Dogs and crates everywhere!  That’s the dog lot in Nome.  Once the team crosses under the Burled Arch, Dr. Stu Nelson, Chief Veterinarian does a quick check on each dog.  Every dog on the team gets lots of pets and love from the musher, family and friends.  They have, after all, just run about 1,000 miles – they’ve earned it.

After that, the team is run down Front Street toward the Mini Convention and parked in the big dog lot where they join dogs from other teams that have finished.  They are cared for by the mushers and handlers and given a more thorough check up by vets.  Each dog has a crate that is filled with straw and they bed down for a well deserved rest.  The mushers are in charge of flying them back either to Anchorage or wherever their final destination may be.

The dog lot in Nome is a temporary home for Iditarod dogs.  Soon the dog lot will be empty and the 2013 Iditarod will be over.