Hello friends,

I write you today with a very heavy heart. Last night, my dad told me about the horrible tragedy that took place in Whistler, British Columbia, last April.

There are a lot of things being said in the press and so on, but apparently a sled dog company in Whistler, BC, which initially had about 300 sled dogs, realized that they were no longer going to have the terrific sled dog tour bookings they’d had before the 2010 Olympics, so they needed to downsize. The manager of Howling Dogs (owned by Outdoor Adventures Whistler) was instructed to dispose of 100 dogs (which OAW says they instructed to take place humanely and legally) but apparently this person and/or the company felt that it would be too expensive or troublesome to euthanize the dogs at a vet’s office…and instead brutally shot and slashed the throats of these dogs without a second thought.

If you haven’t heard about this story yet, here’s a clip from the Associated Press:

In case you’re wondering, it is actually legal for an owner to kill an animal in British Columbia, but it must be done humanly. Clearly this ordeal where dogs were shot while running away, had to be shot multiple times, and at least a couple were completely maimed, then ran away scared before they could actually be hunted down and finished off, was far from humane.

But here’s what I’m really wondering, because somewhere along the lines, things are fishy. Either this manager was seriously depressed, deranged or otherwise out of his mind when he decided to murder these animals this way. Or OAW is totally lying to the public and they did actually order these slayings. Since the person that did this only recently came forward, almost a year later, to collect money and claim post traumatic stress disorder, why did that only set in now? Wouldn’t he have been pretty screwed up right at the beginning as well, right after he did this? There has also been mentions of threats although we don’t know which side they came from and what sort of threats they actually were. So it may be a long time indeed before the truth about all this really comes out.

(c) Darryl Dyck / THE CANADIAN PRESS

At the very least, OAW tried to clean up the mess after the manager who killed these pups left the company. Instead of just having a financial interest in Howling Dogs, OAW claims to have taken over actual operational control in May 2010 and since has worked to make “significant changes to the business, the intention of which was to ensure humane treatment of our dogs and improved safety protocols of the operation.”

Measures included:

• Relocation and delivery of dogs throughout Canada. Approximately 75 of the most capable dogs were delivered across British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario to other operations. These dogs were given away for free and delivered at Howling Dog’s expense.
• The neutering of all male dogs in the kennel to mitigate unwanted pregnancies and ultimately manage the population. This program was designed and implemented with the OAW staff and veterinarian in Whistler.
• Creation of an open-pen style kennel where dogs are not tethered or chained. Consulted with animal behavioral specialists and professionals to determine the best format and layout for this type of kennel. Currently 85% of our kennel has been transitioned with a goal of 100% transitioned before Summer 2011.
• It is now company policy that any dogs requiring euthanasia do so at the OAW veterinarian’s office. To this effect there are no firearms allowed on site.

Hopefully the authorities will be able to determine if these actions by OAW were just to try and cover their tracks, or if they were done in earnest because they were finally taking real control of the company. And if this person who did the killing was threatened or perhaps did the threatening himself, hopefully that will also be proved.

Regardless of what really happened here, and who ordered this to be done, it is a horrible tragedy and the lives of most if not all of these dogs could surely have been saved if the public had known that there were 100 dogs up for adoption in Whistler. After what I’ve seen people do to transport and rescue Newfies in North America, I’m certain that Huskie organizations would have stepped in to help, as well as many other individuals who love the breed and animals in general.

There is even talk of banning dog sled tours altogether now, but I really can’t believe that’s the best option. Most of the mushers out there would not be able to kill their dog team just to save a few bucks. So instead, I think BC might need to reconsider the rules of euthanization, instead; especially if the animals are owned and used by companies.

What are your thoughts on this whole story?