The Most Brutal Sled Dog Race in the World. //Help save Iditarod dogs from brutality - WRITE// TN - After 12 yrs Sleddog Rescue Closed due to Frivolous Lawsuit..

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PLEASE FORWARD TO YOUR US CONTACTS AND ASK THEM TO CIRCULATE THIS WIDELY - THANK YOU - Zelda Penzel, Zelda Thursday, February 14, 2008 12:21 AM ALERT: "The Most Brutal Sled Dog Race in the World." //Help save Iditarod dogs from brutality - WRITE// TN - After 12 yrs Sleddog

Rescue Closed due to Frivolous Lawsuit.. ALERT: "THE YUKON QUEST": The Most Hideous Sled Dog Race in the World. Help save IDITAROD dogs from brutality - WRITE!! TN - After 12 yrs Sleddog Rescue Closed due to Frivolous Lawsuit.. ............................................................................................................................. "The Most Hideous Sled Dog Race in the World." Check out the sponsors of the Quest, and if you do

business with any of them or own their stock, take appropriate action. Sponsors are just following what they believe will be a trail to some sort of gain. Let them know they've taken the wrong path. Animal Person <maryWed, February 13, 2008 12:43 am Animal Person On the Yukon Quest Posted: 12 Feb 2008 08:54 AM CST Photo by Ian Stewart of the Yukon News In keeping with this week's inadvertent twisted-things-we-do-to-dogs theme, I give you the Yukon Quest, which is sort of the less-popular stepsister of the Iditarod, but no less horrible for the dogs. It is in fact called "The Toughest Sled Dog Race in the World." As you may know, both the Quest and the Iditarod are grueling races of over 1,000 miles. The competitors are called "mushers." The Quest has 50 mushers, each with a team of 14 dogs, and the first 15 finishers share a $200,000 purse. The Yukon Department of Tourism and Culture markets the event, and children are taught about it in the classroom, sometimes by teachers who are on the board of the Quest! There's even a Junior Yukon Quest, to make sure the youngins are completely desensitized to the reality of what they're doing. I'll say this once: The dogs love to run. And I'll say this once: To make them run when you want them to run, in treacherous conditions in subzero weather (it was -40 F the last time I checked the weather on the trail, and winds can reach 100 miles per hour on mountain summits), for over a thousand miles in 10-16 days (while you watch and "mush" from your sled), is, in my mind, an extreme injustice regardless of whether one dog is injured or dies during the race, before it (during culling), or after it (from injuries and/or exhaustion). And by the way, musher Donald Smidt has already been withdrawn from the race "for failing to provide

the dog care expected of a Yukon Quest participant." If the Quest isn't considered cruel on the face of it, just how badly do you have to treat dogs in order to get withdrawn on the second day of the race? (Check out what you have to do to get disqualified from the Iditarod: It rhymes with "beat your dogs in front of young children.") As for culture, remember that it's sacred only because it was sacred yesterday. If your culture involved a 1,000 mile sled dog trek at one time, chances are in 2008 the only reason something like that is necessary is to promote tourism and

grab a glimmer of glory and a bit of cash if you're a musher. And as for what happened yesterday, the Quest commemorates the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush and river mail delivery routes. It started in 1998, the centennial of the 1898 Klondike Gold Rush. If you really need to commemorate it, I'm fairly sure there's a less ugly way. Last year I learned just how venomous mushing-defenders can be when criticized (I won't dignify them with any more exposure than that). Activist Mike Greico

learns that lesson over and over again, all year round. As does Terry Cumming, of Sleddogwatchdog.com, who works tirelessly to open the eyes of his neighbors and the rest of the world to the cruelty inherent in the Quest and the Iditarod. Judy Stone of the Animal Advocates Society in British Columbia has dedicated her life to chained, abused, ill and neglected dogs (including sled dogs) and TNR efforts. All three are vilified by people who apparently believe that the most valuable activities they should spend time on are the use of dogs for their own gain, and the ridicule of people who disagree with them. For those of us who will never visit or move to the Yukon or Alaska, thereby withholding our dollars (by default), at least we can spread the word. Check out the sponsors of the Quest, and if you do business with any of them or own their stock, take appropriate action. Sponsors are just following what they believe will be a trail to some sort of gain. Let them know they've taken the wrong path. ============================================================================ ALERT: Help save Iditarod dogs from brutality - WRITE Glickman37 Monday, February 11, 2008 10:27 PM Please send protest emails and forward this alert.From the Sled Dog Action Coalition, http://www.helpsleddogs.orgContact information, email blocks and sample letter are below.Please help the dogs by sending protest emails to organizations that support the Iditarod. These dogs are helpless victims of profoundly inhumane treatment and cannot speak for themselves. What happens to the dogs during the Iditarod includes death, paralysis, penile frostbite, bleeding ulcers, bloody diarrhea, lung damage, pneumonia, ruptured discs, viral diseases, broken bones, torn muscles and tendons, sprains, torn footpads and anemia.Dog beatings and whippings are common. During the 2007 Iditarod, eyewitnesses reported that musher Ramy Brooks kicked, punched and beat his dogs with a ski pole and a chain. Jim Welch says in his book Speed Mushing Manual,

"Nagging a dog team is cruel and ineffective...A training device such as a whip is not cruel at all but is effective.It is a common training device in use among dog mushers..."Iditarod dog kennels are puppy mills. Mushers breed large numbers of dogs and routinely kill unwanted ones, including puppies. Many dogs who are permanently disabled in the Iditarod, or who are unwanted for any reason, including those who have outlived their usefulness, are killed with a shot to the head, dragged, drowned or clubbed to death. "Dogs are clubbed with baseball bats and if they don't pull are dragged to death in harnesses....." wrote former Iditarod dog handler Mike Cranford in an article for Alaska's Bush Blade Newspaper.Most Iditarod dogs are forced to live at the end of a chain when they aren't hauling people around. It has been reported that dogs who don't make the main team are never taken off-chain. Chained dogs have been attacked by wolves, bears

and other animals. Old and arthritic dogs suffer terrible pain in the blistering cold.Most Internet service providers allow people to send up to 50 email addresses at a time. For your convenience, the addresses have been divided into groups of 50. Please email the first group first. Individual email addresses are given under the sample letter. The groups contain addresses for the Iditarod sponsors, promoters, and the sponsors of the 111 mushers who signed up for the 2008 Iditarod. Email blocks with semicolons are on http://www.helpsleddogs.org/sponsors.htm .GROUP ONE EMAIL ADDRESSES:Terri.Vogt, investorrelations, Chris.Coelen, fingber, rick.blake, KCarroll, corporate_communications, publicwebsite, investorrelations, kenneth.gibson, admissions, LaneRobertW, martha.aronson, mike.morgan, rwhatley, toyota_cares, Brooke.Fisher, IR, inquiries, help, rayboggs, smckane, jack.hayes, timothy.mitchell, llangsdorf, info, Greg, consumervacation, landerson, chavez.jeannie, dfoersom, sales, communications, contactus, margareth, info, tarmstrong, info, clare.sloane, gwen, ddziedzic, info, charles.king, media, WRAMCPublicAffairs, Shareholders.IM, walt.riker, frank_blake, Catherine.Gacad, FordHGMail, salesGROUP TWO EMAIL ADDRESSES:ptira, pcandino, concierge, vacations, david.curtis-brignell, tmattia, newsroom, wccinfo, crosbyk, rabello, jbenson, greenbergr, patrick.korten, brendan, larrysr, affeob, r.signer, resumes, rcs, Mayor, bcartiff, travel, travel, kate, jim, lisa, GregG, info, kathy, sales, corporate, pubaffmr, fhees, ircontact, mayor, kroger.investors, employment, investor.relations, investor_relations, ssolomon, manager, info, adsales, info, brugge, info, larsn, enterprise.comments, investor.relations, Tammy_SheaGROUP THREE EMAIL ADDRESSES:info, investor_relations, jschrank, peter.spiers, rdatz, info, agent, reception, Wendi, info, glainfo, POlson, info, info, beaversports, CustomerService, mail, mbphotos, info, h.weishaupt, contact, sales, jim, iand, info, sspilka, cech, kirtroger, info, jeffm, abbietaylor, reservations, info, sales, info, info, cblough, para, roger_millay, yum.investor, richard.edwards, jcondemi, feedback, kathy, dmcpherson, websales, communications, wegerer, nwdunnings, webmasterGROUP FOUR EMAIL ADDRESSES:royaldutchshell.shareholders, orders, AskMLP, charlene, msteele, Chancellor, webmaster, info, contact, contact, taplowf, blanchard, jsiegel, sledder1, mead, sales, jbilitz, ryoung, investor.relations, info, spikealaska, hsl, info, rodney.bolls, info, qiviut, traxak, sales, Macgellan, info, tchozes, sales, gsipe, customersupport, info, sales, anni, post, post, info, johnb, gene, reservations, alcansigns, dpowers, tours, readacross, DHS_Commissioner, investorrelations, webdeskSAMPLE LETTER (Please personalize the letter.):Dear Iditarod Supporter:Please end your organization's support of the Iditarod dog sled race. For the dogs, this event is a bottomless pit of suffering. What happens to the dogs during the Iditarod includes death, paralysis, penile frostbite, bleeding ulcers, bloody diarrhea, lung damage, pneumonia, ruptured discs, viral diseases, broken bones, torn muscles and tendons, sprains, torn footpads and anemia. At least 133 dogs have died in the race. No one knows how many dogs die after this tortuous ordeal or during training. For more facts about the Iditarod, visit the Sled Dog Action

Coalition website, http://www.helpsleddogs.org .On average, 53 percent of the dogs who start the race do not make it across the finish line. According to a report published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, of those who do finish, 81 percent have lung damage. A report published in the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine said that 61 percent of the dogs who complete the Iditarod have ulcers versus zero percent pre-race.Iditarod dog kennels are puppy mills. Mushers breed large numbers of dogs and routinely kill unwanted ones, including puppies. Many dogs who are permanently disabled in the Iditarod, or who are unwanted for any reason, including those who have outlived their usefulness, are killed with a shot to the head, dragged, drowned or clubbed to death. "Dogs are clubbed with baseball bats and if they don't pull are dragged to death in harnesses....." wrote former

Iditarod dog handler Mike Cranford in an article for Alaska's Bush Blade Newspaper.Dog beatings and whippings are common. During the 2007 Iditarod, eyewitnesses reported that musher Ramy Brooks kicked, punched and beat his dogs with a ski pole and a chain. Jim Welch says in his book Speed Mushing Manual, "Nagging a dog team is cruel and ineffective...A training device such as a whip is not cruel at all but is effective.It is a common training device in use among dog mushers..."Jon Saraceno wrote in his March 3, 2000 column in USA Today, "He [Colonel Tom Classen] confirmed dog beatings and far worse. Like starving dogs to maintain their most advantageous racing weight. Skinning them to make mittens. Or dragging them to their death."During the race, veterinarians do not give the dogs physical exams at every checkpoint. Mushers speed through many checkpoints, so the dogs get the briefest visual checks, if that. Instead of pulling sick

dogs from the race, veterinarians frequently give them massive doses of antibiotics to keep them running. Most Iditarod dogs are forced to live at the end of a chain when they aren't hauling people around. It has been reported that dogs who don't make the main team are never taken off-chain. Chained dogs have been attacked by wolves, bears and other animals. Old and arthritic dogs suffer terrible pain in the blistering cold.Please end your organization's association with this horrific race.Sincerely,Iditarod Sponsors:K & L Distributors, Inc. (Anheuser-Busch distributor) Email: Terri.VogtCabelas Email: corporateChrysler (Cerberus Capital Management, L.P.) Email: mediaCoca-Cola Email: tmattiaMillennium & Copthorne HotelsEmail: david.curtis-brignellWells Fargo & Company Email: Catherine.GacadKroger Company (Fred Meyer Stores) Email: kroger.investorsSpenard Builders (Lanoga Corporation) Email: ssolomonChevron Corportation Email: pubaffmr Exxon Mobil CorporationEmail: enterprise.commentsAnchorage Daily News (Mc Clatchy Company) Email: ptiraProvidence Health SystemEmail: employmentAlaska Airlines (Alaska Air Group)Email: newsroomPeninsula Airways, Inc. (Pen Air)Email: infoAlaska Brewing CompanyEmail: fheesThe City of NomeEmail: manager5th Avenue Mall (Simon Property GroupEmail: ircontactHorizon Lines Email: investor.relationsCity of WasillaEmail: mayor Network Appliance, Inc. Email: investor_relationsGeneral Communication, Inc. (GCI) Email: rcs Crowley Maritime CorporationEmail: resumesAnton/Bauer, Inc. Email: websales Anchorage Municipal Light and PowerEmail: AskMLPAlcan SignsEmail:alcansignsWorld Communication Center Email: wccinfoElectrochem Commercial Power Email: salesAlaska SerigraphicsEmail: dpowers The City of AnchorageEmail: MayorIonEarth Email: webmasterIditarod Promoters:"Wife Swap," ABC-TV (RDF Media Group, Pangea Management Group)Email:

Chris.CoelenTarget CorporationE-mail: investorrelationsNational Weather Service Email: jack.hayes Harcourt School Publishers Email: rick.blake National Children's Oral Health FoundationEmail: fingberAssociated PressEmail: KCarrollChicago Park District (Polar Adventure Days)Email: timothy.mitchell Carnival CorporationEmail: rabello, jbensonHome DepotEmail: frank_blakeNational Education Association Email: readacross PanasonicEmail: greenbergr About . comEmail: llangsdorfUS Army Garrison Walter Reed Army Medical CenterEmail: WRAMCPublicAffairsKansas City Public Library Email: crosbyk Elderhostel Email: peter.spiersNational Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium Email: infoEducationWorld . comEmail: rdatzHoughton Mifflin CompanyEmail: corporate_communicationsTravel Channel (Discover Communications, Inc.)Email: roger_millayPBS NatureEmail: programming PBS Reading Rainbow Email: dmcphersonRiverboat DiscoveryEmail: orders Scholastic

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Homer Stage Line Email: hsl Alaska Icefield Expeditions Email: info Intervet (Akzo Nobel) Email: investor.relationsColorado Altitude Training Email: ryoungJ. J. Keller & Associates, Inc. Email: jbilitzbGlobal, Inc. Email: rodney.bolls Trixsyn (Cogent Solutions Group LLC.)Email: gsipeND Industries Email: infoUrsa wagons Email: salesGreat Lakes GeoScience Email: tchozesWestern Products Email: info Macgellan.com Email: MacgellanKrabloonik KennelsEmail: reservationsMill Direct Textiles Email: GregGPenfield Email: infoReisky & Schlese Email: info Dog Company Email: cech Allen Family Foods, Inc. Email: affeob Parker, Smith & Feek, Inc. Email: jmshanholtzMichael Bertrand Photography Email: mbphotosMichael Trippodi Dienstleistungen Email: mailSahale Snacks Email: infoNorthland Services Email: CustomerServiceBeaver Sports Email: beaversportsEagle Pack Email: msteeleCo-Fly Industries Email: charleneSportees Activewear Email: infoPioneer Lodge Email: info Bi-Polar Racing Email: jeffmThe Black Dog Tavern Co. Email: abbietaylorAlpine Lodge Email: reservationsNational Dog Food Email: info FogTech (Motosolutions) Email: gene Caribou Creek Pet Foods Email: webmaster The Outdoor Source Email: info West Rib Cafe and Pub Email: dennisfreeman Talkeetna Chocolate Corner Email: kirtrogerTrekker Design Email: salesUp Here Publishing Ltd. Email: kathy FirstMate Pet Food Email: taplowfAppenzell Brewing CompanyEmail: r.signerBed & Breakfast 'De Kastanjeboom' Email: info Toy Store De Krokodil Brugge Email: brugge Wegwijzer Travel Information Email: info Pink & Blue PublicityEmail: info Hotel Restaurant Stossplatz Email: h.weishaupt Sea Pet (Sea Starr Animal Health, Inc.)Email: contact Laurel Pub CompanyEmail: feedbackZiwipeak Limited NaturalEmail: kathy John Hall's AlaskaEmail: infoTen Squared Racing Email: infoCapital Electric Email: larsn Icicle Seafoods, Inc. Email: johnb Blackwood Pet Food Email: infoSound Electric Email: karenSiberian Husky Club of Greater Chicago, ILEmail: jsiegel Bay Area Siberian Husky Club, CA Email: sledder1Northern California Siberian Husky Club Email: meadRedpaw FeedEmail: contact Pro Pac Dog Food (Midwestern Pet Foods, Inc.) Email: contactKamik Email: info Bynje Email: post Noraid Email: post Vi sees Email: anni Macrogard (Immunocorp)Email: salesHomeSchoolers' Support AssociationEmail: nwdunningsPrism Health Networks Email: pcandinoEmail: mzygajSiberian Husky Club of Metro DallasEmail: wegererTeck Cominco Email: infoEdmund Optics Email: salesGoNorth Alaska Travel Center Email: paraWayne County Community Federal Credit UnionEmail: cbloughPJ Operating Corp. Email: salesTrail Ridge Air, Inc. Email: jimOasis Environmental Email: infoDiabetes Sports and Wellness FoundationEmail: bobNye Frontier FordEmail: FordHGMail------------To : Put "Subscribe SDAC alerts" in the subject line and email it to SledDogAC=====================================================================After 12 yrs Sleddog Rescue Closed due to Frivolous Lawsuit...PLEASE CROSS-POST!!Note the contact info for the Robinsons and their attorney. Please participate and forward widely. Thanks. (Info from the link is pasted below.)Amiela Ciontos <amielaamielaSent: Sat, 9 Feb 2008 10:16 amTN - After 12 yrs Sleddog Rescue Closed due to Frivolous Lawsuit...PLEASE CROSSPOST!!Please crosspost. This infuriates me. The idiots that caused Sleddog Rescue to shut down over their own greed need to hear from the animal rescue community as well as others. Their name and address as well as that of their attorney is located at the link below. Please read the entire story. Now where will the needy malmutes and huskies of Tennessee get help?http://www.wayeh.com/sleddogrescue/index.html Sleddog Rescue After 12 years & 700 dogs, Sleddog Rescue is CLOSED. Home 8 Below Dogs Available Last updated 12/28/2007 NOTICE 12/28/07 Sleddog Rescue is closing 12/31/2007 because of the Eight Below lawsuit brought by William & Melinda Robinson and through their attorney, Michael Shipwash. After a year of this hideous nightmare, the Robinsons' attorney Michael Shipwash finally submitted to court "an agreed order to dismiss with prejudice" which means that after consultation with their attorney, the Robinsons AGREED

TO DROP THE WHOLE THING. They dismissed their lawsuit and gave up their right to sue over this again. An official, "Oops." So we won. But at a terrible cost to the forgotten Alaskan Malamutes and Siberian Huskies in Tennessee shelters. What was at issue here? The ownership of a dog we call Troika. Tenn. Code Ann. § 68-8-107©, a shelter may adopt any dog not wearing identification if the dog is not claimed by its owner within three (3) days. Undisputed Fact: Young Williams Animal Shelter (YWAS) admitted the Dog,

who was not wearing any identification, on July 29, 2004. Undisputed Fact: Six days later, on August 4, 2004, its owner had not claimed the Dog. Undisputed Fact: Sleddog Rescue lawfully adopted the dog at that time and named him Troika. Undisputed Fact: Over four months later in December 2004, Sleddog Rescue adopted Troika (another dog Nikki) to Mike Alexander & Birds and Animals, Inc. who train animal 'actors' for movies. Seems pretty straightforward, doesn't it? The Robinsons & their attorney

Shipwash didn't think so. They claim that their dog went missing and that everyone "conspired" to whisk him out of the state. They claimed this on television and named names doing so. What did the Robinsons do when their dog went missing? Not much from the looks of it. In interrogatories, we asked the following questions: Did you look for your dog if in the local shelter (or any shelter)? Did you post your dog's picture on the Lost Dog bulletin board there (or anywhere). Did you make up flyers to post in pet stores or vet offices (or anywhere), or run adds in newspapers, or radio, or put up a sign in your front yard, or any damned thing. They couldn't answer ANY of these questions, and in fact refused to even acknowledge our asking them. Under Tennessee law, they had 30 days to answer our interrogatories and they just, well, they forgot, or their attorney did, or maybe they had some reason

not to want to put the answers on paper. They have nothing to indicate when, if ever, their dog went missing. The only thing Melinda Robinson did say was that she often let her dog off his trolley to run at night for exercise. And that they waited for him to return because he always had in the past. Our Troika was discovered almost 2 months after the date they claimed their dog went missing - a fact anyone could have discovered from our website. Our Troika spent his legally required 3 days at the shelter as a stray, emaciated, riddled with parasites, and waiting for someone to come claim him.... And that no one did claim him for those three days, or the days to follow at the shelter, or the months to follow in rescue, or the years to follow since then. The

shelter held him extra days trying to get him safely back to his owners or safely adopted. They worked hard to save his life even though the shelter was crowded. And after a week had passed and no one came forward, or even called, then the shelter had no choice but to place him on the euthanasia list. The realities of too many dogs and not enough space in area shelters mean that stray dogs have a finite time to be claimed. The Young Williams Animal Shelter (YWAS) stretched that time as much as humanly possible. They did everything in their power to save this dog and give him a chance. The goal of breed-specific rescue groups like Sleddog Rescue is to save the forgotten. If ever there was a dog that was forgotten, it was our poor, pathetic Troika. He had been abandoned twice -- once to the mercies of the streets and once to the realties of

a crowded shelter. After his legal hold time at the shelter, Troika was the property of the shelter according to Tennessee statute. This is irrefutable and without question. Melinda and William Robinson stipulated to this in court through their attorney, Michael Shipwash. Yet... The Robinsons claimed in their lawsuit that we all had an obligation to find his previous owners -- even though they weren't actually, or actively, looking for the dog themselves. Did the shelter have an obligation to go door to door and look for his original owner when the owner couldn't be bothered to come look for him? No. Of course, No. Not only is Tennessee law very clear that owners who

have a missing pet have an affirmative duty to go to the animal shelter and claim them. But it seems a reasonable requirement. If they wanted him back, they would be looking for him. If they wanted him back, they would have contacted the shelter. YWAS has voice mail that says, Come to the shelter and look for yourself. The phone staffers are all trained in this. It is posted on the entrance door of the shelter. It is on their website prominently. They ask you to, Please, please, please, come and look for your pet . They WANT lost pets to go home, that's part of their mission. And afterall, shelter workers can't be expected to recognize every breed of dog and cat out there -- there are over 400 recognized breeds of dogs alone, who can know them all? Volunteers can't be expected to know if the owners even have the

right breed or color or weight over the phone. The owners must come and look at the dogs themselves. While there they can post pictures of their missing pet on the lost pet bulletin board. Please remember, no one had any way of knowing our Troika's previous owners since he had no microchip, no tattoo, no collar, no tags, and NO ONE WAS LOOKING FOR HIM, NO ONE was posting flyers for him, NO ONE was doing anything at all to find him. We could not have located the Robinsons if we were obligated to try. Which we were not. After his hold time, he legally belonged to the shelter that then legally adopted him to us. Nonetheless, we advertised him relentlessly for four months. We did not hide him, we did not conceal his location. We were actively looking for a home for

him. We posted his picture all over the internet and Knox County and Powell is in Knox Co. If his original owners were looking for him, it's reasonable to assume they would have seen him. IF, that is, they were his original owners and IF they were looking for him. Troika was featured prominently on the Sleddog Rescue website as available for adoption from August - December 2004. Troika was featured prominently on Petfinder as available for adoption from August - December 2004. It was not until December 2004 that Mike Alexander from Birds and Animals Unlimited found Troika and wanted him for a role in the movie Eight Below. Did we conspire to whisk him out of the state as the Robinson's claim? No. Let me repeat from above -- Four months. Advertised heavily. We put him in foster care less than an hour from their house for FOUR MONTHS. We put his sweet face in the local Critter Magazine adoption papers that go to area veterinarians (including veterinarians in Powell), we put his face on our own website AND on the national adoption website. What sort of "conspiracy" advertises a dog's face nationally for months on end? And more importantly, how could Melinda and William Robinson have not found him if they had been LOOKING FOR HIM and if he were in fact their dog? It was only after our Troika

appeared in a big-budget Disney movie, that the Robinsons come forward and said, That's our dog, pay us money! It took them over TWO YEARS to actively look for him (from their dog going missing in 6/04 to their lawsuit about our Troika in 7/06). But now they demanded return of "their dog." And oh, yes, let's not forget the money. They also wanted money, lots of money, buckets of money, unimaginable geysers of money. Melinda and William Robinson merely demanded the entire profits from the Disney movie Eight Below -- $127,000,000. For a dog they couldn't be bothered to go look for. Did Sleddog see any "profit" from the movie Eight Below? Hell, no. In fact, once we got him healthy again from his sad life on the streets, we boarded him, treated him extensively for parasites, fed, housed, and cared for him for four months. Then we found a wonderful opportunity for him with a Hollywood animal trainer (the only one in the laundry list that the Robinson's did not sue). We got our standard adoption fee, which was about half his expenses while in rescue. But that's how rescue works. We are all unpaid volunteers and there are always more bills than donations or adoption fees. And yes, I want to emphasize the point, did the Robinson's sue the person who owned our Troika at the time of the lawsuit? No. Strangely, they did not. By

not suing the person who had physical possession/legal ownership of the dog they GUARANTEED that Troika could not be "returned" to them. We wondered if they decided not to sue Mike because they knew that it was not their dog and that the DNA sample that they CLAIMED TO HAVE would not match. Or whether they simply really did not want their dog - if it was their dog - back. A DNA sample, by the way, they claimed was on his collar.... a collar they claimed he was wearing with his current tags when he went missing....? And we spelled out on our website exactly who currently owned the dog, even though their attorney Michael Shipwash tried to later claim in legal documents that he didn't know and had no way to find out. Of course he knew, it was in the original story by WATE in June of 2004, the story Michael Shipwash created as a spectacular ambush. When asked by the reporter about the current ownership of Troika, Michael Shipwash stated that he had originally placed the animal trainer on the list to sue, and then felt he was an innocent bystander, so he then erased his name from the list. (original WATE story) It was also well documented in the special features of the Disney Eight Below dvd, which the Robinsons claimed to watch for close-ups of Troika. No, they just decided to sue the people who saved the life of this dog and the people who had money - Disney, Buena Vista, Spyglass (none of the latter ever owned the dog or hired the dog, but then they were the ones with the deep pockets.) Did the Robinsons EVER say thanks for saving Troika's life? Well, no. actually, they did not. Instead of saying, Thank you, but we want him back, they gave television interviews without even talking to the people they were accusing and they did it three days BEFORE they even filed a lawsuit. Classic ambush. Did their attorney Shipwash know the relevent statute and explain it to them before they brought suit? Apparently not, as he didn't know it before we provided it to him. In amazement, we watched him in open court as he agreed with Judge Wheeler Ambrose that the statute

was on point and further Michael Shipwash stated that the Judge could go ahead now and rule against him, because he knew the Judge was going to eventually. This appeared to surprise Judge Ambrose, I know it surprised our attorneys. The Judge then explained to Shipwash the procedure that needed to be followed to get an agreed order of dismissal. Seems Shipwash should have known that part, too. What is the cost of this admittedly inappropriate lawsuit? Unimaginable. William and Melinda Robinson and their attorney Michael Shipwash have done a great disservice to the homeless Malamutes and Siberians in Tennessee and the unpaid volunteers who give so tirelessly to these dogs. And they

have done a great disservice to the their own future dogs, because the next time the Robinsons turn their dog loose to run at night and he doesn't come back.... who will save him then? In 2004, the year we saved Troika's life, Sleddog Rescue took in 104 Siberians & Malamutes. In 2008, where will the next 104 forgotten sled dogs go? Was our Troika their dog that went missing June 2004? I don't know. But it really doesn't look like it was ever the issue. Two years after the fact, money was their issue. I want to say that I feel sorry for anyone who looses a beloved dog. It's heartbreaking,

of course. But how could we have reasonably known? How could we have UNreasonably known? They didn't put ID on their dog, and they weren't looking for their dog. The time to look for their dog was when he went missing, not TWO YEARS later. The time to say, "That is my dog," is when he's alone and sick and starving on the streets, not when he's a movie star. The way to show your true intentions is to get off your butt and go look for him, not to sue the people who saved his life. Yours, Sidney Helen Sachs President of the former Sleddog Rescue, established 1995 & closed 2007 & Co-defendant, William & Melinda Robinson VS Young-Williams Animal Shelter, Sidney Sachs individually, Sleddog Rescue of Tennessee, The Walt Disney Company, Spyglass Entertainment and Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Inc. Thank-you, thank-you, and our deepest appreciation to our attorneys, Nannette Clark & Raymond T. Throckmorton III -- Nannette & Chip, you're the best. This website will forever dedicated to the forgotten Malamutes and Siberians in Tennessee who will not be saved because of William & Melinda Robinson 147 Whispering Pines LN Powell, TN 37849 & to their attorney Michael "I am not an ambulance chaser" Shipwash 9040 Executive Park Drive, Suite 315 Knoxville TN 37923 NOTICE 6/04 Sidney Sachs and Sleddog Rescue are being sued by people who claim that they owned the Alaskan Malamute now known as Troika. Troika received a great deal of publicity earlier this year at the release of Disney's "Eight Below." Troika starred as Shadow in "Eight Below." Sleddog Rescue legally adopted Troika from The Young Williams Animal Shelter in Knoxville, TN after the legal waiting time of 72 hours. Troika was ill, severely underweight and available for euthanasia. The Robinsons are suing Sidney Sachs personally, along with Sleddog Rescue, Young Williams Animal Shelter, Disney, Buena Vista, & Spyglass Entertainment. If decided in the Plaintiff's favor, this case will effect the adoption of animals from

all shelters and rescues in Tennessee and place obligations on rescue and shelters to actively search for the original owners. Good Dogs Deserve Second Chances Net Rings/Web Rings © 2006 WebRing Inc. Malamutes & Arctic Breeds [ Join Now | Ring Hub | Random | << Prev | Version: 7.5.516 / Virus Database: 269.20.4/1277 - Release 13/02/2008 20:00LOOKIEEE -> www.meat.ORGLife is life - whether in a cat, or dog or man. There is no difference there between a cat or a man. The idea of difference is a human conception for man's own advantage. - Sri AurobindoA man can live and be healthy without killing animals for food; therefore, if he eats meat, he participates in taking animal life merely for the sake of his appetite. And to act so is immoral. - Leo Tolstoy

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