An animal welfare official in Alaska says he found no evidence of animal cruelty or neglect at a kennel operated by four-time Iditarod champion Dallas Seavey, who was recently accused in a dog-doping scandal.
Matanuska-Susitna Borough Animal Care officer Nick Uphus says he visited the kennel, where he interviewed Seavey’s wife, Jen Seavey, and inspected all 89 dogs at the site. Uphus says he found no sign of mistreatment or neglect.
Uphus says Dallas Seavey was not at the site and was not interviewed. But he adds that previous mushing kennel licensing inspections also have not turned up any cause for concern.
Uphus says he also inspected a Talkeetna property, where a handful of other Seavey dogs are kept, adding he found nothing amiss there either.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals asked for investigations based on a whistleblower’s reports of sick, injured or dead dogs.
Alaska State Troopers also are separately investigating complaints against a kennel, but they won’t identify the musher.
Iditarod officials recently said four of Seavey’s dogs tested positive for a banned substance after his second-place finish last March. Seavey denies the allegations.
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