallas Seavey, completed the race in 9 days 2 hours 16 minutes.