• Image of Mount McKinley and the Alaska Range

    Denali

    National Park & Preserve Alaska

Adopting a Retired Denali Sled Dog

Denali’s sled dogs retire at age nine, many with more than 8,000 miles of patrols under their harnesses.

While nine years might seem quite old for a big dog, Denali’s dogs are unmatched in their health and energy at that age. That’s why these dogs need active homes and new parents with a healthy, outdoorsy lifestyle when they retire. Think you could provide a home for one of our retired sled dogs? Consider submitting a sled dog adoption application.

 
Carlo, a retired sled dog, relaxing with his new family in 2007
Carlo relaxes with his adoptive family after retiring in 2007.
photo courtesy alex lindeman
 

Recent retirees

The Rivers Litter retired in Spring 2012 after nine years of service to the Denali National Park Kennels.

Muddy was retired to a family in Yellowstone NP in MT. She lives with several canine friends and loves going on long walks and runs with her new owners. She regularly gets to go to the office with them and be showered with attention, which was and still is, Muddy's favorite thing. They tell us that she has the most magical howl and we would have to agree. We miss Muddy's singing around the kennels here.

Tonzona now lives and plays with his summer dogwalker in upstate NY.

Chulitna retired close to home and lives just down the road. During the summers she will still get to be in the park out in the Kantishna area as her new owner works for Camp Denali. Chulitna will get to be the resident dog greeter which is a perfect job for the girl that was always wanting to be the center of attention in the kennels here. Swift was retired to a wonderful family in Anchorage, AK. He loves his new adventure-loving human family, He gets to explore in the mountains, play with the kids, play with his new dog sibling and get lots of love and attention. Swift is grinning from ear to ear in every photo they send.

Did You Know?

Major vegetation monitoring should allow detection, understanding and potential management of vegetation change

The vast landscapes of interior Alaska are changing. Large glaciers are receding, permafrost is melting and woody plants are spreading. Comparison of "then-and-now" photographs and data from major vegetation monitoring should allow detection, understanding and potential management of these changes.