Iditarod Dog Dies During Race

Officials confirmed on Friday that sled dog Dorado, described by his musher as a “shy but happy guy,” died during this year’s Iditarod Dog Sled Race. After having trouble keeping up with the pack, he was placed in a “dog lot” where he was asphyxiated in deep and blowing snow.

The Squid Acres Kennel website, with which Dorado’s musher Paige Drobny is affiliated, posted in its blog, “[He] had been pretty stiff on the previous two runs and was not moving as smooth as the rest of the team so she decided to drop him.”

It is not uncommon for mushers to drop dogs having trouble. The dogs are placed in dog lots where they are cared for until they can be flown to Anchorage for pickup.

But race officials have declined to talk in detail about the incident, and many questions remain unanswered.

Appearing to contradict himself, Stuart Nelson, the Iditarod’s head veterinarian said, “The point is, this dog was healthy prior to this incident.” But he then added, “The dog’s death was not the result of negligence.”

Drobny’s husband, Cody Strathe, told the Anchorage Daily News via Facebook that mushers would bepushing for changes to how volunteers care for dropped dogs.