It may have taken 9 years, but it happened!

Super Sleddie Reunion #8 happened on September 27, 2025 and it was a sight to behold.

27 sleddies gathered to run, play, steal snacks, swim, get muddy, explore, sniff, make new friends and even nap. 
You may think it would be noisy with over 30 dogs in all, in attendance, but it's not. The dogs have found new routines that are more than just being "on" or "off" for work. They've found a middle ground that allows them to make their own choices on their own time. To choose friends. To have some license when it comes to their daily lives.

The reunion took place at Victoria Humane Society’s new property - the site of what will be an incredible animal care and adoption centre - located in a magical forested area, just outside of Victoria. 

Since the first gathering in November 2013 to this latest almost 12 years later, I’ve had the honour to meet and photograph 278 former sled dogs who’ve had the opportunity to leave working life behind and live life as beloved family members. 

Aside from sweet Smokie who’s 15 (maybe 16?), the dogs at this gathering is a new generation of sleddies. The inspiration for this project - the survivors of the Whistler sled dog massacre - have all passed away, but their names and faces live on in some pretty cherished memories from those who knew them, along with photographs and stories on this site. And some of those original families have continued to adopt sleddies!
The majority of this crew have come from the Whistler area, but some are from the Yukon and beyond. 

To the new friends visiting this page/post, you will see many photos below. I haven’t picked out just the single portraits because I share as many photos as I can as this project is not just about the ‘pretty pictures or posed portraits - it’s about sharing the realness - the fun, the messy, the eyes closed, the turned away faces. 

There is a magic that comes along with sharing your home with a sleddie, a camaraderie between the human and the dog as you both learn about each other. The comfort that can be found in new routines. The time for the dogs to learn that life is not just about being “on” and “off” for work because there are now opportunities for mid-range adventures, hikes, or afternoon naps with their bestie.

But as it can be when bringing any new dog into your home, some assimilate very easily and some need a little more time. Time to learn about their new roles in a home. Time to trust.
But this group has stepped up.

These days I generally only get to see the dogs upon arrival, so it’s super special to see how those sweet, yet fearful dogs, have learned to relax and bond with their family. 

As long as there are sled dog operations, the Victoria Humane Society will need foster and adoptive homes, so if you’re interested, please contact them.

Sleddie roll call: Bagheera (adoptable!), Baloo, Biggie, Blue, Clyde, Dawson, Elton, Gadget, Heart, Idéfix, June, Keelah (formerly Akeela), Lady Arthur (adoptable!) (formerly Arthur), Louie, Louise, Oman, Patsy, Peach, Penny, Pepper (adoptable!), Raksha (adoptable!), Shine (formerly Shining), Smokie, Star, Titan, Toledo, Zuzu

As it's taken me over a month to actually get to sharing this post (life sometimes takes over), some super cool news has come in! At the reunion there were 4 adoptable sleddies (Bagheera, Lady Arthur, Pepper and Raksha), and I'm happy to say Bagheer, Raksha and Pepper have all been adopted! Our sweet Lady Arthur is, however, still awaiting her forever home.  I ask you to just take a look at the photos of this sweet girl near the end of this post -- most of the dogs had gone home, but Lady Arthur continued to request loves and attention in her very gentle way from any human close by. This girl is a 100% a gem. So sensitive and sweet. Whoever adopts her is going to be very lucky. 

Some other friends came too — whether they were sleddie siblings, honourary sleddies or “fake” sleddies… they all had a blast! Flurry, Murphy, Rachel, Wesley, Zoe

Thank you so much to the organizers (Jill + Deb) and all the fosters, adopters and supporters of this incredibly special group of sweet dogs!
Names and captions are included for all photos (fingers crossed I got them all correct!) - just click on the photo to view captions!

~wendy
​xo

p.s. printable versions of images from this reunion can be ordered for $10 each, with the money raised going back to help sustain this project and fund future sleddie-related advocacy. Please contact me for to order!

There's always that excitement at the beginning of a sleddie walk. Anticipation. The hurry-up-and-wait. 
It's pretty much hard wired into them from their days of pulling sleds. 
Some of today's crew know the drill well having been on many walks over the years. Gather, wait, sniff, wait, photo ops, wait... and then let's go!
For others, this was pretty new and maybe a bit scary.
With 14 sleddies in today's group, it was an almost 50/50 split of experienced retirees to newbies.

The weather held, though fall is starting to arrive with leaves falling and a crispness to the air.
I had no idea who was all coming so when I realized that a young pup who'd stolen my heart back in February was prancing my way, my heart skipped a beat. This fella is now known as Yukon. He's 10 months old and has the legs of a giraffe, the silliness of a puppy and the speed of a sleddie. Back in February, he arrived as a wee little one who wasn't doing very well. He arrived late at night and I remember holding him and trying to feed him bits of food. It was a win when he finally took some. When the time came for me to put him back down with his siblings, he just looked at me with big puppy eyes and tried to hold on with his paws. 
I'd heard a few reports that he started thriving (yay!), and I was delighted to finally see it for myself!
I've said it before, but seeing sleddies who have settled into their new homes is just the best. And since it's hard to stop at one sleddie, his family is fostering Yang, who arrived in that same group and the two of them are fantastic playmates. (BTW, Yang is adoptable!)

Black and Robbie arrived together back in June. Robbie (who is now Raspberry) led the way so I didn't get any action photos, but she did give me some good faces once we were done! Black (who's rumour has it is all but adopted), got her  first taste of being off leash and, well, let's just say that she's going to be an on-leash sleddie for a while longer. Though she and her foster brother Twister (of the floppy ears) are close, Black's still learning about this whole retired life thing.
 
Sweet Ying just couldn't mentally get herself out of the truck to join on the walk - even with some friends and her foster sister Benga on hand. It just wasn't to be, today. I'm told she does really well generally, but maybe the pre-walk energy was just been too much for her. Her foster family are patient and let her find her own pace, so they'll try again another time.

Along the paths the younger dogs ran and ran and ran, and the older ones kept a more moderate pace with brief moments of zoomies. Yes, Jasper I'm look at you! 
Portia is back to her pre-lost dog adventure self from earlier this year and is doing so well! She took treats from me which she never did before, and just seemed more relaxed in general. She's still pretty silly though!

Argus is another one whose true self is emerging. He's super chill at home and on today's walk he was much more relaxed than I've seen at previous ones. With age catching up a bit he's losing a bit of vision, but his mom was gushing about him and what a bright spot he is in their family. Also, he LOVES being brushed so he got lots of finger brushing before the walk and even along the way!

Biggie is still the happy-go-lucky guy he's been since I first met him back in April 2021. He motors along, stops for treats and has some of thee best head tilts around!

My old friend Apex donned his best bell. It's now a fixture on him on walks and comes in handy when he trundles behind a bit or heads off the path... or decides to head off on his own like he did today. Mary Kate + Roo got their zoomie time too, but with a big group like today, they stuck close Deb.

Some of the dogs on today's walk were so fearful when they arrived into care it was best not to look in their direction, or they'd want to escape. To see them loose and happy and adventuring, something they may never have had the chance to experience, is something that isn't taken for granted by their families. To have the support of a patient human who will go at their pace to help them build confidence, experience the world safely and spend time with other dogs who are just cool cucumbers. Who will also be there to support them as they age and slow down, is how it should be. 

These walks are important for the dogs as well as the people. While the dogs do their thing, the humans talk about all things sleddie... and no topic is taboo! 

Along the walk, we met an adoptee named Duncan. His mom was expecting to meet another dog group for a walk but couldn't find them, so they ended up joining ours. Yay Duncan!

At the end of the walk a few of us stayed to chat. This is usually the best time for photo ops -- the dogs are tired, the excitement has worn off and everyone just chills out. Shi (formerly Shining) took the opportunity of the smaller group to get treats, LOTS of loves, drink water from my hand (!), pose for me, then nap. She and Idefix arrived into care not even a month ago, but she's settling really well, spending days napping in the front yard of her foster family's home and getting all the love she wants. 

Thank you to today's crew for allowing me the photo ops! You are all ambassadors for change!

​Sleddie roll call:
We had 14 sleddies on today's walk!
Apex, Mary Kate + Roo, Argus, Biggie, Jasper + Portia, Raspberry (formerly Robbie), Shi (adoptable), Twister + Black, (adoptable) Yang + Yukon (foster brother), (adoptable) Ying + Benga (foster brother).

Please click through photos in gallery to view photos full size.
To see all blog posts about a particular sleddie, please click on their name on the right side of the page.

It's been a week and a day since Idéfix + Shining arrived into care and both are doing really well.

Idéfix is in foster home a couple blocks from me and since Shining is hanging there for a few days while her foster family is out camping (an activity that might've been a bit too much, too soon for her), I took the opportunity to visit!

When we picked up the dogs from the airport August 7, it became clear right away that Idéfix was a velcro dog and needed support from humans, and that hasn't changed. 
Although Shining (now called Shi) came to sniff me out and then hang out with me for pets and to lick my arms, it took Idéfix about 20-30 mins to settle enough to smell me, like not just sniff me, but smell me... and I think doing that may have triggered a memory from our time together last week, because once he crossed that threshhold, he wanted all the pets and attention... just like Shi. And he still does the thing when he licks you that he bonks his teeth on you too... full contact style.
​
The visit also provided a chance for me to get a good look at Shi's right eye -- it's like the sky and forest in one -- half white/blue and half dark. Beautiful.
Idéfix's eyes are both beautifully blue. It's likely his vision is limited though -- we noticed a few things upon intake and now that he's in a foster home, they've seen some clues too, including him bumping into things that are obvious.

One thing I've learned about sleddies over the years is that there are a fair number who don't understand personal space. There is no 'asking' to be on your lap, they just slowly make their move and then they're up, blocking your view. When they want your attention, they lean into you in case you didn't know they were there. When you're low to the ground with a camera in your hand (ahem), they don't care that you're trying for a photo op... they want both of your hands giving them scritches on their back end while they bend around to lick your face. And when one moves in for attention, others likely will too! So when these two both requested my attention at once, I did my best to accommodate - one hand on both dogs while camera in the other!

We're having some pretty warm days here in Victoria this last week, so even though our visit was in the morning, it was already getting pretty toasty so we kept it short(ish). Depending on the dog, it can take hours, days or weeks for them to feel comfortable enough for a neighbourhood walk. So while Shi seems game to explore slowly and cautiously, (she's got her leashes on as she was seen trying to stick her nose through a spot in the fence), Idéfix prefers to stay in the yard, and that's ok. In time he'll have the opportunity to venture out and sniff his new surroundings, meet the dogs in the neighbourhood and perhaps some new human friends too.
​
Here are some photos and video from yesterday's visit. We hope to do it again soon!

Welcome ​Idéfix + Shining!

These two super sleddies arrived into care on August 7 and it's taken me a bit to put their story together. I originally tagged along on the pick up with camera in hand, but ended up using my phone for video mostly. So... I've created a 3-minute video from about 3 hours on Monday.

​Idéfix is the beautiful blue-eyed male. No, you're not seeing things... he's got somewhat crossed eyes and/or a lazy eye. Also he's got a spotted coat, a bit heeler-ish, but more than likely German Short-haired pointer as they're often part of the sled dog mixes. He's a young 9.
Shining is the beauty with two different coloured eyes. She's a bit floofier than ​Idéfix and was a bit slower to open up. When she did though, she loved getting some loves. Shining is 8!

Both dogs had travelled on a morning flight from Whitehorse, YT to us in Victoria, BC. I'm really amazed each time new dogs arrive after flights. I can only imagine what they may be wondering. Their started their day as usual, but it took a left turn somewhere and they've landed in a whole new place. The sounds, sights... and SMELLS. It's all new. It's all different.

It's been a few days now since they arrived and their foster homes have noted that they have both finally did their business (outside!) and are eating a bit. This is a big win as it often takes days for new arrivals to feel safe enough to do seemingly normal things like eat and do their business. Mostly they sleep or pace... or sleep and pace. 

I've learned ​Idéfix is being fostered close by so I'm looking forward to popping over for a visit. Upon arrival he was a velcro dog. He gave licks - the kind where you can feel his teeth pressing on your face because he's really getting in there (see video). And though they were mostly stress-related 'kisses', instead of shutting down, he was looking to me... an unknown human, for some sort of comfort. Back at the shelter for intake, he gave kisses to Deb while getting weighed.

Their decompression will take time, but the support is in place for these two to learn about a whole new life and maybe even dip their toes in the ocean.

Welcome to your official retirement Idéfix + Shining!!
xo

p.s. Idéfix and Shining are the 250th and 251st sleddies I've photographed for this project! A milestone for sure.