ALERT: NPR hypes blind musher in cruel Iditarod - WRITE

[Guest guest]

PLEASE CROSSPOST FAR AND WIDE

 

From the Sled Dog Action Coalition, http://www.helpsleddogs.org

 

National Public Radio (NPR) is promoting Rachael Scdoris, a blind

woman who is mushing in the 2005 Iditarod dog sled race. NPR's

website (npr.org) has links to her website, and to the Iditarod's

website and webcam. Their interview with Scdoris did not mention that

the dogs suffer, and it is not stated on the NPR website.

 

Here's a short list of what happens to the dogs during the race:

death, paralysis, penile frostbite, bleeding ulcers, broken bones,

pneumonia, ruptured discs, hypothermia, broken teeth, viral diseases,

torn footpads and lung damage.

 

Stories about the dogs receiving top-notch health care don't square

with the facts. Dogs are often sick before the Iditarod starts but

are made to race anyway. While some sick dogs are dropped during the

race, others are given massive doses of antibiotics to keep them

going.

 

Please ask NPR to stop promoting the Iditarod with the many evils

associated with it.

 

EMAIL: ombudsman, lbremner, jking

 

WRITE TO ALL IDITAROD SUPPORTERS:

 

Below is a list of organizations that are 2005 Iditarod race

sponsors, musher sponsors or Iditarod promoters. Emails are first

given in block form and then individually under the sample letter.

Email addresses with semi-colons in block form can be found on

http://www.helpsleddogs.org/sponsors.htm on the bottom of the page.

 

BLOCK EMAILS:

 

martink, jhallin, info,

investorrelations, deknutson,

Shareholders.IM, jhong,

investor.relations, contact.privacy,

tim_fitzpatrick, alfred.j.modugno,

gmorgenstern, wford, john.devine,

david, abuckelew,

wmcalduff, Amy.Sherwood,

ombudsman, lbremner, jking,

Chris.B.Ahearn, Jgilbert, myer,

jmenaker, alice.nathanson,

klane, mboyter,

brad.bodenman, ir.dcx,

heyer, NewsOutback, info,

investorrelations, marketing,

chris.jones, kroger.investors,

gisx, ssolomon,

pubaffmr, today,

enterprise.comments, leo.kiely,

amy_banse, chendricks,

employment, bob.dotson,

investor_relations, atpinfo,

Customer.Service, sales, info,

jdc, info, info,

barsenault, international,

info, redpaw,

gene, steve.yager,

sales, info, feedback,

webmaster, investorrelations,

sdougherty, rstewart, info,

MarkS, wilderinfo,

publicaffairs, feedback,

dawn.mccall, viewer, jmoses,

gunter.thielen, polson,

mspring, ecousens, jsisk,

sdisney, mgoad,

info, info, STEVESI,

rick, pat, sales,

franchising, rputney, info@multi-

pak.com, info, contact,

beaversports, info,

bill, ragnar.evensen,

wear, HCC19, scottz,

ir, wosport, info,

editor_1, presse,

chad.haight, jobs,

marilyn.ducksworth, mstewart,

emailbag, leepinliz,

juneymoon, Solutions,

sales, windigo, info,

alliage.com, leonce,

careers

 

PLEASE PERSONALIZE SAMPLE LETTER:

 

Dear

 

Please stop supporting the barbaric Iditarod with all the evils

associated with it.

 

Mushers treat their dogs abominably. In the Iditarod, dogs are forced

to run 1,150 miles, which is the approximate distance between Dallas

and Cleveland over a grueling terrain in 8 to 15 days. USA Today

sports columnist Jon Saraceno called the Iditarod " a travesty of

grueling proportions " and " Ihurtadog. " Fox sportscaster Jim Rome

called it " I-killed-a-dog. " Orlando Sentinel sports columnist George

Diaz said the race is " an illegal sweatshop for dogs. " USA Today

business columnist Bruce Horovitz said the race is a " public-

relations minefield. "

 

Please visit the Sled Dog Action Coalition website

http://www.helpsleddogs.org and be sure to read the quotes on

http://www.helpsleddogs.org/remarks.htm . All the material on the

site is true and verifiable.

 

At least 122 dogs have died in the Iditarod. There is no official

count of

dog deaths available for the race's early years. Here's a short list

of what happens to the dogs during the race: death, paralysis, penile

frostbite, bleeding ulcers, broken bones, pneumonia, ruptured discs,

hypothermia, broken teeth, viral diseases, torn footpads and lung

damage.

 

On average, 53 percent of the dogs who start the race do not even

make it across

the finish line. Of those that finish, 81 percent have lung damage.

No one knows how many dogs die in training or after the race. A

report published in the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine said

that 48.5 percent of the dogs who participate in the Iditarod have

ulceration, tissue erosion, gastric hemorrhage, or a combination of

these conditions.

 

Tom Classen, retired Air Force colonel and Alaskan resident for over

40

years, tells us that the dogs are beaten into submission:

 

" They've had the hell beaten out of them. " " You don't just whisper

into their ears, 'OK, stand there until I tell you to run like the

devil.' They understand one thing: a beating. These dogs are beaten

into submission the same way elephants are trained for a circus. The

mushers will deny it. And you know what? They are all lying. " -USA

Today, March 3, 2000 in Jon Saraceno's column

 

Mushers believe in " culling " or killing unwanted dogs, 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 or

clubbed to death. " Dogs are clubbed with baseball bats and if they

don't pull are dragged to death in harnesses..... " wrote Alaskan Mike

Cranford in an article for Alaska's Bush Blade Newspaper (March,

2000).

 

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. "

 

Please end your organization's association with this horrific race.

 

Sincerely,

 

IDITAROD SPONSORS:

 

Fort Dodge Animal Health (Wyeth)

Email: martink

 

Daimler Chrysler

Email: ir.dcx

 

Coca-Cola

Email: heyer

 

Outback Steakhouse

Email NewsOutback

 

Millennium & Copthorne Hotels

Email: marketing

 

Wells Fargo & Company

Email:investorrelations

 

Kroger Co. (Fred Meyer Stores)

Email: kroger.investors

 

Spenard Builders (Lanoga Corporation)

Email: ssolomon

 

Office Tech (Global Imaging Systems, Inc.)

Email: gisx

 

ChevronTexaco Corportation

Email: pubaffmr

 

Exxon Mobil Corporation

Email: enterprise.comments

 

Coors Brewing Company

Email: leo.kiely

 

Anchorage Daily News (Mc Clatchy Company)

Email: ptalamantes

 

Providence Health System

Email: employment

 

Cabelas

Email: Customer.Service

 

Global Information Technologies

Email: sales

 

Alaska Airlines (Alaska Air Group)

Email: ir

 

Too Far Publishing

Email: info

 

IDITAROD PROMOTERS

 

Outdoor Life Network (Comcast Corp.)

Email: feedback, amy_banse,

tim_fitzpatrick

 

Workman Publishing Company

Email: info

 

Carnival Corporation (Princess Cruises)

Email: abuckelew, careers

 

Scholastic Corporation

Email: investor_relations

 

Today Show

Email: Email: today, bob.dotson

 

Travel Channel (Discovery Networks)

Email: dawn.mccall

 

PBS Teacher Source

Email: viewer

 

Elderhostel, Inc.

Email: jmoses

 

Fodor's Travel Publications (Random House, Bertelsmann)

Email: editors, polson,

gunter.thielen

 

Frommer's Guides (John Wiley & Sons, Inc.)

111 River St. Hoboken, NJ 07030

Email: wpesce, mspring

 

Avalon Travel Publications

Email: atpinfo

 

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.

Email: jsisk

 

Petplace.com (Intelligent Content, Corp.)

Email: scottz

 

TIME for Kids

Email: emailbag

 

Women's Sports Foundation

Email: wosport

 

Academy of Achievement

Email: editor_1

 

Insight Guides (APA Publications/Langenscheidt Publications)

Email: presse

 

Sasquatch Books

Email: chad.haight

 

Rough Guides (The Penguin Group)

Email: Marilyn.ducksworth, jobs

 

Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc.

Email: mstewart

 

Wilmington Public School Superintendent

Email: wmcalduff

 

Highsmith, Inc.

Email: dealersales

 

The Westminster Kennel Club

Email: david

 

Pedigree Dog Food (Mars, Inc.)

Email: jmenaker, alice.nathanson,

chris.jones

 

The Weather Channel

Email: klane, mboyter

 

National Public Radio

Email: ombudsman, lbremner, jking

 

 

MUSHER SPONSORS:

 

Stancorp Financial Group, Inc.

Email: jhallin , info

 

Royal Caribbean Cruises, Ltd.

Email: investorrelations

 

Eukanuba/Iams (Procter & Gamble Company)

Email: Shareholders.IM

 

Hanons/Safeway (Safeway, Inc.)

Email: jhong

 

Blockbuster Video

Email: investor.relations

 

McDonalds Restaurants of the Kenai Peninsula (McDonald Corporation)

Email: contact.privacy

 

Marsh USA (Marsh & McLennan Companies)

Email: alfred.j.modugno

 

AT & T Alascom (AT & T)

Email: gmorgenstern

 

PMI Nutrition Pet Foods (Purina Mills/Land O'Lakes, Inc.)

Email: deknutson

 

Ford Motor Company

Email: wford

 

General Motors

Email: john.devine

 

Taco Bell/Denali Foods (Franchisor: Yum! Brands, Inc.)

Email: Amy.Sherwood

 

Lowe's Home Improvement (Lowe's Companies, Inc.)

Email: Chris.B.Ahearn

 

UGI Corporation (AmeriGas)

Email: strategicaccounts

 

Northern Outfitters

Email: mail

 

Udelhoven Companies (Udelhoven Oilfield System)

Email: Jgilbert

 

Patrick Henry Creative Promotions

Email: myer

 

American Seafoods Group

Email: brad.bodenman

 

Annamaet Petfoods

Email: info

 

Eagle Premium Pet Foods/Eagle Pet Products, Inc.

Email: jdc

 

Breg, Inc.

Email: info

 

Dogbooties.com (a division of Arrowhead Fabric)

Email: info

 

Grabber Performance Group

Email: international

 

Blackwood Dog Food (The Blackwood Corporation)

Email: info

 

Redpaw Feeds

Email: redpaw

 

Fogtech

Email: gene

 

Oak View Elementary School

Email: steve.yager

 

Edmund Industrial Optics

Email: sales

 

American Dehydrated Foods, Inc.

Email: info

 

Atta Boy (American Nutrition, Inc.)

Email: feedback

 

Arctic Cat Inc.

Email: webmaster

 

Gander Mountain

Email: investorrelations

 

Cirrus Design Corporation

Email: sdougherty

 

Borton Automotive, Inc.

Email: rstewart

 

WHSmith and Sons, Ltd.

Email: info

 

Anadarko Petroleum Corporation

Email: publicaffairs

 

Icicle Seafoods, Inc.

Email: MarkS

 

 

Wilder Construction Company

Email: wilderinfo

 

Thomas Jefferson Middle School

Email: sdisney

 

Patrick McGaheran School

Email: mgoad

 

D.H. Blattner & Sons, Inc.

Email: info

 

Adventure Unlimited Ranches

Email: info

 

Longfellow Elementary School

Email: STEVESI

 

United Railroad Materials Company

Email: rick

 

Senior Sojourns, Inc.

Email: Pat

 

Ophir Gold Ltd.

Email: sales

 

Batteries Plus

Email: franchising

 

Grossman Chevrolet

Email: rputney

 

Multi-Pak Corporation

Email: info

 

Royal Canin USA, Inc.

Email: info , alliage.com

 

Pro Pac Pet Food (Midwestern Pet Foods, Inc. )

Email: contact

 

Beaver Sports

Email: beaversports

 

Montana Travel

Email: info

 

Bill Hanson, Attorney

Email: bill

 

AF Ragnar Evensen AS

Email: ragnar.evensen

 

Wolfsong Wear

Email: wear

 

Historical Chocolate Company

Email: HCC19

 

LeepinLiz Designs

Email: leepinliz

 

June Shelley

Email: juneymoon

 

Reflective " Puppy Parkas "

Email: Solutions

 

Innisbrook Wraps

Email: sales

 

Windigo Outfitters in Iron River

Email: windigo

 

Cold Spot Feeds

Email: info

 

The Ungar Foundation

P.O. Box 752

Copake, NY 12516

 

Harry L. McGinnis Middle School

17 Atther Road Buena Vista, CO

80345 Phone: 719-395-7060

 

Amaize (Marsland Laboratories)Email message box:

http://www.amaize.com/dealer_inq.htm