“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”
Mohandas Gandhi

Krabloonik Dogsledding

Snowmass Village, Colorado

SUCCESSFULLY SHUT DOWN JUNE OF 2024

Krabloonik under Daniel & Regina Phillips' ownership. — Krabloonik under Daniel & Regina Phillips’ ownership.

History

Dan MacEachen was charged with eight counts of animal cruelty, one per sled dog seized from the Krabloonik property by the District Attorney’s Office, in December 2013. The charges filed against MacEachen included six for dogs that were malnourished and two for animals in need of significant veterinary care.
In December of 2014, MacEachen sold Krabloonik to a current employee, Dan Phillips – the Director of Operations since 2013. Phillips also worked as a musher/handler for MacEachen from November of 2001 to May of 2002. Shortly after the sale, Dan Phillips’ mentor – Dan MacEachen – passed away.

Documentation

July 10 2023	Settlement and Final Day Announced	Source Link
June 23 2023	TOSV and Krabloonik Settlement Reached	Source Link
March 27 2023	Adopter PACFA Complaint	Source Link
January 4 2023	TOSV and Krabloonik Merge Cases	Source Link
December 8 2022	Krabloonik Sues TOSV Re: Eviction	Source Link
November 22 2022	Demand for Possession of Property – Snowmass PD	Source Link
October 6 2022	TOSV Eviction Notice Issued to Krabloonik	Source Link
August 15 2022	Krabloonik’s Default Reply	Source Link
August 1 2022	TOSV Notice of Krabloonik’s Default	Source Link
June 28th 2022	Best Practice Review Committee Report	Source Link
May 24th 2022	Attorney General Supporting Docs	Source Link
May 24th 2022	Attorney General Complaint	Source Link
April 20th 2022	Musher Observations & Recommendations	Source Link
April 14th 2022	Regarding Mr. Phillips’ Qualifications	Source Link
March 17th 2022	Expert Opinion by Kusko 300 Founder	Source Link
February 3rd 2022	Pitkin County Sheriff’s Report: Animal Abuse	Source Link
February 2nd 2022	Best Practice Review Committee Report	Source Link
January 18th 2022	Non-Compliant PACFA Inspection	Source Link
January 14th 2022	Handler/Employee PACFA Complaint	Source Link
November 24th 2021	Historic Krabloonik Lawsuits	Source Link
September 27th 2017	Handler/Employee Complaint	Source Link
September 19th 2017	Non-Compliant PACFA Inspection	Source Link
September 14th 2017	Handler/Employee PACFA Complaint	Source Link
September 9th 2017	Handler/Employee PACFA Complaint	Source Link
May 11th 2017	Non-Compliant PACFA Inspection	Source Link
March 24th 2016	Non-Compliant PACFA Inspection	Source Link

Letter of Offering of Support, from Whistler Sled Dog Massacre Rescuers

Dear Mayor Madsen, Councillor Good, Councillor Sirkus, Councillor Shenk and Councillor Fridstein,

I thank you in advance for your time in reading this note and your consideration on how to best move forward in navigating the challenge with the land lease you have with Krabloonik Dog Sledding.

My name is Sue Eckersley, I’m not a constituent, in fact I’m not even an American, I have no real means to have any influence over your actions, but I do have experience and information that may give you perspective as you make your decision.

In April 2010, fifty-six dogs and dozens of puppies (unreported as the search warrant did not cover puppies) were slaughtered in Whistler, BC by Bob Fawcett, the Vice President of an Alaskan sled dog welfare group “Mush with Pride.” In 2011 the local Whistler Dog Shelter was approached to take over the dog sledding company as the prevailing wisdom of the day was that sled dogs could not be rehomed. I was a volunteer on the shelter board at the time, we agreed as a board that the shelter didn’t want to manage a dog sledding company. We instead created a new company to ensure the dogs received proper care. Whistler Sled Dog Company (WSDC) was born – I and a few others volunteered as directors and the mission of the company was to demonstrate an ethical dog sled company run as a business and then share those best practices with everyone in the industry. To make a long story short – we were sold out virtually the entire two seasons of operation – people wanted to support the “survivors” and we ran a tight ship in terms of expenses with the exception of “dog care.” After operating two seasons, with countless volunteer hours for management and dog care, we were still pumping money into the operation and not meeting the standard of care. In addition, we were much more knowledgeable about the dogs – they are just dogs and most certainly could be rehomed. The last straw for me was when I got a call that a dog had to be euthanized at the vet – I said why? Broken back I was told – I imagined the dog being run over by a sled, falling out of the truck – I said “how?” “Pulling the sled,” the musher said. “What?” – “Turns out that they were genetically predisposed” – dog pulled for years – just broke one day…

I tell you the WSDC story, (and if you are interested and would find it helpful, I can tell it in much greater detail), because I see that you have been struggling as a community around dog sledding. It’s such a great tourist endeavour from the outside, you can go on almost any dogsledding company site and see rave reviews from participants – “dogs were so happy, it was so much fun, puppies were so cute” – this is what the public sees and experiences. Of course, the dogs are happy, they are off their chain or out of their pen that they spend most of their miserable lives enduring. Someone is petting them, showing them attention and love. They “fire” against their harnesses to pull because it is their limited opportunity to run, not because they “love pulling” as mushers will tell you.

I am not in the position to condemn all dogsledding – I know people who have a team of dogs that are well cared for and who seem to love going out with their owner. What I will tell you is that a dedicated group of people with business and dog knowledge tried for two years to run an ethical commercial dog sledding company that had no need for profit, and we failed.

Krabloonik is not succeeding where we failed. It has had multiple investigations this calendar year, one a criminal investigation for beating a dog. Your own committee member Seth Sachson noted that Krabloonik has “neglected to follow through with the majority of their promises.” According to the town commissioned report, the operation has lapses in adoption and reduction plan, spay and neuter program and off-tether program for the dogs. The operation was supposed to have 175 dogs by 2021 through a five-year reduction plan and on Feb 8^th, 2022, a report found 199.

As I understand it, the owners are saying that they will reduce the number of dogs when the local shelter can take more? You have a for-profit business relying on a charitable entity to rehome its dogs – dogs that have made them tens of thousands of dollars over their life. They have also fallen short on neuter and spay requirements despite once again that being provided by a charity. Meanwhile the for-profit business pays only $10/year for a lease of the property where they operate.

Even with all this assistance they cannot make the standards that your community set out. They appear to always say they are just about to do that – get you off their backs for another year. At what point do you declare that it is not possible to operate this business with the standards that meet you community ethics.

The directors of the Whistler Sled Dog Company made the decision to rehome all the dogs. We rehomed 187 dogs. They went on to live happy lives and became loving pets to many people. Dogs are dogs, they are resilient, they want to be loved. They are sentient beings that deserve better than being chained to a pole or living in a 10ft x 20ft pen for most of their lives.

Snowmass has the opportunity to lead. There is plenty of evidence that commercial dogsledding is not an ethical activity in general and you have your own evidence with your local dogsledding business. The group that rehomed all the Whistler dogs is happy to be a resource for your community. Penny Stone has worked in animal welfare for decades; she would be an invaluable resource for your local animal shelter. Whistler, like Snowmass does not have a large population, so we had to work with shelters from other parts of the province to rehome all the dogs. Kim Clarke and I ran the operations for closing the kennel and rehoming the dogs. We built a budget and operations plan for you based on the knowledge that we’ve been given and we would also be happy to volunteer our time and fly to your community to do a full assessment.

As leaders of your community, you have the opportunity to make a stand instead of kicking it down the road. Your community gave this local business every opportunity to succeed, you laid out your expectations, and they aren’t being met. End the lease. I understand the owner has asked what you would do with the dogs. Good people will help.

Animal Cruelty

The Pitkin County Sheriff’s Office has issued an arrest warrant for former Krabloonik Dog Sledding musher Paul Staples after an investigation into an allegation of animal cruelty documented on video in late January.

The warrant for Paul Staples is for one charge of misdemeanor animal abuse in a Jan. 30 incident that was documented on video, Gibson said. In the video, Staples kicks a dog, pins the dog to the ground, “uses a hammer fist” and “stomps” on the dog and “lifts (the dog) into the air slightly before slamming (the dog) into the ground,” according to a report filed by Gibson and Community Resource Officer Tara Alibrandi. The video is approximately six minutes long and was recorded on a dog sled tour reserved under the “Amari Cooper Group.”

About two minutes into the video, a team of dogs pulling a guest in a sled begins to turn early when “the lead dogs change direction too soon,” the report states. Staples approaches a dog named Nicolai and “kicks the dog with his right leg,” the report states.

Staples then “pushes Nicolai to the ground on the dog’s right side and then puts his total weight against Nicolai’s left side, pinning the dog to the ground,” the report states. “Staples tells the dog several times, ‘I thought we were done with this,’ and ‘We don’t do that.’”

Around 2 minutes and 48 seconds into the video, “Staples uses a hammer fist with his right hand and stomps on a dog (presumed to be Nicolai) with his right foot,” according to the report.

About a minute later in the video, Staples returns to Nicolai, “flips the dog onto its right side again, kneels, and places all of his weight on Nicolai’s right side.”

Staples also “lifts Nicolai into the air slightly before slamming Nicolai into the ground” and can be heard “yelling at Nicolai again and again, ‘No! No!’ and ‘I’m really getting tired of this (or it), Nicolai!’” the report states.

Staples worked for Krabloonik for about five years. Nicolai, the dog, had been on Staples’ team for about three years. Nicolai had a history of fighting with other dogs and “was placed on Staples’ team because Staples is Krabloonik’s most experienced musher,” according to the report.

Pitkin County Sheriff’s Report Incident 22P001381

Alpine Adventures – Spring 2024

Alpine Adventures Dogsledding was searched by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office on January 25th, following allegations of animal abuse.

The owner was charged with 14 counts of animal cruelty. A five-day trial will be held starting September 23rd 2024.

The owner of a Leadville business that offers dogsled tours pleaded not guilty in Lake County court earlier this week to 14 charges of animal cruelty.

Judge John Scott arraigned Loren Priem, 47, on the Class 1 misdemeanor charges during a court hearing Tuesday, April 2. Priem owns Alpine Adventures Dogsledding off U.S. Highway 24.

Smith approved a search warrant for the business in late January, after a Colorado Humane Society field investigator referred the case to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, according to an incident report from the Sheriff’s Office.

The report outlines “the continued abuse and neglect” reported in an animal welfare complaint emailed to the Humane Society by an employee who worked for two seasons at Alpine Adventures Dogsledding.

The employee, whose name is redacted from the incident report, alleges that those working at the business were instructed to slap dogs in the face with gloves if they chewed equipment or got in fights.

During the off season, the employee said the dogs were tethered 24/7 without walks or enrichment, and if the dogs’ chains got stuck on the posts, the dogs could go for hours or all night stuck and unable to move, according to the incident report.

The animal welfare complaint concerned about 25 dogs, some of them emaciated, some with injuries and some lacking needed medical care, the incident report states. Photographs included with the complaint reportedly show an emaciated dog that had since died, several dogs on short chains and one dog that appeared to have an open wound on its neck.

At the time the business was searched, law enforcement officers seized 14 dogs that were impounded at the Dumb Friends League in Denver, according to court documents filed in the case.

Alpine Adventures voluntarily surrendered five of the dogs to the Humane Society because it has a better adoption rate, according to reporting in the Leadville Herald.

After a hearing in late February on the dogs’ impoundment, Scott ordered the remaining nine dogs be returned to Alpine Adventures Dogsledding on the condition that the dogs continue to receive medication or vet exams as required, the court documents state. Scott reportedly stated during the hearing that releasing the dogs from impound was a “hard decision.”

During Premier’s arraignment Tuesday, Scott scheduled a five-day trial to be held starting Sept. 23.

Deputy District Attorney Aven Rose said during the hearing that there is a large amount of discovery in the case, so she expects it could take at least two or three days to present the evidence during the trial.

Priem’s defense attorney, Jesse Wiens, said toward the end of the hearing that while “there are two very sets of views” in the case, the defense and prosecution nonetheless have continued to attempt to reach a “creative resolution” that would avoid a trial.

Published Thursday, April 4, 2024 – Summit Daily

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The Lake County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) has charged Loren Priem, the owner of Alpine Adventures Dogsledding, with cruelty towards animals.

The charge comes after a search of the Alpine Adventures property and investigation into the health and treatment of their sled dogs. LCSO received a tip from an anonymous employee that included photo and video evidence of their claims. This was enough for LCSO to obtain a search warrant and they conducted the search on Jan. 25, assisted by the Colorado Humane Society (CHS) and representatives from the Pet Animal Care and Facilities Act (PACFA) program.

Sheriff’s Deputy Danielle Lomascolo led the investigation. She said that the anonymous source provided a comprehensive report that visually confirmed evidence of animal cruelty.

The investigative team included veterinarians that evaluated the health and living conditions of the dogs. The veterinarians reported to Lomascolo that some of the dogs received low body condition scores. Lomascolo said her team took into account that the sled dogs are more athletic and generally leaner than most dogs and might score lower despite being healthy. However, she said that the dogs were not deemed unhealthy based on body score alone.

Lomascolo said that several dogs were also found to have poor dental health and some showed evidence of being overworked such as swollen legs. She said that the retired dogs they found were tied to poles and did not have lives outside of that. Additionally, Sheriff Heath Speckman said that some dogs had bloody paws and one had an untreated tumor. In total, 14 dogs were seized by LCSO and taken into the care of CHS, five of which were surrendered voluntarily by Alpine Adventures. LCSO gave warnings for 12 other dogs that were allowed to remain with Alpine Adventures. CHS is still finishing its evaluation.

Priem had 72 hours after the search to have his own evaluation of the dogs conducted. He said his private evaluator found all of the dogs to be in good health. He has a hearing scheduled for Monday, Feb. 12 to determine if he will be required to pay for the dogs’ care while they are in CHS’ custody.

Priem said he is aware of who the whistleblower is. He also said he does not see any malice on the part of the investigators but believes the seizure of the dogs to be unjustified. He said that he gave up the retired dogs willingly because CHS has a better adoption replacement rate.

Priem was not in town when the search was conducted but came as soon as he was notified and arrived in the middle of the search. Lomascolo said that although there was frustration, the employees that were on site during the search were cooperative with the investigators and that Priem has been cooperative since then.

Priem told the Herald that his employees were not given the search warrant right away but were instead given the probable cause papers and then given the search warrant two hours late and asked for the probable cause papers back. Lomascolo said that the Alpine Adventures employees had the search warrant the entire time and may have been confused about the documentation.

Lomasocolo said the investigation is mostly closed on her end and she is just waiting on final evaluations from CHS. Cruelty towards animals is a criminal charge. Whether the case will be taken to court has not yet been decided. If the charge is not contested or Priem is found guilty, Alpine Adventures’ operating licenses could be affected, a decision that will be up to PACFA.

Published Wednesday, February 7, 2024 – Leadville Herald

Chenil La Poursuite – Winter 2022

Footage Credit: Shay The Activist

October 2022 Coverage

October 26 – MAPAQ seizes 19 sled dogs at the La Poursuite kennel! (source)

Inspectors from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPAQ) seized 19 dogs at the La Poursuite kennel in Lévis on Wednesday morning. The dog sledding company has been targeted for a few days by allegations of animal abuse on social networks.

Four MAPAQ inspectorsthoroughly inspected the kennel site. The approximately 200 dogs were observed one by one. After several hours of inspection, ministry employees placed 19 animals in a truck before leaving the scene.

Yohan Dallaire Boily, spokesman for the Ministry, indicates that the animals have been transported to a new place of custody. They will be examined by veterinarians to receive the appropriate care.

Mr. Boily points out that the seizure is part of a larger legal process, including potential tickets and hefty fines.

“The seizure is not the last intervention of the MAPAQ.” – A quote from Yohan Dallaire Boily, MAPAQ spokesperson.

Humane Society International (HSI) Canada welcomes the intervention of the authorities in the file of the kennel La Poursuite. However, she would have liked more animals to be seized, given the conditions in which the pack lives.

“We are very worried that so many animals have been left on the scene given the seriousness of the situation exposed by the media,” reacts Amélie Martel, campaign manager for the HSI.

October 17 – 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒆𝒓 𝒆𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒐𝒚𝒆𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒂 𝑳𝒆́𝒗𝒊𝒔 𝒌𝒆𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒍 𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒃𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒅𝒐𝒈𝒔!

𝐃𝐨𝐠𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐬, 𝐚𝐧 𝐮𝐧𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡𝐲 𝐞𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭, 𝐧𝐨𝐧-𝐞𝐱𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐯𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰-𝐮𝐩𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫… The story of former employees and members of the entourage of a Lévis kennel is chilling.

“We were told that a wounded or too sick dog was not made for this life. 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑙𝑒𝑡 ℎ𝑖𝑚 𝑑𝑖𝑒 𝑜𝑟 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑜𝑡 ℎ𝑖𝑚 𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑖𝑠 𝑛𝑜 𝑞𝑢𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑝𝑎𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎 𝑣𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑛,” says a former employee who worked for a few years at Chenil La Poursuite and who wanted to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals.

Permanently attached to a “4 or 5 foot chain”, poorly maintained, and in the absence of stimulation during the off-season, some of the 𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑙𝑦 200 𝑑𝑜𝑔𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑎𝑔𝑔𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑡𝑜𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑𝑠 𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑠, explain our sources.

“Recently, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐜𝐮𝐭 𝐚 𝐝𝐨𝐠’𝐬 𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐥 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐥 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐛𝐲 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐡 𝐧𝐞𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐛𝐨𝐫,” says another source, stressing that it has happened on several occasions that 𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑜𝑦𝑒𝑒𝑠 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑒 ℎ𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛𝑑 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑝𝑖𝑐𝑘 𝑢𝑝 𝑐𝑜𝑟𝑝𝑠𝑒𝑠.

Our informants also denounce the euthanasia of puppies of unwanted new litters using a rifle or a mallet… when these are not problems related to inbreeding.

These allegations come just a few months after the closure of the company Expédition Mi-Loup, on the island of Orleans, due to a similar scandal. The three owners of the organization have recently been accused of animal cruelty.

After noting about the situation of the Kennel La Poursuit, Shay Lee, an activist who was involved in the fall of the Mi-Loup Expedition, went to Lévis to have a clear heart.

Passing herself as a foster home, she was able to recover about thirty dogs whose kennel no longer wanted, which she then treated and sent to shelters. But what she saw there completely confused her.

“𝐈𝐭 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐬𝐰𝐚𝐦𝐩, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐦𝐮𝐝 𝐦𝐢𝐱𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐛𝐥𝐮𝐞-𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐥𝐠𝐚𝐞 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐠’𝐬 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐲𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐢𝐫𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐫𝐚𝐰 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐧𝐬,” says the one who, like many of our sources, filed a complaint with the Ministère de l’Agriculture, des Pêcheries et de l’Alimentation du Québec (MAPAQ).

𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐝𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐬𝐨 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐬, 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐬 𝐨𝐫 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐯𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐮𝐬, 𝐚𝐬 𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐯𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐋𝐞 𝐉𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐥.

The Journal visited the site of the sled dog ride company on Sunday to question the main owner of the place, Laurent Caouette, about the allegations he is targeted.

At he first refused to comment on the situation, wishing to wait for the MAPAQ visit in the coming days, he finally denied the facts he is accused of.

Nearly 500 people sent an email to various provincial and municipal elected officials encouraging them to investigate the place urgently.

Published Monday, October 17, 2022 – Le Journal de Quebec

Freedom of Information Act Results from Years of Previous MAPAQ Investigations

Expedition Mi-Loup – Spring 2024

Mi-Loup Footage Credit: Shay The Activist

Successfully Shut Down in Spring of 2022.
Three Mushers Arrested in September of 2022.

Court Case Active.

Spring 2024 Court Coverage

The trial targeting the owners and a former employee of Expedition Mi-Loup, a company that offers dog sled rides, opened Monday at the Quebec courthouse. The testimony of a former employee suggests that several dogs were killed by hanging. The owners of the Saint-Jean-de-l’Île-d’Orléans business, Élizabeth Leclerc and Antoine Simard, face charges of intentionally killing, injuring, maiming or poisoning animals. They also allegedly failed to provide proper food, water, shelter and care to an animal. Édouard Parent, a former employee, faces the same accusations. (source) Antoine Simard, Élisabeth Leclerc and Edouard Parent are accused of having killed without excuse, of having caused unnecessary suffering and of having failed to provide water and food to more than a hundred dogs, for almost 15 years. (source)

Testimony came from Louis-Donald Gaudet, an employee who worked for the company from 2007 to 2009. Emotional, he spoke of a particularly trying day in 2008 when he recounted having participated, with the owner Antoine Simard and other employees, in the hanging of around ten dogs. According to his testimony, these were dogs that were too old or unfit to pull sleds. Some would have been too laid back to be given up for adoption. Louis-Donald Gaudet claims that the dogs were allegedly thrown from the second floor of a barn with a noose around their necks. Those who were struggling would have been pulled by the legs by the owner Antoine Simard. According to the witness, this way of doing things would have allowed the owners to use a service which allowed them to move the carcasses of the dogs. To benefit from this service, the animals must have died of natural causes , have traces of violence or have been slaughtered. (source)

A second employee was also called to the witness box as part of this first day of hearing. Hans Péladeau-Bissegger was a dog sledding guide for Expédition Mi-Loup in 2010 and 2011. The employee described arriving at work one morning to find that a female dog had given birth to five puppies. The man said he was delighted and went on an expedition with a group. He told the court that when he returned, the puppies were no longer where they had been seen in the morning. Hans Péladeau-Bisseger said he found them lifeless in a bucket in Édouard Parent’s workshop. According to him, a PVC pipe had been installed to connect the bucket to the exhaust pipe of a snowmobile. They had been gassed, the former employee told the court. (source)

“Due to the absence of effective measures to [regulate] births, the puppies at Mi-Loup were almost systematically killed,” raises the prosecutor. “Dogs that were too old and less efficient were also killed by “firearms, freezing, hanging and using a homemade gas chamber.” (source)

February 2022 Coverage

XP Miloup on the Island of Orleans in the St. Lawrence River, near Quebec City, is one of the 18 sled dog operations Metivier documented in Quebec. His drone footage from February 2021 shows 70 sled dog circles and houses. W5 looked at historic satellite imagery and found dozens of plainly visible chain circles going back to at least 2013.

This Quebec kennel was already on the radar of animal activists a year earlier when, operating as Expeditions Mi Loup, there was talk of a homemade gas chamber on the property, reportedly used to euthanize sled dogs.

“I had to find out if this was true, that this guy had built this gas chamber and was gassing puppies,” Levitt told W5. She says the employee that tipped her off had reported it to the Quebec Society for the Protection of Animals and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, but claims they never investigated.

Levitt took matters into her own hands and, in February 2020, she sneaked onto the property at Expeditions Mi Loup to investigate herself, and came back with pictures of a plastic storage bin connected to a canister of argon welding gas allegedly used to kill dogs.

Levitt also found several dead puppies and an adult dog in a freezer.

Contacted by W5, XP Miloup claimed that it is under new ownership and would not speak to thee allegations. Its new owner, Tanya Fournier Veilleux wouldn’t return our repeated calls, but wrote in an e-mail: “I don’t want to be part of your story if it is to speak about the last owners and absolutely false allegations.”

During another call to XP Miloup, another individual, who identified herself as Elisabeth answered and claimed she was one of three owners of XP Miloup. After we identified ourselves, W5 asked if the gassing of dogs to euthanize them was still going on and was told, “no”. When we inquired about when the practice had stopped, the phone was hung up.

W5 reviewed incorporation documents which list Tanya Fournier Veilleux, as vice-president, an Elisabeth Leclerc, as secretary, and Antoine Simard, president, all current administrators of the company.

Published Saturday, February 5, 2022 – W5 Investigative News

September 2022 Arrest Coverage

Quebec provincial police say three people are facing animal cruelty charges in Quebec City in connection with the alleged discovery adult dogs and puppies gassed, frozen to death in freezers, and hanging at a sled dog company.

The Sûreté du Québec (SQ) said Antoine Simard, 41, Elisabeth Leclerc, 39, and 58-year-old Édouard Parent were charged with animal cruelty and neglect charges in the Quebec City courthouse on Thursday after being arrested the day prior.

The investigation into the Expedition Mi-Loup sled dog company in Saint-Jean-de-l’Île-d’Orléans, Que. began in April after a tip about adult huskies and puppies that were found frozen to death in freezers. Police allege the offences happened between 2008 and 2020.

Shay Lee, an animal rights activist, said she was one of those who tipped off authorities after speaking to employees at the business. “Witnessing the dog and puppies in the freezer was truly horrifying, but it was necessary for me to see to be able to expose this injustice,” said Lee, who took pictures and video she said was captured on the company’s property as the rescue. “There are so many of these operations across Canada. This is not just one bad dog sled kennel. Dogs are being exploited and commodified for human entertainment across Canada, and we need to challenge the systems in place to dismantle this industry.”

Anne Shaughnessy was with Lee and said she was shocked to discover how the animals were being euthanized: “Seeing the rudimentary contraption the owners made to gas puppies was shocking,” she said. “Opening a large freezer and finding young and older dogs frozen to death hit me hard. Learning that dogs at Mi-loup were shot, drowned, gassed and hanged shook me to my core.”

The allegations have not been tested in court. The accused are expected to appear in court on Nov. 16.

Lee and a team went to the kennel after the raid and said she collected around 100 dogs. She said the team was able to find homes for all of the animals.
Published Monday, September 12, 2022 – CTV Montreal

Every industry sled dog deserves this type of happily ever after:

Windrift Adventures – Spring 2024

Successfully Shut Down in Fall of 2021

Facility Loses Defamation Case in Spring of 2024

Dogs Surrendered to the Crown in Spring of 2024

2024 Court Proceedings

FEBRUARY 2024 – The moving parties sought a stay because otherwise the animals would be forfeited by reason of their failure to pay the statement of account. We note that the animals have since been forfeited to the Crown as a result of the moving parties’ failure to pay an earlier account (account for care costs of the dogs for the period of January 2022 to December 2022, in the amount of $1,524,640 [source]). (source)

2022 Court Proceedings

DECEMBER 2022 – In a blow to the cruel dog sledding industry, Windrift Adventures has lost an appeal before the Divisional Court in Ontario. The dog sledding business was applying for judicial review after Animal Welfare Services (AWS), the provincial animal law enforcement agency, seized over 200 dogs from the tourist attraction in Moonstone, Ontario after the facility failed to address compliance orders requiring them to provide adequate care and shelter to the animals.

In 2018, video footage from Windrift revealed dogs kept on short chains with inadequate housing. In February 2021, AWS conducted several inspections and issued compliance orders, including lengthening the tethers that restrained the dogs and remediating issues with poorly maintained doghouses. In September 2021, authorities conducted follow-up inspections of Windrift’s properties to determine compliance with the compliance orders. They determined that Windrift was not in compliance and removed the dogs.

Windrift challenged the seizure at the Animal Care Review Board (ACRB). In this case, the court found that ACRB acted reasonably and that the dog sledding operation did not meet the standards required under the compliance orders.

The court also found that “it [was] obvious the dogs were in distress when they were seized, [and] obvious that they would have been returned to a situation of distress…” if returned to Windrift Adventures. The application for judicial review was dismissed, with costs awarded to the government, requiring Windrift to pay $37,500. Windrift may now also be on the hook for a further $505,760 to reimburse the government for the cost of caring for the seized dogs.

In most of Canada, the dog sledding industry is unregulated and unmonitored. It’s common for sled dogs to be kept in poor conditions that are hidden from tourists and visitors. When dogs aren’t pulling sleds, many of them spend the vast majority of their lives chained to makeshift doghouses made from shoddy barrels or crates that barely shelter them from the elements. Dogs are highly social pack animals, but in the dog sledding industry, dogs are denied the ability to play and socialize and are forced to live on short chains. Many tourists don’t realize that when sled dogs aren’t pulling sleighs, they are forced to eat, sleep and defecate all in the same small space, and endure extreme boredom and both mental and physical suffering.

Much of the public is unaware of the horrific cruelty in Canada’s dog sledding industry, but a 2022 exposé by CTV’s investigative affairs program W5, the Sled Dogs documentary, and high-profile news coverage of the dog sledding industry are helping push these issues into the mainstream.

Animal Justice has been advocating for stronger laws to protect sled dogs for years. Recently, as a part of Ontario’s review of the standards of care for outdoor dogs, we called on the province to enact a ban on the use of sled dogs at commercial operations. We also rallied supporters to express their support for more robust protection of dogs in the province, including a ban on continuous tethering, stronger outdoor shelter requirements, and substantial weather protection requirements.

Please add your support by telling Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Solicitor General Michael Kerzner that dogs deserve better than a life of misery on the end of a chain!

AUGUST 2022 – Both the removal and the decision to keep the dogs in care were appealed to the Animal Care Review Board (Board). In Pryde, Spottiswood and Pierce v. Chief Animal Welfare Inspector, it was found, amongst other things, that ordering the return of all but eleven puppies to the appellants would be returning them to a situation of distress such that they could only be returned after the appellants complied with my order regarding the dogs’ tethers and the dog houses.

The respondent then issued a Statement of Account dated January 18, 2022 to the appellants in the amount of $1,114,720.27 (Statement of Account) in relation to approximately 111 dogs of various breeds, age, and sex removed from the Severn location, and approximately 118 dogs of various breeds, age, and sex removed from the Moonstone location.

On January 24, 2022, the appellants filed an appeal of the Statement of Account to the Board. A hearing in this matter was commenced before the Board on February 7, 2022 and concluded on April 8, 2022.

The moving parties [Windrift] exercised the right of appeal to the Board in relation to the above orders and then commenced two additional applications for judicial review of those orders. The first application is focused on the compliance orders. The second application is focused on the removal and care orders.

The application for judicial review underlying the motion before the court is the third application for judicial review arising from this course of events. This application for judicial review challenges the costs of care of the sled dogs. In January 2022, the respondent issued an account to the moving parties in the amount of roughly $1.1 million in relation to the costs of care of over 100 sled dogs that had been removed and placed in care. The moving parties exercised the right of appeal of that account to the Board, which gave rise to the Decision now challenged in the third application for judicial review. The Decision was made after a lengthy hearing, including evidence from witnesses, both lay and expert.

As set out in the reasons for decision, the Vice-Chair considered the relevant statutory regime and more specifically s. 35 of the Provincial Animal Welfare Services Act 2019, S.O. 2019, c.30. Under that section, an owner or custodian is presumptively liable for certain costs when an animal is taken into care.

After lengthy reasons for decision, the Vice-Chair concluded that the amount that should be paid be reduced to $505,760. That amount is for a defined period of time. It is expected that additional accounts will be rendered for later periods of time because these animals remain in care.

The stay to pay the aforementioned amount will expire on the 10^th day after the release of the Divisional Court’s decision on the two applications for judicial review that are scheduled to be heard on October 24, 2022 (Court File Nos. 297/21 and 284/22).

A note from the court: “With respect to the above terms, I think that it is important that the moving parties [Windrift] take a very serious approach to what I see as a real risk of a substantial financial obligation if they are unsuccessful in their litigation. I am not satisfied that they can leave that consideration until the disposition of the first two applications for judicial review because I do not know how long that will take. I have therefore imposed the above terms. While we do not know today what amount will be required to be paid, we know it may be substantial and the effect of the requested stay is that the costs of care continue to accumulate every day.”

Backstory

Tourist video of neglected, injured, and suffering sled dogs out of Moonstone/Orillia, Ontario went viral in February 2018. Footage of neurotic, chained, and suffering sled dogs at the same location was first released at the 2016 Whistler Film Festival – earning an award for Best Female Director and Best Documentary. The Sled Dogs documentary also showed a dog at this location freezing to death overnight; being found frozen solid outside of its doghouse, still chained, the next morning.

The Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (OSPCA) was notified of the conditions these dogs are forced to live in when the film was created. Renewed outcry for them to act occurred when the film was first released in late 2016. In January of 2018, nearly half a million people from all over the world spoke out on the Care2 petition site, asking for these dogs to be saved and the operation (Windrift Adventures) to be shut down.

The province’s Animal Welfare Services finally seized all 239 dogs from the two properties north of Barrie in late September 2021. They say Windrift Adventures did not comply with orders to provide longer tethers and better insulation for their doghouses.

November 2021 Coverage:

In a decision in June, the Animal Care Review Board, which deals with disputes and appeals in animal welfare cases, found all the dogs at Windrift to be in distress. It found that outdoor doghouses, where the canines live year-round, weren’t insulated properly and the dogs’ tethers were too short. An appeal by Windrift was dismissed.

The board ordered Windrift to comply with orders to improve the dogs’ living conditions by September.

On Sept. 23, the province’s Animal Welfare Services team swooped in on two Windrift properties for an inspection and found it had not made the changes required. The team, flanked by Ontario Provincial Police officers, seized 239 dogs, including puppies, alleging all were in distress.

Two dogs have since died of a bacterial infection, according to documents and testimony before the Animal Care Review Board. The family running Windrift said Animal Welfare Services recently told them a third dog died, but not from the same infection. Spottiswood said that dog was euthanized after a series of health issues, including liver cancer, surfaced. Spottiswood also said she was told two more canines were seriously ill with the bacterial infection and an unspecified number of other dogs had symptoms of the illness.

In an email shown at a board hearing in late October, a supervisor with Animal Welfare Services provided Spottiswood with some details on the two dogs, Mystique and Domino, that died from the infection. “At the time of their passing these dogs had streptococcus zooepidemicus, a bacterial infection which attacks the respiratory system in canine species and which is commonly found in equine species,” Sara Munoz wrote. “We have consulted with veterinarians including an infectious disease specialist, and they believe that this bacteria may have been present within your canine population prior to the removal of Sept. 23, 2021.

”The Windrift family also owns horses, which is the source of the infection, the government inspectors alleged.

Published Sunday, November 14, 2021 11:04AM EST – The Canadian Press

December 2021 Coverage

PRYDE, SPOTTISWOOD AND PIERCE vs CHIEF ANIMAL WELFARE INSPECTOR, 2021 ONACRB 25

EXCERPTS FROM FULL CASE LINKED HERE: Ontario Animal Care Review Board (bolding and italics done by Humane Mushing)

On February 25, 2021, Animal Welfare Services (“AWS”) served several orders (the “Compliance Orders”) on the appellants pursuant to s. 30(1) of the Provincial Animal Welfare Services Act, 2019 (the “Act”).[1] The Compliance Orders were issued following inspections conducted at the Moonstone and Severn properties on February 18 and 19, 2021. The Compliance Orders related to the length of the dogs’ tethers and the condition and size of the dog houses.

The appellants appealed these orders to the Animal Care Review Board (the “Board”). On June 23, 2021, the Board released a Decision and Order [2] confirming the Compliance Orders in relation to the dogs, though the Board varied the Compliance Order relating to the size of the dog houses. The deadline to comply with the Compliance Orders was also amended to September 1, 2021.

Following an inspection at both properties on September 23, 2021, the Chief Animal Welfare Inspector (the “respondent”) removed all of the dogs from both the Moonstone and the Severn properties pursuant to s. 31(1) of the Act. Over 200 dogs were removed in total. The respondent subsequently decided to keep all of the dogs in its care pursuant to s.31(6) of the Act.

Distress of the Dogs on September 23, 2021:[14] Section 1(1) of the Act defines “distress” as meaning the state of being:(i) In need of proper care, water, food, or shelter;(ii) Injured, sick, in pain or suffering; or(iii) Abused or subject to undue physical or psychological hardship, privation, or neglect.[15]

For the reasons that follow, I find that on September 23, 2021:(i) The tethered dogs at the Moonstone and Severn properties were in distress as they did not have a tether length of three metres;(ii) Regarding the dogs at the Severn property:(a) The four untethered puppies housed in the puppy pen were not in distress; and(b) The remaining untethered adult dogs were in distress as their dog houses were not insulated;(iii) Regarding the dogs at the Moonstone property:(a) The untethered puppies living in a pen together were in distress;(b) The remaining untethered dogs were in distress as their dog houses were not insulated;[19]

In her June 23, 2021 Decision and Order, Vice Chair Victor found, among other things, that:(i) The failure to provide a three metre tether as well as the dog houses being uninsulated and made of wood did not meet the requirements of s. 4 of the Regulation;[5](ii) The dog houses that did not allow the dog to stand up, turn around, and lay down comfortably were not adequate in size for the purposes of s. 4(3) of the Regulation;[6](iii) The dog houses that had wet bedding failed to provide an adequate and appropriate resting and sleeping area as required by s. 3(5) of the Regulation;[7](iv) The dog houses that had holes in their walls were neither weatherproof nor in a good state of repair as required by s. 3(7)(a) and s. 4(2) of the Regulation;[8] and(v) The dog houses that had exposed nails, broken roofs, or floors were neither structurally sound as set out in s. 4(1) nor in a good state of repair as required by s. 3(7)(a) of the Regulation.[9][33]

I find Vice Chair Victor’s June 23, 2021 Decision and Order persuasive and agree with her that if the standards of care as set out in the Regulation are not met, then such care is not proper for the purposes of the Act and, as a result, such improper care amounts to distress. On that basis, I find that the dogs’ tether lengths must be three metres in length for the tethered dogs to not be in distress. As Ms. Spottiswood confirmed that none of the tethers were three metres in length on September 23, 2021 at either property, I find that the dogs that were tethered at both the Moonstone and the Severn properties were in distress on September 23, 2021 as the standards of care required by the Regulation were not being met.[38]

Nevertheless, there is no evidence before me that any of the dog houses on the Severn property were insulated on September 23, 2021 except for one structure in a puppy pen. The appellants submitted that given the warm weather on the date of the inspection, the animals were not in distress due to lack of insulation. The Regulation, however, does not state that the requirement for insulation is only required during certain periods of the year. Rather, it provides a blanket requirement that shelters are insulated without any temporal qualification. I also do not agree with the appellants that the dog houses were insulated simply as a result of their plywood construction. I agree with Vice Chair Victor and find that uninsulated wood housing does not comply with the intention of the Regulation which requires outdoor dogs to have an enclosure that is insulated. Given that I have found that “proper care” in the definition of distress in the Act cannot include a shelter that falls below the minimum standard of care set out in the Regulation, which includes the requirement to be insulated, I find that the untethered adult dogs at the Severn property were in distress on September 23, 2021.

Blackcomb Dogsled – February 2021

Video taken by animal advocates and provided to the Vancouver Humane Society (VHS) allegedly shows sled dogs being held in cages and on chains in a barren yard at a kennel operated by Blackcomb Dogsled, a Whistler-based sled dog tour company.
The dogs in the video, seen above, are showing stereotypic behaviour, which is a purposeless repetitive action indicating psychological suffering. The dogs can be seen pacing back and forth in cages and repeatedly running in circles around the posts they are chained to.
“No dog should have to live like this,” said VHS projects and communications director Peter Fricker. “The dogs in the video are being denied the freedom to engage in normal behaviours, including socializing with other dogs or with human companions.”
VHS is launching a campaign calling on the B.C. government to update the provincial Sled Dog Standards of Care Regulation to conform to the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association’s Code of Practice for Canadian Kennel Operations, which states that: “Tethering of dogs (i.e., chains or ropes used to tie the dog to an immoveable object such as a stake or building) is not allowable as a method of confining a dog to a primary enclosure, nor as the only means of containment.”
The Kennel Code also requires that: “Dogs are housed in such a way as to allow them to display natural behaviours, to socialize with or without other species of animals and humans, as appropriate, and to protect public safety.”
Fricker said the conditions shown in the video are not uncommon in sled dog operations across Canada and are not illegal. “These conditions are deplorable, yet there is nothing in the law to protect sled dogs from being treated this way.” He said VHS is urging the public to boycott industrial sled dog tours.
B.C.’s Sled Dog Standards of Care Regulation, introduced after the infamous 2010 killing of 56 sled dogs in Whistler, still allows dogs to be tethered for up to 23 hours a day. The standards also allow sled dog tour companies in B.C. to shoot surplus sled dogs, provided the operator has “made reasonable efforts to rehome the sled dog, but those efforts have been unsuccessful” and the operator follows certain guidelines.

Doping and Performance-Enhancing Drugs

2020 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race

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Four-time Iditarod champion Lance Mackey is augmenting his dog food with CBD, along with other more standard things like psyllium and nutritional supplements.

It helps keep the dogs going during the 1,000-mile race, he said.

“Watch here in about an hour, I’ll come here and feed them and they’ll stand up and start screaming,” Mackey said Tuesday afternoon in Nikolai. “Their recovery time is impressive.”

CBD, short for cannabidiol, is a non-psychoactive chemical compound derived from the cannabis plant. It can be produced from the hemp plant and is federally legal. In recent years, CBD supplements have been increasingly used for humans and pets for relaxation and pain relief.

Mackey said he started using CBD right before the 2019 Iditarod. However, race officials have not endorsed such use.

Mackey said the Iditarod’s head veterinarian, Stuart Nelson, called him and respectfully asked that he not give his dogs CBD. Mackey said he respectfully declined to follow that request.

Anchorage Daily News Coverage

2017 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race

In October 2017, officials for the Iditarod Sled Dog Race confirmed that, during the 2017 race, several dogs tested positive for a “prohibited substance,” presumably used to enhance their performance. News outlets later reported that the team of dogs tested positive – specifically – for tramadol: a Class IV opioid used to manage severe pain. Dogs in the Iditarod are forced to pull sleds nearly 1,000 miles through the frozen Alaskan wilderness, and often sustain paw injuries, strained muscles, stress fractures, stomach ulcers, damaged lungs, and other injuries – and some die. It’s no surprise that someone used the prohibited drug to mask their pain and force them to keep running.

Iditarod officials later revealed that the musher whose dogs tested positive for opioids was four-time champion, Dallas Seavey. Dallas has won a total of $455,852.88 while running the Iditarod.

In response to the revelations of drugging, the Iditarod Trail Committee’s Board of Directors revised its regulations to stipulate that mushers will be “strictly liable” for positive drug tests. However, the regulations apply only from the point of the pre-race veterinary exam until six hours after the dogs cross the finish line. Mushers can still use topical corticosteroid creams throughout the race on dogs’ paws.

According to Craig Medred News:

Five reliable sources with connections to either the community of Iditarod veterinarians or the Iditarod board of directors have told craigmedred.news that his dogs were not the first Iditarod dogs to be found with prohibited drugs in their urine.
Two of those sources said past incidents were handled quietly, behind closed doors by the Iditarod’s executive committee, and that in a couple of cases mushers were told to take some time off from The Last Great Race. The Iditarod has officially refused to comment on past doping incidents or actions that might have been taken related to doping.
The latest case remained secret for months after Dallas’s dogs tested positive in March 2017. It only came to light in October when the Iditarod announced it was adding a “strict liability standard” to its doping rule as the norm in other sports.

The International Federation of Sleddog Sports (IFSS) made the following statement:

The International Federation of Sleddog Sports, the official international organization for sleddog sport; member of the Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF), hereby states that Iditarod Trail Committee (ITC) is not affiliated with IFSS.
IFSS works close with the World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) and International Olympic Committee (IOC), and any IFSS accredited race has to follow the international rules concerning doping, including the publication of any positive testing results as it is the case for all other sports in the world.
It is unfortunate for the world of mushing that the ITC chose to follow an anti-doping protocol that it cannot enforce.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals contacted the Iditarod Trail Committee and urged it to strip all mushers found to have drugged dogs of their titles and awards.

New York Times Coverage