Disney: Iditarod cruelties are funny

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From the Sled Dog Action Coalition, www.helpsleddogs.org:

 

According to Variety, Disney will begin shooting the Alaskan Iditarod sled

race comedy " Winter Dance " this fall. The suffering the Iditarod dogs endure

in the race and in their kennels is no laughing matter. Please write to

Disney

and ask it to cancel " Winter Dance. "

 

The Iditarod dog sled race is condemned by animal cruelty groups across the

United States, because dog deaths and injuries are common in the race. In the

last four years, ten dogs have perished in what USA Today sports columnist

Jon Saraceno calls " a mad marathon of canine misery. " No one has any idea how

many dogs are destroyed in the weeks after the race because of debilitating

injury that renders them useless. Mushers believe in " culling " or killing

unwanted dogs. Dogs who are permanently disabled in the Iditarod, or who are

unwanted for any reason, are killed with a shot to the head.

 

Thirty-eight states and the District of Columbia have anti-cruelty laws that

would make the Iditarod illegal because of overworking an animal. George

Diaz, sports columnist for the Orlando Sentinel, referred to the Iditarod as

" illegal sweatshop for dogs. "

 

A sample letter and contact information are provided below:

 

Dear Mr. Eisner:

 

I understand Disney will begin shooting the Alaskan Iditarod sled race

comedy " Winter Dance " this fall. The suffering the Iditarod dogs endure in

the race and in their kennels is no laughing matter. Please cancel " Winter

Dance. "

 

I would like to bring some facts to your attention about this brutal race.

The Iditarod is condemned by animal protection groups across the United

States, because dog deaths and injuries are common in the race.

 

In the Iditarod, dogs are forced to run 1,150 miles over a grueling terrain

in 9 to 14 days, which is the approximate distance between Denver and LA.

Dogs in the Iditarod die from such causes as stress pneumonia, gastric

ulcers, or " Sudden Death Syndrome " --literally running to death. About a

third of the

1,500 dogs who start the race are flown out because they become sick,

injured, or exhausted. Many of the dogs collapse at the finish line, and

many cannot rise to a standing position to eat for days. Jon Saraceno, sports

columnist for USA Today, called the race " Ihurtadog " and " an outrage. " George

Diaz, sports columnist for the Orlando Sentinel, referred to the Iditarod as

" illegal sweatshop for dogs. "

 

Thirty-eight states and the District of Columbia have anti-cruelty laws that

would make the Iditarod illegal because of overworking an animal. Please

visit the Sled Dog Action Coalition website http://www.helpsleddogs.org to

see pictures and for more information.

 

The Iditarod Trail Committee wants people to think of the Iditarod as a

commemoration of the 1925 Anchorage to Nome diphtheria serum run. However,

there are very few similarities between the two events. Half of the 1925

serum run was done by train. Dogs ran in relays for the remaining 500 or 600

miles, with few dogs running more than 100 miles. In the Iditarod, dogs run

1,150 miles over terrain far more grueling than the terrain found on the

serum run route.

 

The race has led to the proliferation of husky dog kennels in Alaska. In

these kennels, many dogs are treated cruelly. Many kennels have over 100

dogs. Some have as many as 200 dogs. None of the kennels is inspected or

supervised by the State of Alaska or by anyone else.

 

It is standard for the dogs to spend their entire lives outside tethered to

metal chains that can be as short as four feet long. In 1997 the United

States Department of Agriculture determined that the tethering of dogs was

inhumane and not in the animals' best interests. The chaining of dogs as a

primary means of enclosure is prohibited in all cases where federal law

applies. A dog who is permanently tethered is forced to urinate and defecate

where he sleeps which conflicts with his natural instinct to eliminate away

from his living area. Being close to fecal material, a dog can easily catch

deadly parasitical diseases by stepping in or sniffing waste.

 

In their kennels, the dogs are never given the opportunity to run free even

in a fenced in area. Many of them drink water from hard-to reach rusty cans

that are bolted to their doghouses and are rarely cleaned or disinfected.

 

Injured and old, arthritic dogs are kept outside in the winter when the

average daily minimum temperatures range from -24 to 15 degrees Fahrenheit.

It is painful for these dogs to be in the intense cold. Some kennels have few

employees, so that each dog gets little attention.

 

Mushers believe in " culling " or killing unwanted dogs. Dogs who are

permanently disabled in the Iditarod, or who are unwanted for any reason, are

killed with a shot to the head.

 

Please do not promote this cruel race or make light of the suffering the dogs

endure by filming " Winter Dance. "

 

Sincerely,

 

Contact Information:

 

Michael Eisner, Chmn and CEO

The Walt Disney Company

500 S. Buena Vista St.

Burbank, CA 91521-9722

Phone: 818-560-1000

Fax: 818-560-1930

Email message box: http://disney.go.com/DisneyWorld/index2.html (Click

" email " at the bottom then select " Investor Relations. "