COMMENT: Beattie's Canadian Dogsled Adventures operated by Blackcomb Snowmobiles [ http://www.whistlerquestion.com/article/20090401/WHISTLER01/304019832/sled-dogs-not-being-neglected-vet ]
was one of the two sled dog tour operations identified (Bob Fawcett's was the other one) as being under investigation after Sheree Porter Thomas's 2009 complaints about sled dog neglect and cruelty to the BC SPCA.
'Few dogsledding tours cancelled in Whistler' - Local tourism hasn’t suffered in wake of claim that up to 100 dogs were killed
Feb. 23, 2011
By Nicole Trigg
Special to the Question
While Whistler residents — and the rest of the world — await the conclusion of the RCMP/SPCA investigation into reports that a local dog sledding operator with Outdoor Adventures shot and stabbed up to 100 dogs last April, the resort does not seem to be experiencing a decline in tourism as a result of the allegations.
“We have not seen any cancellations or any changes in our bookings as a result of the incident,” said Barrett Fisher, president and CEO of Tourism Whistler. “That said, we all have very heavy hearts as we await the outcome of the official investigation.”
“We’ve been advised that not all the facts have come to light.”
Less than a week after news of the killing made headlines, the B.C. government appointed a provincial task force led by MLA and veterinarian Terry Lake to review the incident, as well as the responsibilities and regulations of the dog sledding industry.
Fisher was asked to join the provincial task force on behalf of Tourism Whistler and the Resort Municipality of Whistler.
“There is an opportunity for the task force and for Whistler specifically to take a leadership role in ensuring that positive recommendations are made that support animal rights for the future,” said Fisher.
“Whistler is a caring compassionate community,” she said, “and its citizens should not be judged by what has happened here but should be judged by our reaction and our collaboration moving forward.”
Tourism Whistler made the decision to suspend bookings with OAW (Outdoor Adventures) until the facts surrounding the investigation were clarified and “we’ll continue to monitor that on a daily basis,” Fisher said.
Following the allegations, Outdoor Adventures voluntarily suspended dog sled tours operations.
As a result, Craig Beattie, general manager for Canadian Snowmobile — one of the two remaining dog sled operators in Whistler — has seen a “large increase” in business for dog sled tours.
“With having Outdoor not operating at the moment, we’re pretty much at capacity every day,” said Beattie. “Outdoor walked a lot of their clients to us.”
Following the news of the so-called cull, Canadian Snowmobile opened its kennels to the media and Beattie asked front desk agents to put any clients looking to cancel in touch with him directly.
“We lost one (booking with a) family for late February who we emailed back and forth with and they had a hard time dealing with the idea of supporting the industry after such a tragic event,” he said. “There’ve been other tragic situations in our tourism industry for years but when it comes to animals there is such passion — I think is one of the main reasons there was such an outcry.”
Whistler Eco-Tours owner Keenan Moses said he has been fielding an “unbelievable amount” of questions about the incident, even though his company is more summer-based with a focus on eagle viewing and Olympic venue tours in the winter.
“There’s a lot of people just feeling me out, seeing what’s going on up here,” he said. “They do mention dogs, and I always say that we’re people-powered. They know I don’t do dogs, they know what we offer; they’re just wondering if we’re busy.”
With good group bookings lined up for the summer, Moses said he hasn’t had any cancellations due to the announcement about the dogs’ deaths.
The Tourism Whistler call centre received four cancelations for dog sledding tours, and none in accommodation bookings, when handling hundreds of calls at the time the story unfolded.
“We have received hundreds of voicemails and emails of people absolutely expressing their shock and concern,” said Fischer. “Most people understand that the incident as reported is an isolated incident.”
Realistically, said Beattie, people still want to go dog sledding but want to know that the dogs are well taken care of.
“I don’t think the situation will ever be forgotten in the many ways,” said Beattie, “but I do know that at the end of the day, there will be a whole different way dog sledding is going to be looked at — they’re magnificent animals.”
“Other companies will have to either step up or stop operating.”