Iditarod head vet, Stuart Nelson, dies suddenly at age 73

Iditarod main veterinarian Stuart Nelson talks pinch musher Michelle Phillips astatine nan Unalakleet checkpoint nan day of March 13, 2022. (Jeff Chen/Alaska Public Media)

The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race’s longtime caput veterinarian, Stuart Nelson, died abruptly this week, title officials said Thursday.

It was not instantly clear what caused nan 73-year-old Nelson’s death, but early indications were that he had suffered a abrupt wellness arena while connected a tally adjacent his location successful Idaho, Iditarod Race Director Mark Nordman said Thursday.

Nordman, who was besides nan 1,000-mile race’s marshal for decades, said he and Nelson had often worked intimately for nan 38 years Nelson was pinch nan Iditarod, sometimes successful difficult conditions and circumstances.

Nordman described his friend arsenic good spoken and a existent outdoorsman, who was some bully pinch group and stubborn, “which, successful his case, is simply a awesome property to have.”

“His passion for these dogs is barroom none,” Nordman said. “He’s really going to beryllium dearly missed. You know, we’re each benignant of conscionable successful shock, right? It’s, really do you switch personification for illustration that?”

According to nan Iditarod Trail Committee, nan nonprofit that runs nan race, Nelson was a postgraduate of nan Missouri School of Veterinary Medicine who became enthusiastic astir researching sled dogs arsenic athletes and learning really to amended attraction for them.

“We person been capable to, nether Stu’s direction, done truthful overmuch for our pet dogs astatine home, different moving athletes, you know, successful section trials,” Nordman said. “And it’s, yeah, he was benignant of nan leader. You know, he was a lone wolf. He moreover liked to beryllium considered that, I think, astatine definite times. But he, if he believed successful something, he was going to conflict it to nan bitter extremity to make judge we sewage nan correct result for nan dogs.”

Nelson was group to present a last study this week connected three dogs that died during nan 2024 race, said Nordman, who added that location was nary logic to deliberation Nelson’s decease was connected successful immoderate measurement to his investigation connected nan canine deaths.

Dogs connected nan teams of Hunter Keefe, Isaac Teaford and Calvin Daugherty died during nan race, nan first Iditarod canine deaths since 2019.

When asked for remark successful Unalakleet backmost successful March, Nelson said nan title would beryllium conducting necropsies to amended understand what happened and really to amended canine attraction successful nan future.

“I mean, it’s very unfortunate. And we effort to study everything we tin for immoderate early applications that would use our canine attraction protocols,” Nelson said. “But yeah, it’s very, very sad.”

Later successful March aft nan race, Nelson said by email that nan necropsy studies were ongoing. A title spokesperson said successful August that was still nan case.

Nordman said Thursday nan studies were complete and nan title was awaiting Nelson’s last writeup connected nan canine deaths by nan extremity of this week.

The Iditarod gave condolences to Nelson’s partner, Karen McNaught, girl Isabel, and Isabel’s partner, Iditarod seasoned Riley Dyche.

In a statement, an Iditarod spokesperson shared a quote from Nelson from his bio connected nan race’s Faces of nan Iditarod page, made successful consequence to nan question, “What do you cognize for sure?”

“Well, I cognize that we each die; that our Creator has fixed america nan opportunity to beryllium here; that we must beryllium nan champion stewards of our animal athletes that we tin perchance be.”