Sled Dog Sanctuary: Build-A-Bear Youth Humane Education Grant Report

How did this grant help your organization and the pets in your care?

The money we received was used to purchase safe travel kennels for our dogs to visit children in schools, an authentic lightweight Iditarod dog sled we could bring into the classroom, different harness types and colorful informational handouts and coloring pages for the kids.

This grant helped our organization in that we were able to purchase authentic trail equipment used by dogs on the trail, so the kids can handle and get an up-close look at gear that they only see in pictures and on television when they watch dogsled races from afar. This grant has allowed us to bring our state sport right into their classroom and talk about the benefits of owning a sled dog and being committed to their well-being and care for life.

How many pets did this grant help?

It is very hard to quantify how many pets this grant will help over time. We believe there will be countless dogs affected since our goal on these classroom visits is not only to talk about the sport of dog mushing but also to advocate for the rescue and rehabilitation of sled dogs in need all over our state.

Please provide a story of one or more specific pets this grant helped.

A dog whom this grant has especially touched is Penny, who loves interacting with people and especially loves children. Since she is a senior, she does not have the opportunity to run with the other dogs in the sled-dog team on our regular runs, so attending schools and interacting with children has brought a whole lot more joy into her life while she waits for her turn to be adopted. Meet Penny: www.petfinder.com/petdetail/35069896