Editors Note: The Journal’s Opinion Page is a public forum to provide community members a place to voice their ideas and concerns. The Journal does vet for slander and misinformation but otherwise provides islanders with the opportunity to state their opinions.

In response to the letter about the Iditarod dog sled race [by Jan Murphy March 7] you obviously know absolutely nothing about dog mushing and racing. To say that the dogs are kept in deplorable conditions and killed with little thought when they get sick, old, or unable to compete is a filthy lie.

In the first place, these dogs cost $2,000 and up. Nobody would abuse something that valuable. The reality is the vast majority of mushers have a connection, a bonding and love for their dogs, most dog owners couldn’t comprehend. These people spend so much time caring for their dogs. The dogs always come first.

The Alaskan Sled Dog is a unique animal. Like wolves, they live to run in a pack. Visit a kennel yourself. These dogs are all happy energetic creatures. They love their lives. Tails constantly waving. Watch the mushers cross the finish line in Nome. Every dog is smiling and waging their tail.

For you to state that a dog dies in every race is another blatant lie. In the Iditarod, every dog is checked out by a vet at every checkpoint. Also, these dogs love it when it is 25 below zero. You employ that the dogs are forced to go. Watch a race and see these dogs jumping and barking and raring to go. This anti-dog racing attitude is because a twisted misguided group PETA thought that attacking sled dog racing would be a real Hollywood story.

Telling people dogs are being mistreated will be easy and sensational. Obviously, if you look hard enough you will find a bad musher. They filmed some scenes and now that’s the story.

Any musher who doesn’t treat their dogs better than themselves is shunned by the mushing community and banned from racing. PETA wanted to ban real Easter Eggs at the White House egg hunt. They were upset that they had a donkey for a prop at the Oscars. Really, these are the people you believe?

My son won Rookie of the Year two years ago and last year came in seventh place. He loves his dogs with a passion. You accuse my son of being barbaric and cruel? What is cruel is the poor pathetic dogs owned by millions of Americans. A life of eating bacon and hoping for a short walk only to have their chain jerked when they are smelling a bush.

Finally shame on the Journal for printing those lies. They are not opinions, they are lies. Lies that have deeply hurt my family

Craig Stoddard,

Proud father of Iditarod musher Chad Stoddard.