--- description: Her handlers say the pup is a cheerleader for the whole team title: Iditarod 2015: Blind Dog Helps Musher image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt21f8781acc43b063/6987838235ba6f7bb5c078a6/iditarod-blind-dog-alaska-musher.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Newsfeed](/tag/time-section-newsfeed/) ## Newsfeed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Meet the Blind Dog Competing in the Iditarod  by [Olivia B. Waxman](/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer Mar 13, 2015 4:49 PM CUT  Musher Kelly Maixner, of Big Lake, Alaska, and an auction winner who rode in his sled, during the ceremonial start of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in Anchorage, Alaska, on March 7, 2015. Musher Kelly Maixner, of Big Lake, Alaska, and an auction winner who rode in his sled, during the ceremonial start of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in Anchorage, Alaska, on March 7, 2015.Mark Thiessen—AP  by [Olivia B. Waxman](/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer Mar 13, 2015 4:49 PM CUT A musher from North Dakota, Kelly Maixner, is banking on a blind dog to help finish in the top 10 at the 2015 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in western Alaska, the Associated Press reports via [KTUU-TV](http://www.ktuu.com/ "undefined"). Five years old and weighing 50 pounds, the Alaskan husky named Laura has a cornea disease called pannus, which a veterinarian diagnosed two years ago when the dog’s eyes started to look cloudy, [according to](http://www.ktuu.com/ "undefined") the Anchorage news station. “Sometimes I have to throw snacks on the ground extra hard so she can hear where it falls,” Maixner [told the news channel.](http://www.ktuu.com/ "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3744243/iditarod-2015-blind-dog/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3744243/iditarod-2015-blind-dog/"},"headline":"Meet the Blind Dog Competing in the Iditarod","datePublished":"2015-03-13T16:49:04.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:17:39.809Z","description":"Her handlers say the pup is a cheerleader for the whole team","url":"https://time.com/3744243/iditarod-2015-blind-dog/","keywords":["Newsfeed","animals"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt21f8781acc43b063/6987838235ba6f7bb5c078a6/iditarod-blind-dog-alaska-musher.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Olivia B. Waxman","jobTitle":"Staff Writer","url":"https://time.com/author/olivia-b-waxman/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt21f8781acc43b063/6987838235ba6f7bb5c078a6/iditarod-blind-dog-alaska-musher.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"iditarod-blind-dog-alaska-musher","caption":"Musher Kelly Maixner, of Big Lake, Alaska, and an auction winner who rode in his sled, during the ceremonial start of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in Anchorage, Alaska, on March 7, 2015.","creditText":"Mark Thiessen—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3744243/iditarod-2015-blind-dog/","name":"Meet the Blind Dog Competing in the Iditarod"}}]}] ```