Utah ranch connects tourists with rescued canine athletes
PEOA, Utah (ABC4) — In the mountain town of Peoa, Utah, a dog sledding ranch wants you to be a part of the pack and spend time with their athletes. It’s all part of the tour at Rancho Luna Lobos.
“I think a lot of people come out for tourism and they think, oh, dog sled ride, that that’ll be so exciting, but in all reality, when we come here, we want them to see that this is so much more,” said Rancho Luna Lobos co-owner Dana Ramirez.
There are 90 dogs at the ranch. The family rescues them and brings them into their pack. Some are even used to race on their sled dog team.
“We use the stories of our rescue dogs to help illustrate overcoming obstacles, having perseverance to achieve dreams, and to be sort of a better version of yourself,” co-owner Fernando Ramirez said. “So, it’s more than just a ride here.”
Running and training these dogs all started when Fernando was a kid.
“I’ll never forget my first race, showing up at Alpine, Wyoming, with a yellow lab as my lead dog and having two siberian huskies behind them. Showing up to the line, I kind of got laughed out a little bit as a 9, 10 year old. I was a little heartbroken,” Fernando said.
Now decades later, the athletes he partners with compete with the best annually.
“The focus is world championships every year,” he said “So, we’ve been really lucky to compete in three different world championships. We’ve made two teams, USA teams going overseas, Sweden and Spain.”
The owners live onsite with the pack, as people come from all over to see what it’s like to be a part of their big family.
“We want to make an impact in your life,” Dana said. “Every single day, changing the way you think, to go and overcome obstacles and chase your dreams by showing you what our dogs can do, by overcoming their obstacles and chasing their dreams.”