Hit and Run collision injures dog from Wade Marrs' kennel

Wade Marrs reported today that
one of his dogs was injured during
last night's training run.

"Last night around 8pm, we received the nightmare phone call…" Wade Marrs' post on facebook today begins. Only, this isn't a classic Peanuts comic strip where Snoopy is sitting on his dog house typing "it was a dark and stormy night." No, this is every musher and every dog lover's nightmare. On a training run around 8pm last night, Andrew Nolan - an Iditarod Rookie next year who is running dogs from Wade's kennel - called to report that the team had been hit by a car. The car's driver, reportedly, sped off after tagging the team's lead dogs. 

Thankfully, Nolan and most of the team were unhurt, but lead dog Sockeye wasn't so lucky. Marrs reports the dog has a serious break in her leg which will require expensive surgery. "Xrays determined an oblique displaced fracture, which is good news because it’s a great candidate for successful surgical repair with a plate and pin... It will put her out for the rest of the season, but pending a successful healing she will return to run next year."

This is an increasingly common danger of training teams. With population growth, teams are forced more and more to encounter busy roadways. Last year, Quest Champion and Iditarod Veteran Sebastian Schnuelle's team was hit crossing at a designated sled dog crossing. Two five-year-old dogs were killed, others injured, and Schnuelle's return to the Iditarod ended as he did not have enough conditioned dogs to race. Three years ago, Karin Hendrickson and her team were hit when a car slid off of the Parks Highway and landed on her team. Hendrickson's back was broken, and some of her team were injured, but no loss of life happened though seemingly by miracle. Hendrickson could not run the Iditarod that year, but had a friend and fellow musher Bryan Bears run her team for her (he would end up scratching during the race). 

In both cases, the drivers stayed at the scene, and were understandably shaken and remorseful. Last night's accident, however, appears to be a hit-and-run. Nolan reported to Wade Marrs that the car kept going after hitting the lead dogs. The dogs were illuminated by the lights from the atv, which Nolan reportedly flashed multiple times to warn the driver of the dogs in the road. There is no excuse to EVER leave the scene of ANY accident, especially when a life is involved (2-legged or 4-legged).

Stump Jumpin' Kennel - Wade Marrs' Kennel Name - has set up several ways to help with surgical expenses for lead dog Sockeye.