After five decades in Snowmass Village, and a contentious dispute with the town, Krabloonik Dog Sledding is closed for good.
Owner Danny Phillips had about 150 dogs at the beginning of the season, including some working animals and some retirees. He has rehomed just about all of them to sanctuaries, mushers and other adopters; Phillips wrote in an email this week that the last dogs will be picked up by Friday.
Krabloonik was supposed to vacate the premises by June 1 as part of a settlement agreement with the town of Snowmass Village, but the town has given Phillips a couple of extra weeks to get the property in ship shape, town manager Clint Kinney said on Wednesday. The business on Divide Road officially opened in 1976, two years after receiving county approvals; as Phillips put it in an email Thursday, “50 years of operation means 50 years of accumulation,” and he still has some clean-up to do as he sells or donates items from the business.
Snowmass Village owns the land, and two years ago, they attempted to evict Krabloonik over violations to the “Best Practices” for animal treatment that were attached to the lease. Several people had reported concerns about animal welfare, and the sheer number of animals on the property.
Krabloonik owner Danny Phillips fought that eviction with legal action of his own. He maintains that the pressure to close Krabloonik came from a small group of vocal activists.
The cases were ultimately consolidated, and a settlement in 2023 ended the eviction process. A subsequent “wind down” plan allowed Phillips to operate for one last season this winter while finding new homes for his dogs. Kinney said Phillips has responsibly met the requirements of the settlement conditions, and the closure process has moved forward in a good manner.
In an email, Phillips expressed gratitude for the community who helped with the adoption process to ensure the dogs found suitable homes and didn’t end up in shelters.
“The people who understood my dogs adopted them,” he said.
Snowmass Village has received multiple proposals for the Krabloonik property, including one for a smaller-scale dog sledding operation, but has not yet determined a future use, town manager Kinney said. The property’s use is currently limited by a Planned Unit Development guide, which allows a single-family home, open space, or another business similar to Krabloonik — which has operated both sled-dog and restaurant facilities. Other uses, such as workforce housing, would require a change to the PUD, Kinney said.
The town has not set a formal timeline to review future uses of the property, Kinney said.
As for his own future plans, Phillips wrote he is “ready for a simple life.”
“I’m taking a couple of my old dog friends and we will find peace,” he wrote.
