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Most Alaskans are familiar with some aspect of dog mushing, but that isn't quite the case with those living in the Lower 48. However, those Outside will soon be introduced to one of the best ambassadors of our state sport, and she's from right here on the Kenai Peninsula.

Jill Garnet, of Kasilof, has a four-page spread in the Feb. 9 issue of People magazine. She was featured for her dedication to taking in unwanted sled dogs and training them to compete at a high level.

"Oddly enough, I haven't even seen it yet," Garnet said humbly.

But humble is her lifestyle. Along with her husband, Paul, the two live in the 280-sq.-ft. cabin they built together, and unlike many mushers, their 15 dogs live inside with them.

"Our program is an attempt to give them the best of both worlds. So during the day, they live outdoors and run around in a 2-acre fenced-in yard. At night, they all come in the house. They're all house-trained, and socialized to people and socialized to each other," she said.

Garnet has done more than just taken in these castaway canines, though. She has also taught them to pull, and pull well. While competing in the Kenai Peninsula sprint racing circuit, she and her team finished in first place nine times last season alone, and she set a course record in a 10-dog race, covering 4.5 miles in 14 minutes, 8 seconds. -- not bad for dogs that were deemed by some others as unworthy of keeping around, or in some cases alive at all, had Garnet not intervened.

"We have 15 dogs, 14 of which are sled dogs, and they've all come from different places. About half were pet surrenders, and half came from a mushing environment where they were unwanted," she said.

Garnet said the limelight the People article brings to her dogs, and others like them that haven't been adopted yet, is more important than any credit she may receive.

"There are just so many dogs in need and I can't save every one, but maybe I can inspire others to save more than I could alone -- that is why I participated with the article," she said.

And while the magazine hasn't yet hit newsstands in Alaska, it has been distributed in the Lower 48, and Garnet has already received positive feedback.

"Random people around the country have contacted me and said they were inspired, so I think for what we're trying to do with dogs, it's a good thing. I'm hoping people will read it and will take a better look at not just sled dogs, but all dogs, because there are a lot in shelters around the country.

"We want people to give shelter dogs a chance, or even if they go with a dog that's not from a shelter, we want them to go into it educated, so the dog doesn't end up in one," she said.

Garnet said for people interested in adopting a dog, the Kenai Animal Shelter and the Soldotna Animal Control Shelter are two local options. For sled dog rescue specifically, she recommended the Second Chance League in Fairbanks, which works to place huskies with responsible pet owners all over the U.S. The group's Web site is www.scl.petfinder.org.

Joseph Robertia can be reached at joseph.robertia@peninsulaclarion.com.