Up To $5,000 Reward Offered in Case of 25 Dogs Found Dead at Mushers’ Kennel

For Immediate Release:
April 21, 2026

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

Susitna North, Alaska –

PETA is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction on cruelty-to-animals charges of the person(s) responsible for the suffering and deaths of 25 dogs found at a dog-mushing kennel reportedly called Walker’s Wild Ride in the Matanuska-Susitna (Mat-Su) Borough on April 15, following months of local complaints about the dogs’ well-being and the apparent failure by local authorities to ensure the dogs were receiving care. According to reports, all but one dog died—apparently from neglect, likely starvation, with some found frozen in place and still chained.

Anyone with information related to this case should contact the Alaska State Troopers at 907-745-2131.

*Dogs in Alaska’s dog-sledding industry are often kept chained outside in the bitter cold, akin to an archaic outdoor prison in the 1600s, a practice exposed by a* *PETA undercover investigation. (Image for illustrative purposes only) Credit: PETA*

“These dogs were surely terrified and starving as they suffered long, slow deaths, trapped on chains in the freezing cold,” says PETA Senior Vice President Daphna Nachminovitch. “PETA is urging anyone who might know something about this case to come forward immediately, and for everyone horrified by these dogs’ deaths to never use dogs for sled rides or support deadly sled races.”

PETA’s exposé of well-known Iditarod mushers’ facilities documented that, when not being forced to run, dogs are chained to dilapidated boxes or barrels in below-freezing temperatures. Just like the dogs who share our homes, they suffer immensely when they have only a few square feet of dirt or ice on which to eat, sleep, exercise, and relieve themselves.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kitsfor people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.