Behind the Scenes of Canada’s Dog-Sledding Tourism

Photographer: Julie LP, Monroe Styles

Videographer: Francis Metivier

Last winter and again in spring, our team documented dog-sledding facilities in Quebec, Canada.

“Dogs love to run.”
“An authentic Canadian experience.”
“Time in nature with man’s best friend.”

These are promises that draw tourists to dog-sledding operations across Canada each winter. On a bright, blue-skied day in Quebec — the kind tourists hope for — our team arrived at two popular dog-sledding facilities to document what life actually looks like for the dogs used in this industry.

We were there following a tip alleging animal cruelty.

What We Documented

A recent New York Times article promotes images of happy, energetic dogs eager to run. But what our team documented told a different story.

At both dog-sledding facilities we visited, most dogs were tethered outdoors to chains four to eight feet long. Each chain allowed a perfect circle around a small plywood box, but not long enough to reach another dog. For pack animals, the isolation was striking. They were released from their chains only to pull sleds, running tourists through snow, chains clinking, before being returned to their posts. The boxes offered their only shelter; water bowls were crusted with urine. Some dogs paced in repetitive circles. Others lay motionless.

Sled dogs are often described as animals “born to run.” Yet most of their lives are spent restrained, denied autonomy and meaningful social interaction. As we documented, many bore visible injuries, including facial wounds, scars, or stitches; one appeared blind in one eye. Many of the dogs displayed signs of frustration or withdrawal: pacing, circling, or howling. Fights occasionally broke out during sled runs, requiring staff intervention.

Beyond the inherent exploitation of using animals for labour and entertainment, what stood out was this: everything we witnessed — the tethering, the isolation, the injuries — was legal. Normalized. In some cases, publicly funded. The industry operates largely outside public scrutiny.

At one facility, we were invited into a shed lined with empty beer bottles to see a litter of puppies beneath a red heat lamp. They were weeks old. Their mother wasn’t there.

“She’s outside,” one worker said.

“She’s resting,” said another.

The next day: “Elle est morte.” She was dead.

From The Inside

Almost a decade earlier, one member of our team had worked as a horseback trail guide in Australia. Three tours a day. Smiling for tourists. Tending to horses’ wounds in the evening until management asked her to cut back — medicine was expensive.

Those experiences came rushing back when she was undercover at one of the dog-sledding operations. Nothing appeared openly cruel, yet something felt wrong.

The Story We Tell Ourselves

Inside exploitation, it rarely looks monstrous. It looks routine. Justified. Even affectionate.

At one point, a school group arrived for dog sledding. The children barely looked at the dogs. No hand reaching out, no greeting. It could have been an ATV pulling them around the track. The GoPro mattered more than the animals in front of them. It was clear it was the experience — the photo — that mattered.

Unlike traditional sledding operations, where huskies are used, many dogs at this facility were clearly mixed breeds, part Labrador, Retriever, even a Duck Toller. A staff member stated that people sometimes abandon their dogs at the facility in the middle of the night. These dumped dogs are sometimes taken in, later used for sledding or for breeding.

When asked whether they worried someone might try to take the dogs, who lived outdoors overnight, one worker replied:

“Who would want these dogs? They’re not like the dogs we have at home.”

For Julie LP, one of the animal photojournalists documenting the facility, that moment stayed with her.

Not Looking Away

In a 2024 position statement, the Montreal SPCA notes that Quebec’s sled dog industry has approximately 5,000 dogs across 130 facilities and operates without specific oversight. The organization states that few dogs are spayed or neutered in the industry, resulting in unwanted litters and puppy killing, and that dogs considered unfit for sledding may die on their chains or be killed. As of 2024, dogs in Quebec can be legally chained for up to 23 hours daily.

These visuals are available for media and advocates working to discourage dog-sledding this winter.

Photographer: Julie LP, Monroe Styles

Videographer: Metivier