Tour Guide / Dog Handler Couple - Fairbanks, AK

A racing and touring kennel outside of Fairbanks, Alaska, is seeking a responsible, hard-working couple to fill the position of Tour Guide/Dog Handler. The position would be demanding, yet very rewarding for animal-lovers looking for adventure, personal growth, and quality time in the wilderness. The primary duty of the position would be to entertain and guide tour visitors, as well as assist with daily-maintenance functions of the kennel. A motivated, energetic person would also be asked to help train our distance dog teams. Note the kennel location is beautiful, but very rural, and the days can be long. Trips to town would be infrequent, especially if the couple does not have their own vehicle. We believe hiring a couple to fill the Tour Guide/Dog Handler positions will provide the greatest level of comfort, commitment and enjoyment for all of us.  

Tour Description -

Tours at Black Spruce Dog Sledding are ranked as the #1 Outdoor Activity to do in Fairbanks on Trip Advisor. Our private, personalized, 2-hour tours immerse visitors in the “mushing lifestyle.” This isn’t an amusement park or petting zoo – although we certainly have elements of both! This is a well-rounded, full-scope perspective of what it takes to raise and train long distance racing dogs.

Visitors get a basic primer on the history of Alaskan Huskies. Then they’re invited to walk around and interact with our kennel of 40+ sled dogs. Visitors also learn how to harness the dogs and hook them up in team. The sledding portion of the tour is on a 4 mile scenic loop through Alaska’s boreal forest, with plenty of panoramic mountain and forest views. By using a tag sled for our tours, visitors get the opportunity to both sit in and drive a dog sled. Once back in the yard, the running dogs get some free time out of harness before we bring them back to their individual houses.

Dates of Employment -

Exact start dates are semi-flexible. Ideally tour guides would begin work in September, and be able to stay until late April or May.

Preference will be given to couples interested in staying with us for at least two seasons.

Responsibilities –

• Keep the entire kennel looking like the #1, Top-Rated, 5-star tour kennel that it is! This means noticing anything “askew” and righting it (gift shop, sled parking area, parking cones)
• Run up to four dog sledding tours per day, 3 to 5 days a week. Some days or weeks will be less than that, depending on the time of year
• Assist with hooking up dog teams for training runs
• Take teams on training runs and camping trips (depending on interest and ability)
• Provide dog health care (massage, laser treatments, icing)
• Run errands to pick up supplies for the kennel – water, fuel, dog food
• Provide road side assistance to customers upon request (ie pulling vehicles from snowy ditches)
• Clean dog yard (scoop poop) throughout the day
• Clean the outhouse throughout the tour day as necessary
• Snow removal, including plowing and shoveling
• Assist with fielding business phone calls
• Assist with responding to business emails
• Assist with kennel chores – bundling dog booties, taking gift shop inventory, etc
• Groom tour trail with snowmachine, groomer attachment and shovel

Desired Skills and Personality Traits -

• Experience and comfort with large, energetic dogs
• Experience with horses or other livestock
• Experience living in a winter climate (not just visiting)
• Experience camping and “roughing it” in general
• Anticipate and notice “what needs to be done” without being told
• Ability to work alone, without direct supervision
• Fast learner
• Organized
• Physically tough
• Mentally tough
• Loving and compassionate with dogs
• Level-headed and adverse to personal drama
• Genuine joy for engaging visitors in the mushing lifestyle
• Genuine interest in learning more about the mushing lifestyle
• Excellent written communicator
• Optimistic and positive

Compensation –

Housing: Housing will be provided in a 12 x 16, private one-room log cabin on 5 acres separate from our main house. Cabin is new, warm and well-insulated. Heat source will be either oil or wood. Company will provide a winter’s worth of wood or oil for the stove. Energy source is a very efficient, Yamaha 2000 watt gas-powered generator. You supply the fuel for the generator (company has the containers). Cooking stove is propane. You supply the propane (company has the cylinders). The cabin is termed as “dry,” which means it doesn’t have indoor plumbing. However, it does have a sink basin and several 5 gallon jugs to be used for hauling water. Water can be hauled from town or from the main house. Showers and laundry can also be had in the main house or in town. You have your own private outhouse near the cabin.

Wages: At minimum, the couple will receive a living stipend of $200 each week ($100/person), as well as an additional $100 each month to be applied to the couple’s cell phone bill. Once the initial training period is over, guides may begin assisting with or running their own tours. The pay per guide, per tour is $50 (up to 4 tours/day). These wages are negotiable depending on applicant’s experience, and may increase throughout the tour season as guides take on more responsibilities and exhibit learned skills in various areas.

The application period is now open!

We’ll be accepting and reviewing applications through July 1^st although we may shorten or extend the application window as we hunt for the perfect couple to hire. Please send us your resume!