It's all about the dogs

Of course it is --they do not call it sled DOG racing for  nothing! At Slow Rush Kennel, there are forty four dogs, and quite a diversity of canines they are.  I know I have covered this before but I'll do a quick refresher. There are mainly three kinds of Sled Dogs. The Malamutes are the 'traditional' ones and a recognized breed. They are the 'draft horses" of the sled dog world, big, thick coated and strong. They are not as fast but they can pull like diesel locomotives. Then there are the Siberian Huskies, also a recognized breed, and were used more for racing in the past although some mushers still favor them and still run them. Many feel they are slower but that's an aficionado discussion. They look like what most people visualize when they think of "Huskies"--thick coat, curly tail, erect ears, often the heart shaped mask on their faces and frequently blue eyes.

Alaskan Huskies are not a recognized breed yet because they are high order mutts, mixing the Siberian and traditional native Eskimo/Indian dogs with everything from Labs to Pointers and even maybe a  bit of  GSD and other breeds. They come in yellow, the common gray-brown, white, black, black and white--you name it. They may have erect,  drooping or even flopping ears, sometimes even one of each and brown, amber or blue eyes--or again a mix. Most mushers have a breeding program, some merely to improve their own racing stock and others to sell or lease some dogs while they keep the ones they feel are most promising. Slow Rush has bred in the past but is not actively doing so now. Kyia has also acquired dogs from Hans Gatt, Lance Mackey and other mushers in Alaska and Canada. She also runs a kind of informal Husky Rescue and keeps several that will never race again and maybe only go on the most mild and gentle of fun runs around the area.  With this background, let's get down to individual dogs.

Oh, a word on dog yards first, too. Probably 99% of kennels keep dogs on chains. For pets I do not hold with this but I see many sound reasons why it is done with huskies. Many of them are kept intact for several years while a musher explores their potential; good bloodlines may not guarantee the good qualities have come through. Therefor, fights and unplanned matings are a risk and to be minimized. No two dogs are close enough to each other to more than sniff noses or maybe touch a paw. They are safer this way and it makes managing a big collection of dogs feasible. Each dog has its own house, a box suitable in size to the dog with a square opening on one side for a door. In the winter boxes are lined with straw for warmth. The dog's chain is attached to a pole about five feet high and swivels so the dog can run in circles and not normally get tangled. It can also get in as well as on its house.

Okay, so at Slow Rush, there are actually five fenced dog yards where several dogs are housed with their own boxes and the trampled circle where they run around--and run they do, many are seldom still. Bowls are attached to one side of the box and have a swivel so they can be tipped to one side to empty them such as dump the ice when colder temps arrive. Normally they get both food and water in the same dish.

My first morning I got into each area. The dogs did not know me so some backed off and others charged, trying to jump up on me and see if I was timid. Within a few days since I was feeding them, we got acquainted and several became friends. Today we'll go into the first area, the upper pen on the east side of the main cabin.

The first dog here is Killer. It's a girl and the name is not a good fit. She is sandy color with erect ears and very pale amber eyes, almost yellow. She is not really shy but not given to jumping on you. Someone thought she had pit bull eyes; thus the name. She is really very sweet. Although she has been a good leader, she has developed arthritis in her right shoulder and is getting THC on a trial basis to see if it helps. I walked her on a lead a few times for gentle exercise.

Next is Angie, another yellow dog, a bit taller and very racy looking. Angie is good anywhere in a team and loves to run. She is high energy but does have a problem with occasional seizures and is on meds for them. Kyia usually runs her in wheel, right in front of the sled (or ATV) so she can be taken out of the harness and controlled if she does have a seizure. She has pale grey or 'blue' eyes.

Sesi is another yellow or blonde dog and she is known as the song

She turned just as I clicked!
Marja is behind her. 

leader. If you can get her to howl she will soon have the whole pack singing along. She is part of a litter of 'big dogs' that Kyia raised in Canada who have a lot of Malamute blood.  She is very active as well and delighted in splashing when you came to feed or clean her area so as to sling mud around!

Her partner and sister is Marja, a full sister but a little larger and of the typical brown/gray coloration. Marja is a clown and a bit lazy in team, not always wanting to lean into her tug line. (I'll cover the harness later.) Then we go down to a brother of these two, a big almost orangeade colored guy named Seku. He has the 'mask face' markings and likes to lounge on his house when it is sunny.

Seku

Newman; Seku behind him.

Next we come to two of the old guys, both eleven. I think they are brothers. They are both tan-yellow but Newman is a little darker. They still like to get out but both are starting to have some issues and may not be able to do more than a mile or two near home. We took them out one day with Newman in the lead with one of the smaller dogs. He got wobbly in the rear and would sit down ever so often. After a few minutes rest he would get up and go again but we were almost ready to take him out of harness and have me hold him across my legs to get him home. I wanted to cry; he was so game and so wanting to go but he just didn't have the power. His partner is Redford. Red has glaucoma, and gets eye drops daily. That day he was sharing wheel position with Angie and did okay.

So that's the rounds of the first group.   Here some of them and some others were hitched to the ATV.  I was holding the brakes on while Kyia checked the dogs. Angie and Redman are in the "wheel" position right in front of the machine. I think this was the first time Newman had some trouble and she was checking to see if he was bad off or not.  Sharing lead with him was a black and white girl named Piper; more on her later!