Victory! Snowy River Equipment Sales Cuts Ties with Iditarod Mushers After PETA Appeal

For Immediate Release:
January 26, 2026

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

Cle Elum, Wash. –

After hearing from PETA that more than 150 dogs have died in the Iditarod since its inception, locally-based construction machinery retailer Snowy River Equipment Sales, a now-former sponsor of Seeing Double Sled Dog Racing—a kennel owned by Iditarod mushers Anna and Kristy Berington—has committed to not supporting the dog-sledding industry in the future. PETA is sending the company delicious, paw-shaped vegan chocolates in thanks.

Iditarod facts with chained dog left alone in snow by broken box and old equipment — *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. Credit: PETA*

“Dogs used in the Iditarod are just like the companions who share our homes, but they’re forced to run until their exhausted bodies give out or they die after inhaling their own vomit,” says PETA President Tracy Reiman. “PETA is celebrating this compassionate move by Snowy River Equipment Sales and urges other dog sledding sponsors to reconsider their ties to this deadly industry.”

Many dogs forced to race in the Iditarod experience stomach ulcers and airway dysfunction, and one study found that more than 80% of dogs examined after finishing the race had sustained persistent lung damage. A new white paper compiled by PETA details the grave risks to dogs’ health posed by long-distance racing—including that dogs are forced to run even when they’re injured or ill. During last year’s Iditarod, a dog in a late stage of pregnancy collapsed and died, and more than 180 dogs—including five used by Anna Berington—were pulled off the trail due to exhaustion, illness, injury, or other causes, forcing the remaining ones to work even harder.

Snowy River Equipment Sales joins a growing list of businesses that have cut ties with the dog-sledding industry, including Costco, Maxwell House, Nestlé, Pizza Hut, Safeway, State Farm, and Wells Fargo.

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