RUMFORD — At the center of the children’s room at the Rumford Public Library on Jan. 15 sat something most of the kids there had never seen: a dog sled. But it was the three dogs with the sled who stole the show that afternoon.

The children’s presentation featured Sarah Garland with the dog sledding adventure business Ultimate Dog Sledding Experience, based in Canton.

As Garland talked about what a sled dog does for work and what makes them unique from other breeds, the Eurohound and Alaskan huskies gave friendly greetings, going from person to person.

“Our owner’s father started a dog sledding kennel in the ’80s, and then Alex (Therriault), my fiancé, took it over when he turned 18,” said Garland to the group of 50 people gathered. “His dad was just racing and recreationally running, and it was very expensive. He had 30 dogs at the time. So, he decided to get out of dog sledding because it was too expensive.”

Garland said that Therriault asked if he could take over the kennel so they could keep the equipment and start a touring company, allowing them to keep the dogs.

The Ultimate Dog Sledding Experience offers scenic guided dog sledding adventures through 250 acres of private woodland trails. Visitors can choose from various packages, with all tours including a chance to meet and cuddle the friendly, well-cared-for sled dogs, and time to warm up afterward in a traditional yurt with complimentary hot cocoa, coffee and tea.

The business is located at 631 Jewett Hill Road in Canton. A separate Mountain Tour location is in Hebron. Garland said they moved the business to Canton from Oxford three years ago, and before that they were in Hebron.

“We do a lot of our training runs on multi-use recreational trails throughout Maine,” Garland said. “Farmington and Hebron have some that are really straight and wide, which is really good for training dogs. A sled you can steer through tight, twisty turns in the woods, but a four wheeler with like 16 dogs in front of you, not so much.”

Garland said Therriault also participates in sled dog races, including those held in Fort Kent and Greenville. Eight dogs form the team in sled races, which range between 30- and 100-mile single day races to 250-mile, multi-day races.

Garland said there are 96 present and past sled dogs at their business.

“Most training companies retire out their dogs and get rid of them as they age out, but we keep ours, so our numbers are a bit high,” she said. “I can’t imagine getting rid of them just because they stopped working for me. It’s a labor of love.”

She said that every day, “each dog eats at least a pound of raw beef and then they eat Inukshuk Professional Dog Food, which is a high-energy dog kibble we get from Canada. It’s not uncommon for a dog at its peak performance to burn about 10,000 calories a day.”

“My biggest thank you goes to my dogs — some of whom have been with me for over 12 years,” Therriault said in a post on Facebook. “I’m thankful to see the 9th generation of great grandpups from my childhood kennel follow in their families’ footsteps.”

For more information, visit www.UltimateDogSleddingExperience.com.