I'm just curious, is this cruelty?

Well, if you lived back in the day when the great depression and WW1 and 2 were im sure you would think you were being mistreated, but those people toughed it out. They had to. Thats what it was they had to do, be strong and do waht u needed to do.

The dogs obviously are fine now, you dont see them dieing, huskies and malamutes are made for cold weather, they love the coldness. they have the instincts to dig in the snow to make a warm bed.

They get food and they get attention, if they didnt they wouldnt know how to pull the sled or listen to their owners.

What else are they supposed to do up there?

oh we have a pre vet explanation. seriously, think about common sense not book knowledge.

and 20 mins is so not enough for a dog to be outside. My dog WANTS to stay outside like all day cause she is an indoor dog. we let her come in when she wants and out when she wants.

she spends most of the time outside because she LOVES THE OUTDOORS!!! DOGS ARE ANIMALS!

COWS ARE OUTSIDE DURING ALL THE SEASONS OF THE YEAR!! is it animal cruelty?? no its not.

Some people don't understand that dogs have been bred to do certain jobs and that they really like doing the job they were born for. Dogs are not people, but it is hard for us humans to not look at something we care about as if it were a human child. Sometimes I read some pretty harsh answers toward someone and think...wow that person doesn't really know dogs at all. Some of the worst answers come from people who claim to be breeders. Also, people who own really tiny dogs have some ideas about dogs that are not true...especially for a regular size dog.

I have never heard of 100 to 300 dogs being owned by a family, but then maybe the family has many members. I watched a show about the Iditarod dog teams once...they seem really loved and cared about. I supose if you have a large family of five, and they each own 20 dogs, then I guess there would be 100 dogs in the same area. Doesn't sound so bad to me...especially if they work with the dogs often.

Well first I question if each family really has 100 to 300 dogs. Also, to my knowledge, many Eskimo/Inuit families only choose the strongest of the puppies and then kill the dogs when they reach a certain age (I think I read 3 years of age or something like that) when the sled dog is "used up." I'd like to see your sources.

That being said, Huskies and Malamutes in the north have already been bred to live outside, although it is still cruel to treat them like beasts of burden. Down in the 48 states, people leave short-coated dogs tied to a tree and barely give them any attention at all.

I would not consider keeping the dogs outside to be cruelty, especially breeds that are made for the cold, like sled dogs. If the dogs can handle the extreme temperatures, then it isn't really a problem. As long as any sick or injured dog can be moved inside until it is well again.

What I would consider cruelty is keeping them chained constantly on a short lead. I have never been to Alaska to see the conditions you've described, but I'm guessing the dogs don't get much room to move. That is what bothers me, not the fact that they are outdoors.

Well,

Yes, and no. Sometimes a sled dog is treated very well. In these cases the dog would be allowed to rest indoors, and not have to work all the time.

Sometimes a sled dog is mistreated and is abused. I think it is not fair for a living creature to have to spend nights in Alaska!

You have a good question. I might not know everything about sled dogs, but I know that they aren't being treated like a dog.

I think that many of the dogs are mistreated.They are often staked out with NO doghouse - they have to sleep on the frozen ground and many of them die.They are given minimal veterinary care and any unwanted dogs are routinely shot.I know this because I have a friend who is a teacher in Alaska.She teaches Native children and she says that the people there treat dogs terribly.There are always dogs running loose in the bitter cold and she will feed them when she can.But the Native people don't like anyone to interfere,even though they do not want to care for the dogs themselves.Every spring,there is a "dog shoot." A few years ago,a female dog was killed in front of her house and it had 5 puppies.My friend took the puppies and had them sent south to a shelter.This is a common occurance,according to her.The ASPCA and HSUS will come up and have spay/neuter clinics,but the Natives believe that this is not natural and many will not have their dogs fixed and would rather just dispose of the unwanted puppies. My friend says that she is trying to get through to her pupils the importance of being kind to animals and every spring,when school is let out and she heads home to Canada,she takes two dogs with her to a no kill shelter where they will be put up for adoption.She says that the people in Alaska only look upon the dogs as working animal and most of them see nothing wrong with keeping the dogs in severe weather conditions,or not providing care to them.It bothers her to no end,but she feels obligated to continue teaching there and trying to change the way the kids think towards dogs. She has two dogs rescued from living in the wilderness and she uses them as examples of how wonderful dogs can be. Of course her dogs live in the house. As for sled dog kennels, I am sure that there are kennels and the owners truly do care for the welfare of their dogs,but there are many,many bad ones,too.

Edit: TD me,I don't care.I am just writing what I have been told by a very reliable source and I have read a lot of stories about how badly sled dogs are treated.

Thank you for bringing this up... I didn't know that they were "kept" like cattle without interaction between each other. I'm not the dog or cat police but do believe in good advice. About cattle...dairy cows have it better? Another question stemming from yours (I don't know). My sister owns 3 siberian huskies that travel from their NYC loft to a New Jersey home on weekends. They were all rescues & hate being outdoors for walks in the summer. Malamutes are also a cold weather breed. But every dog deserves his play & interaction as well as a warming station. You've called attention to something I & others will look into reading about. But as the saying goes...you'll catch more bees (or is it flies?) with honey then trying to call out those that do stay local. I agree some are over-posesive with advice or non-advice but i'm a pro-cynic able to define & read through it...i.e have seen decent to great advice given with from others with low thresholds ( many explainable reasons). The thing about the pet section on Yahoo that I noticed is that amongst misinformation & inflated ego or the politically correct police for change ( your post would fall in that category ) is a desire to learn more...Respectfully

Great question :)

I'm going to have a hard time explaining myself.

The sled dogs, while it would be great to keep them indoors, tehey're not really pets are they? They have a job to do and they still get attention and ecersize.

The pets taht are chained up outside don't usually. They're just left outside and usually given fresh food and water daily, but mostly ignored. That's not much of a life is it?

Point in fact is that no matter where you are in the world, people mistreat animals.

As far as the sled dogs in alaska?? Most people who use sled dogs for jobs and what not in alaska take better care of their animals than they take care of themselves. The dogs aren't mistreated.. they are tempered to withstand the cold for their jobs and their lives. they all get medical attention when it's needed. and the dogs who race professionally every year.. are treated better than the poor that live in the usa.

Okay, yes and no. My explanation can be a tad long, so be prepared =P

Siberian Huskies and Malamutes are made to be sled dogs. It's simply what they're bred to do. So when they're raised up in that enviorment and are born to be sled dogs, they don't know any different. But the difference is with them is that they DO get attention. Every single day nearly each one gets individual attention. It's not much, but they get let off the chain, are allowed to run around, and get human contact. They are often given a great amount of food, unlike most dogs, and are given better medical attention than other dogs. Usually ten dogs or so are let off to play together and get actual dog time and play with one another along with the pople. And with the extreme weather, once again, they were born to live like that. They have their thick coats that keep them warm and they will each have dog houses, hay piles, and similiar things so they have other protection from it and it doesn't affect them as much.

With that said, there are also many dogs who live an outdoor life all across the country. Great Pyrenesse live outdoor lives protecting their people's farm. They never are allowed inside, never allowed near the house, but every day they get a great deal of food, a warm place to stay, given medical attention, recieve the exercise they need, and are given affection and treats. They live a great life! Plus, usually there are two on a farm. So they have dog company and aren't left alone.

Many other dogs live a life outdoors. They all get adeqet attention, tons of food, exercise, and actual living quarters. There's nothing wrong with it.

Now, all the dogs that live lives like that are dogs that were bred for it. They are meant to protect flocks, protect farms, be guard dogs, be sled dogs, and so on and so forth. It's not at all cruel if they're not "abandoned" and are fed well with medical attention and shelter. As long as it's what they're meant to do.

People on here are talking about dogs that are just left outside on a chain. Their people ignore them, hardly feed them, and often don't give them medical attention. They're just left out there and their people don't even care and pretend like a dog isn't out in their backyard. That's absolutely cruel. Often times their chain will get embedded, or they will become severly malnourised, get illnesses, and other serious things. It's a bad situation.

Or, people can just talk about dogs that live life outdoors. Even if they just keep them in the backyard or something, it's still "cruel" in a way. Dogs left out like that are usually fed, given medical attention, all of that but aren't given attention. They aren't a part of the family. They have no role what-so-ever sitting out in the backyard, their people ignore them, and they're just left there.

The difference with that one is that the dogs with jobs have something to do. They feel a part of the family and they are because they're doing something to contribute and their owners care. Dogs just left in the backyard are often there because their owners don't want to train them, don't want to live with them, and other various reasons. Plus, often times they aren't given shelter and their coats don't prepare them for harsh weathers. So they must tough it out.

Basically, dogs in Alaska are doing their job and are given everything to strive and be mentally and physically healthy. Dogs just tied up on a chain or thrown into the backyard are usually neither or just physically healthy. (Depending on the situation.) They are never mentally healthy. For a dog to be mentally healthy they need to roam, be taken on walks, get affection, be mentally stimulated, (obedience training and what not), and have socialization. Dogs thrown in backyards and tied up get none of that. Dogs with purpose and jobs do.

So that's the difference. It's not cruel to have a dog living outside, it's cruel by not providing everything for it. So when someone hears that someone has an outside dog, the first thing that comes to mind is no mental stimulation and over-all well being. Things could very well be different. I have nothing wrong with outside dogs as long as they are mentally and physicaly healthy and they are happy and given attention. And I think that's how everyone feels.

Very nice question :]