One dog has died so far during the 2010 Iditarod season – “Lava” died in the team of seventeen-year-old Jeff Holt during the 2010 Junior Iditarod. He reportedly died from a gastric ulcer, which is a common occurrence in overworked racing sled dogs.
Due to the amount of negative publicity the race received last year due to the numerous dog deaths, and the sponsors lost, I honestly doubt that any deaths occurring in the full-length Iditarod this year will be reported.
The Iditarod press releases have already been delayed up to three days before being released, and full disclosure has not been provided regarding the lost dog, Whitey. According to the musher’s wife on their kennel blog, the dog was found on Sunday, March 14th after being lost for four days. The musher was forced to scratch by race officials two days after Whitey remained missing. It is disheartening that the musher did not scratch right when his dog was lost to look for him, and that officials did not require him to scratch immediately.
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