FAIRBANKS — The Office of the State Veterinarian is treading lightly as it begins work on drafting expanded animal health care standards for sled dogs, pets, horses and other animals.

The issue likely will be a heated discussion in a state famous for its sled dogs and sub-zero temperatures and the State Veterinarian’s office is doing all it can to make sure mushers, veterinarians and the general public will get a say in shaping the standards.

The revisions are aimed at clarifying and strengthening the role of the state troopers and animal control officers when dealing with animal neglect and abuse cases, said Assistant State Veterinarian Jay Fuller during a work session to gauge interest and get a sense of preliminary concerns in Anchorage on Thursday.

“One of the big reasons that we need to develop standards is to make it more clear to animal control officers and peace officers and to veterinarians and to the general public what constitutes proper care, what constitutes lawful care and what constitutes humane care,” he said.

The office hopes to create expanded standards in five animal categories: and will fall into five categories: domestic animals — which includes sled dogs as well as pets — horses, livestock, birds and exotic animals.

To make sure the standards are realistic and acceptable to the general public, Fuller said the office of the state veterinarian will host multiple public work sessions with each group during the next few months before proposed standards are released for formal public review next summer. Anyone is invited to attend the sessions in person or on the phone.

The state has posted a preliminary draft of care standards, which already has drawn some concerns, but Fuller reminded the audience they are solely intended as a starting place and he expects to see them change as the public shares its input.

“We don’t know what it’s going to look like,” he said. “It could be possible that sections of this document will look like they do now, and it’s possible that other sections could end up drastically different.”

Fuller went out of his way to calm concerns that the proposed standards might make it difficult or even illegal to mush dogs.

“There won’t be any adopted regulations that will make it against the law to mush dogs,” he said, “but what is up for public discussion are things that constitute proper minimal animal care.”

Revised changes would be enforceable by state troopers and municipalities with police powers.

More information on meetings, the proposed standards and the state’s effort, visit the vetrinarian’s website at www.dec.state.ak.us/eh/vet/.

People interested in participating in the discussions should email Fuller at jay.fuller@alaska.gov and indicate which category or categories they are interested in.