The Team

Joy’s life went to the dogs 20 years ago when she went on a one week-long, dog sled tour in the backcountry of the Yukon, Canada. Afterwards, her preferred mode of travel was by dog power. (Dog sled in the snow and dog scooter without snow.) After working as a professional musher in Alaska (2013-2015), her family, which then included 13 Alaskan Huskies, moved to Colorado where she has continued guiding dog sled tours.

Animal lover and Caretaker. Sterling's passion is making sure people and animals feel loved and have fun. Dogsledding is a perfect way to do both. Sterling has been exceptionally supportive of Mountain Paw's for over a year. This winter (2024-2025) he is also stepping into the role of handler and guide.

As an avid skier and experienced hiker, Tammy can be described as an outdoor enthusiast. She is also an animal lover -- horses and dogs in particular. Her passion for dogsledding has led her to us. Tammy is an incredibly supportive member of the Mountain Paws team.

Tamarack a.k.a. Tammy

Name Theme: Tree (Her brothers are Aspen, Cedar & Birch)

Image the bossy older sister. That’s Tammy! She knows what is right and tells you so. She is extremely smart and tries to understand and analyze everything. Tammy is also an awesome leader.

"I'm just trying to figure you out!"

Mary

Name Theme: Helicopter Pilot

Born on the glacier outside of Juneau, Alaska with her brother Scott, Mary was named for the only female helicopter pilot who flew cruise clients up to the glacier. Mary is very outgoing and friendly. She loves (sometimes demands) to have her tummy and tail rubbed.

"Please scratch my tail."

Sue

Name Theme: Favorite Vet

Sue’s mother is Maple, a leader and Golden Harness recipient of Lance Mackey’s winning Iditarod team. This beautiful dog with the amber eyes and expressive ears comes from a great line of racers. Sue is a little shy until she sits on the couch with you. She is also the mother of the puppies.

"Let me cuddle on the couch with you."

Jago

Name Theme: Alaskan River

Packed solid with muscle, this girl is an incredible powerhouse. Leader, teammate, and all-round versatile athlete, Jago is very passionate and dependable. She is known for her cute little dance she performs when she is really happy.

"I'm so pretty, oh so pretty..."

Kanuti

Name Theme: Alaskan River

Even though Kanuti is quiet and reserved with new people, she is a very loyal and sensitive soul. On the contrary, Kanuti becomes extremely animated and excited when it is time to run. She jumps like a kangaroo in anticipation.

"If you are happy, hop with me."

Poke

Name Theme: Gold Mining

A “poke” is an old gold rush term for a sack of gold. Poke is the loud mouth of the pack. She just can’t seem to contain her enthusiasm. She prefers to run in the back of the team, especially with her sister Nugget. When viewed from behind, she and Nugget look like Siamese twins.

"I'm so excited, I just can't hide it!"

Nugget

Name Theme: Gold Mining

Even though Nugget gets nervous when meeting new people, she is exuberant when it’s time to run. Her enthusiasm is contagious. She and her sister Poke are best friends.

"Be patient with me, I'm a little shy."

Holly

Name Theme: Christmas

Holly turned out to be a good name for this sweet little dog. She trimmed all of the pine branches near her house. Even though she is small (30 lbs), she puts her whole heart into everything she does. As a lead dog, she can motivate the rest of the team.

"I may be tiny, but I'm tough."

Gypsy

Name Theme: Her personality

Gypsy is spunky, feisty and very energetic. As a sprint dog, she loves to run fast (20-30 mph) when given the chance. She is an independent little girl with attitude. Careful: She likes to nibble on your fingers.

Major Tom

Name Theme: David Bowie

Major Tom is stable and dependable. He has a sweet disposition and enjoys meeting people. He prefers to run in the back of the team with his brother Ziggy. He also enjoys playing with the puppies and kids.

Ziggy

Name Theme: David Bowie

Ziggy is best described as extreme! Extremely happy, extremely passionate and extremely hard working. Since he loves to kiss you, it is also extremely difficult to put a harness on him.

"Let me kiss you!"

Silver

Name Theme: Precious metal

Silver is indeed precious. After retiring from a race team in Leadville, this sweet and gentle dog is now content to run tours. Silver is a good natured, hard-working dog who feels that his job is to support the team. His unique eyes capture the attention: one is brown and one is blue.

Scott

Name Theme: Helicopter Pilot

Born on the glacier outside of Juneau with his sister Mary, Scott was named for a helicopter pilot who flew cruise clients up to the glacier for summer dog sled tours. Scott has participated in some of the big Alaskan races. In 2017 he retired from racing and moved to Colorado. Scott then quickly hooked up with Sue and fathered the puppies.

Captain Crunch

Name Theme: Cereal

Known as Captain, kids enjoy guessing which Captain he is named after. After working with Monarch Sled Dogs for two years, Captain and Ox joined our team. He and Eagle soon thereafter (2024) presented us with five new puppies.

Captain is a very long-legged and strong Alaskan Husky. He has become an asset to the team.

Ox

Name Theme: Arctic Animal

Named after the Arctic Muskox, he is also very strong.  Ox also came to us from Monarch Sled Dogs in 2024. His features show some hound in his background. Ox and Captain are good friends.

Austin

Austin’s personality can be summed up as a momma’s boy. He is sweet and sensitive and loves playing with his brother. He also has a unique range of vocal expressions as he tries to "talk" to you. He has become a very good lead dog.

Canyon

Canyon is very intelligent and a natural leader. She invents games and then inspires the other puppies to play by her rules. Canyon has also become a good leader, except that she wants to be in charge.

Eagle

Eagle is extremely sweet and serious-minded. She is very gentle and wants to please. So far, Eagle prefers to be in a supportive rather than in a leadership position.

Forest

Forest is lovable, energetic, goofy and outgoing. He has a class-clown personality. Yet when it comes to running, he is very motivated. He also loves to give hugs.

Timber

Name Theme: Wolf

Our first Siberian Husky looks like a Timberwolf, hence his name. Timber is known as our CFO - Chief Fun Officer. He loves to play with everyone. Timber particularly enjoys stealing gloves and scarves and not giving them back.

Phantom

Name Theme: Phantom of The Opera

Phantom and his brother Rascal love running together in the back of the team. After a great run, Phantom often encourages his musher to roll in the snow with him.

Rascal

Name Theme: The Litle Rascals

On Rascal’s first day with us, he earned his name by striking off on his own to explore the national forest. Fortunately, he found his way back to us after 10 hours of adventure. Rascal is calm and gentle, especially with children.

Brooklyn

Name Theme: Location

Guests are instantly captivated by Brooklyn’s beautiful blue eyes and her adoring expression when she is getting attention. She is a friendly, gentle giant.

Yoyo

Name Theme: Toy

Yoyo is constantly bouncing up and down, hence her name. Since she is still a puppy, Yoyo’s main job is to greet and kiss the clients, which she does enthusiastically.

Yoyo decided to join us when she was 7 months old. Now that she is full grown, we can see that she is a Siberian mix. She is not quite as fluffy as the other Siberians.

Angel (2006-2021)

As a Golden Labrador, Angel was not a typical sled dog, but learned to love pulling and especially being the leader of a team. Originally from Germany, Angel was trained as a therapy dog as well as the leader for Joy’s scooter. After moving to Alaska, she started running with the professional sled dogs. At the age of 10 she retired from sledding and was content to hunt squirrels and write her travel blog. Check out her blog...mostly pictures as she did not type very well.

https://travelswithangel.wordpress.com/ https://www.facebook.com/travelswithangel/