Just like the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, the slaughter of the sled dogs that took place shortly after the Olympics was highly publicized. In April of 2010, a Howling Dog Tours’ worker was obligated to carry out the cull of the sled dogs after business had been significantly reduced since the Winter Olympics. The massacre came to light when the worker filed a claim for post-traumatic stress. Outdoor Adventure Whistler found itself deep in the middle of this controversy because it owns a financial stake of the company; however, it made it clear that it had no part in the administrating or directing of the sled dog tours.

On a legal stand point, it is legal to shoot the dogs considering that the dogs die instantaneously. In other words, it is legal if the dogs are killed humanely.  Instead the dogs witnessed members of the pack being shot right in front of their eyes. To add to the cruelty, the dogs were shot multiple times and put into a mass grave. On top of that a dog had to be killed by a knife because the worker ran out of ammunition. The main ethical issue is whether or not it was an acceptable or ethical solution. There were other available options like finding the dogs new homes or putting the dogs in animal shelters or even hiring a professional to end the lives of the dogs humanely.

http://www.ctvnews.ca/100-healthy-sled-dogs-slaughtered-in-whistler-b-c-1.602361