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Travis is Into Iditarod!

Sarah · March 9, 2018 ·

What a run! Travis arrived into the ghost town of Iditarod at 9:23 this evening after 13 hours and 3 minutes on the trail. He stopped along the trail at Don’s cabin, arriving there at 12:24 and departing almost 4 hours later.

This put his actual travel time closer to 9 hours. Although most teams camped along the way to Iditarod, most of the front runner rested between 3 – 3.5 hours. He also passed four teams who left before him: Rick Casillo, Matt Hall, Michi Kono and Michelle Phillips.

The trail is soft and the weather warm. It sounds like both Travis and the dogs are having to work hard, but looks like their efforts are paying off through faster run times than those immediately surrounding him. His goal is to maintain speed and to continue picking off the teams ahead of him.

Lou Pereira prepa Travis’ sled for shipment to Unalakleet. Due to the expected forecast, we decided to tarp it. — Lou Pereira preps Travis’ second sled for shipment to Unalakleet. Due to the expected snowy forecast, we decided to tarp it.

For my part, I spent the day preparing and shipping out a sled after getting word that Travis thought it would be a good idea. The only problem was the sled he wanted was buried under snow, had no sled bag, and by the the time I got word I only had a few hours to get it prepped and to Anchorage.

Thanks to my friend Lou Perieria, Noah Pereira’s dad, we were able to find a sled bag and get the sled out before the shipping company closed. It will make it’s way to Unalakleet early tomorrow morning provided the weather holds. Keep your fingers crossed!

I expect Travis to leave Iditarod between 4 and 5 hours after his arrival. This puts him on the trail somewhere between 1:30 and 2:30 in the morning — which is hard.

Travis at the finish of the Ceremonial start of the 2018 Iditarod. Here he is loving on Blue and her aunt Gremlin. — Travis at the finish of the Ceremonial start of the 2018 Iditarod. Here he is loving on Blue, the youngest dog in the team, and her aunt Gremlin, one of the oldest dogs in the team.

The human body seems hardwired to want to sleep at this god forsaken hour and staying awake can be a real struggle. From about 2am to 5am is often great mushing for the dogs — cooler weather, harder trails —- but can be tough on the musher. It also sounds like Travis was considering dropping his “caboose” on his sled which will force Travis to be more attentive but allow him to more easily help the team in the dog snow.

I had wanted to spend the day writing about our dogs, giving a team roster, and filling in some of the gaps in our winter — but it seems the day had other plans!

Travis Beals Is Through Ophir on the 2018 Iditarod

Sarah · March 8, 2018 ·

Travis rolled out of Takotna right on time 5:56 this morning. He still has 14 very talented, capable dogs in the team — many who will lead.

Travis Beals in the Fingerlake Checkpoint during the 2018 Iditarod — Travis poses with his lead dog Fidget at the Finger Lake checkpoint in the 2018 Iditarod

Moving like a freight train at an impressive 9.9 miles an hour, blew through Ophir with a run time of 2 hours and 19 minutes. This is the second fastest time posted info Ophir and a good sign of things to come. He’s already made up a lot of time on the teams that left ahead of him and I expect he will do a bit of passing on the run to Iditarod.

When we talked about this section of the race for scheduling, we assumed he would rest in Takotna and somewhere on the trail between Ophir and Iditarod. From Takotna to Iditarod is 103 miles. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him shut down for a few hours during the heat of the day before continuing on — but I can’t say exactly where he’ll choose to do so. He may decide to break the run up evenly or favor a slightly longer or shorter run off the start.

Travis Beals leaves the Finger Lake Checkpoint in the 2018 Iditarod. Dogs Wrangler and Fidget are in lead.

Being able to rest at the warmest part of the day will help his team maintain speed — which he’s been very careful in managing up to this point in the race. As the race progresses, I expect to see the team excel.

Another plus is that it seems that the trail to Iditarod has set up nicely overnight with teams now posting much faster run teams. This is great news for Travis but not good for the teams that choose to run to Iditarod for their 24. The biggest question is whether or not the trail with soften with the heat of the day and how much snow is accumulating.

It sure seems like things are starting to come together and it will be exciting to watch the progression of the race in the next 48 hours.

Stay tuned for a team roster update coming later today. With all the chaos in getting ready for the big race and just Travis and I, I haven’t had much time for preparing things and am a little behind the curveball!

An Introduction to Dog Sledding Gear and Equipment

Sarah · October 25, 2017 ·

A lot goes into owning and operating a kennel full time. In order to take great care of our sled dogs and in order to mush, a lot of different gear is required. Knowing the different equipment used in the sport of dog sledding is an important first step in understanding the sport. Not only are there different tools used to run dogs but there is also the different gear that the dogs themselves have. In this blog post, we go over the basic mushing gear.

Mushing Equipment

Dog Sled

The quintessential piece of dog sledding equipment, besides the dogs of course, is the dog sled. Today there are many different styles of dog sleds built out of different types of material. Sleds are built differently depending on the use. Sleds with larger beds are generally “expedition” style sleds designed for mid and long distance races and the training that they involve. The bigger beds allow mushers to carry the necessary gear needed for spending time on the trail. Sleds for sprint racing are generally much smaller and nimbler.

Sleds are commonly made out of wood, carbon fiber, and aircraft aluminum. Materials need be both tough and lightweight – we don’t want our dogs pulling weight they don’t need to be!

Brushbow

The brushbow is like the front bumper of the sled.

Bed

The bed is the flat part of the sled that is used for storage and hauling gear. Generally sleds used for long distance mushing will have a longer bed than those used for sprint racing.

Runners

The runners are what the sled sits on.

Brake

The brake is used to stop the team. There are several different styles of brakes made by various companies. We’ve found that the best brake we’ve ever used

Dragmat

The dragmat is the speed control of the team.

ATV

Using an all-terrain-vehicle, more commonly referred to as an ATV or “quad” is an important part of training in modern day dog mushing. Using an atv allows dog mushers to work with their teams long before their is snow on the ground thus allowing the mushing season to begin considerably earlier. Many mushers in Alaska are able to start training in early September. This earlier training allows the dogs more time for conditioning and greatly contributes to the success of the team. More training allows us to work with our dogs and further develop their abilities.

ATVs are also a valuable tool when it comes to training lead dogs. Because atvs have both throttle and brake, mushers are able to give very direct feedback to their lead dogs. If the lead dogs get a command right, the musher will give a little gas as positive reinforcement — for sled dogs, going fast is a reward. If the lead dogs do not get the command given correct, the musher will hit the brake as a negative reinforcement — sled dogs want to run, so stopping is bad and considered punishment.

Gangline, Tuglines, and Necklines

The gangline is the main line that the dogs are attached to. The gangline is generally made out of thick cable, though sometimes that cable is covered by rope. Gangline sections range in length depending on the style of harness the musher is using on their dogs and their.

Tuglines are the lines that connect the back of the harness that the dog is wearing to the gangline. Whether the tugline is taught or not will depend on if the dog is pulling. The neckline is the line that runs from a dog’s collar to the gangline. This line isn’t used for pulling, rather it is used to help keep the team organized moving down the trail. Some mushers elect not to use necklines while moving down the trail. Necklines are also used when teams stop and rest on the trail or in checkpoints. When it is time to rest, a musher will remove the tugline but will keep the neckline on. This allows the dog freedom of movement while still being secure.

Snowhook

The snowhook is the anchor that hold the dogsled and dog team back when the musher decides to stop along the trail. It is like the parking break for the dog team — though somewhat less reliable. It looks and works like a giant fishhook. Theoretically, the harder the team jerks on the snowhook the more the hook digs into the ground, thus securing the team. The reality of this, however, is that occasionally the team will pull hard enough that the snowhook will pop free.

Sled Dog Gear

Alaskan winters can see extreme temperatures. The better care we take of our sled dogs, the better care they will take of us when we are out on the trail. We use all sorts of different pieces of gear on our sled dogs to help them perform their jobs and to keep them healthy and safe.

Harnesses

Harnesses are sized according to the dog. There are several different styles of harness currently available for sled dogs. Every musher has their preference that they think is “the best” and results in the most pull and the least amount of injury. Here are some common harness types: X-back, H-back, Half-harness, and spreader bar harness. Different harnesses have things they do best. Spreader bar harnesses are thought to add more power whereas half-harnesses are believed by some mushers to result in fewer athletic injuries.

Booties

Booties come in multiple different sizes and most dogs wear one size on their front feet and a different size on their back feet. Whenever we are racing or training the dogs, whether in the fall or winter, you will almost always see the dogs in booties. The purpose of the booties is to help prevent the dogs from getting cuts on their feet or from having snow ball up between their toes.

These booties get replaced just about every run as they only last about 60-80 miles. On average, we go through about 4000-5000 booties a year. At 90+ cents apiece, our dogs spend more on footwear per year than we do! Some popular brands of booties are from dogbooties.com, Kipmik products, and Mountain Ridge.

Ensuring proper fit is important too. Booties that are too big are uncomfortable or may fall off while running. Booties that are too small may restrict blood flow. Because of the importance of booties play in protecting the feet of sled dogs, most mushers choose to remove the back dewclaws of their dogs when they are 2-3 days old. Having back dew claws can result in painful rubs.

Here is a great video Aliy Zirkle put together from 2010 talking about dog booties.

Dog Jacket

All dogs differ in their ability to tolerate the cold. Sled dogs are generally alaskan huskies, Siberian huskies, ormalamutes all have a double layer fur coat that helps keep them warm. Sled dogs prefer colder temperatures and generally don’t require help staying warm until temperatures are approximately -20F (-28C).

Dog jackets act as a track suit for our dogs. They wear them while they rest to help keep their muscles nice and warm and they also can wear them while they run. As fabric technology has developed, so too have our jackets. They are now generally sewn using windproof and waterproof material. Once bulky, they now are lightweight and compact — which is extremely helpful when packing a dogsled for a long distance endurance race.

Male Wrap

When it’s cold out our male sled dogs need help ensuring that they do not develop frostbite on their penis. A dog’s penis is normally protected by the penile sheath (the prepuce). Both the penis and penile sheath can get frostbite and prevention is a crucial component of good dog care. The development of frostbite in this area is extremely painful and requires immediate attention as it can develop into condition called paraphimosis. Paraphimosis is when the penis cannot go back into the sheath and can lead to further medical complications.

The best method of preventing frostbite is by using a male wrap, sometimes more commonly referred to as a “pecker protector” by mushers. Fur is often used because when dogs pee on it, it does not stick and ice up. Synthetic material may also be used if it is windproof and waterproof. It is important that if males pee on the wrap that the urine does not stick to them so that ice does not build up. As mushers, we most constantly check the male wraps and “deice” them if necessary or put a new wrap on.

Males can develop frostbite even in moderate temperatures if there is a female in heat (a female capable of being bred) in the team. When females are in heat, the males may get excited and the penis will extend out of the sheath, making it more likely for them to develop frostbite. Mushers must be aware of this when they take their teams out into colder conditions. Sometimes, it may be easier to remove a female in heat from the team than to worry about the problems having her in the team may create.

Belly Wraps

Mushers also need to be careful with our females, especially those who have had pups, that they do not get frostbite on their teats as this is very uncomfortable and can be a reason a female could get dropped. So to help keep their undersides, where the dogs have less hair, we use belly wraps. Generally the belly wraps are made out of the same material as our dog jackets or are made out of fleece. Some dog jackets have belly wraps built in.

Leggings

Snow conditions vary wildly during the winter. In colder temperature, snow can be quite abrasive. When the dogs are running, the abrasive surface can cause our dogs to lose hair on the backs of their front legs. When a dog develops this, mushers may refer to it as “chicken leg.” The best course of action is always prevention. That, is where leggings come in. Leggings are wraps worn on the front legs of a dog. They may be made out of fleece or ripstop fabric and conditions may warrant the entire team to wear them or they may only be put on as needed.

Camping Gear

Straw

When out on the trail, straw is used as simple bedding for sled dogs. Straw is used to elevate the dogs off of the snow and ice and acts as a bed and insulator. Typically, races provide straw for mushers at checkpoints as it helps keeps dogs warm and improves their ability to rest and recover. Mushers can choose to use all the straw they are given or to keep some of it to carry further down the trail and to use outside of the checkpoint to camp remote. During the Iditarod, mushers are given one bale of straw per checkpoint.

Straw is also used to help insulate dog houses during the winter. Mushers typically put straw in houses and change it every one to two weeks.

Cooker

A cooker is used to melt snow to create water for the dogs. It consists of an outer pot or shell where fuel is put and the fire is made and an inner pot where snow is put to be melted. In mid and long distance dog sled racing, it is considered mandatory gear.

Zens Stoves provides the following summation on the cookstove musher’s use while on the trail.

The stove of choice for mushers is an alcohol stove running on yellow HEET methanol. This type of stove has a simple design without any moving parts with good protection from the wind and cold. It will dependably melt snow and heat up your meal in weather so cold that gas fuels will fail. And without moving parts, your life doesn’t depend on how well you can maintain your stove when your fingers are frozen, your brain is numb and your eyes are blinded by the eternal darkness of winter concealed in a haze of a blizzard.

When camping with a dog team on the trail, mushers use the cooker to make water for the dogs and to melt meat. There are many different cooker styles in use today. Some cookers are square or rectangular while others are cylindrical. The goal in cooker design is to maximize the efficient heat transfer from the fire to the snow. The quicker the snow can melt into water and then boil, the faster a musher can feed their dogs. The quicker a dog team can eat, the quicker they can get to bed to begin digesting their food and recovering from the previous run. Cookers are meant to be very basic — we don’t want anything breaking out of the trail.

As a rule, most mushers do not put anything besides snow or water into their cooker. This is done as a safety precaution for both dogs and humans. In the event of an emergency, if a musher needs to use their cooker to make drinking water for themselves, they do not want it contaminated by raw meat. Additionally, using the cooker only for water ensures its cleanliness and helps limit the spread of bacteria.

In recent years, many mushers have tried adopting cookers that could be used while moving down the trail. Although these designs have seen some moderate success, their has yet to be a foolproof way to melt snow on a jostling sled thats going down the trail. When an approach is developed that is both safe and efficient, it will likely be a game-changer in the evolution of long distance endurance dog sled racing.

Cookers are not only used to prepare food for the sled dogs — they are also used to help prepare the food for the musher while out on the trail. Musher may eat either frozen or dehydrated meals out on the trail: frozen meals are reheated in the cooker as the water warms for the dogs and water bottles may be put in to heat up water for dehydrated meals.

Heet

HEET is the fuel source of choice for mushers and for dog sled races when out on the trail. HEET is usuallyused as a means of getting water out of the fuel line in vehicles during the cold winter months. It is an ideal fuel source because it is relatively easy to carry and is not effect by cold temperatures.

Generally mushers will carry this while they are camping or racing. Many races specify how many bottles of heet a musher must carry as mandatory gear because without it, a cooker is of little use.

https://youtu.be/rgPUpvTqqAA

Travel Dishes

Just like we have travel mugs, our dogs have special lightweight travel dishes. Most mushers use a heavyweight durable plastic dish that is stackable and easy to wash. When on long endurance races, mushers may swap out sets of dishes every few checkpoints to help ensure cleanliness.

What Great Lead Dogs Have Taught Us About Success

Sarah · October 4, 2017 ·

A great lead dog a crucial component to having a great dog team. A lead dog is the dog or pair of dogs at the very front of a dog team who listens to the musher’s commands and helps guide the team down the trail. Although a musher should always retain control of a dog team, the lead dog is the key ingredient to success. That is why they are often the most well-known dogs in a team or kennel and why many races choose to honor their contribution through various awards like the Golden Harness award in Iditarod, which usually goes to the winning lead dogs.

There are many famous lead dogs, like Togo and Batlo from the 1925 serum run. These lead dogs helped bring crucial medicine to the village of Nome during a notorious blizzard thus saving countless lives. Then there are the famous lead dogs of Iditarod racers such as Granite, who belonged to Susan Butcher and Zorro who belonged to Lance Mackey. More recent famous lead dogs include Brent Sass‘ dog Silver, who did such an amazing job helping not only his team but other teams over a notorious stretch of trail in the Yukon Quest not just one year but multiple years that they named an award after him.

Great lead dogs have taught us a number of things about what it takes to be a truly successful person. It doesn’t matter the circumstances surrounding them, great lead dogs simply figure out a way to get their job done through a combination of focus, determination, and readiness. There is a lot to be learned from a determined lead dog who will stop at nothing to conquer the trail.

Focus on the Task At Hand

A great lead dog does not get distracted but remains focused on leading their team down the trail. It doesn’t matter if the team is traveling down the crowded streets of downtown Anchorage during the ceremonial start of Iditarod, if they are passing a team that is camped along the side of the trail, or if there are a bunch of camera men in their faces shooting a scene for a television show: a great lead dog will ignore these distractions and continue down the trail.

Successful people identify the tasks they need to accomplish in order to achieve a goal and they get them done. They do not make excuses or get distracted. They are able to keep their end goal in mind and focus on the tasks that will help them get closer to achieving their goal. By clearly identifying their goal, they are able to achieve it despite distractions.

Get Excited By Challenges

Any lead dog can run down a good trail but great lead dogs handle adverse conditions very differently. When the going gets tough, a great lead dog digs deep and gets going. They find challenges such as storms or wind-blown trail exciting. Great lead dogs thrive in adverse conditions. Rather than getting frustrated, a great lead dog enjoys a difficult trail because it challenges them.

Maintain A Spirit Of Optimism

A great lead dog stays enthusiastic about their job. Whether they show that optimism by barking and screaming, shouting their excitement or in their willingness to simply get up and go after only a short rest. A great lead dog never loses faith regardless of circumstances.

Develop Deep Bonds

Because of the intensity of training required to be a lead dog, lead dogs often form some of the deepest bonds with their musher. Their musher relies heavily upon them in times of need and they in turn rely on their musher to take care of them. The bond between musher and lead dog is that of profound trust and respect. Great lead dogs know that their mushers will take care of them — it’s what helps see them steadily through the toughest of trails. They know that their musher will ultimately do right by them and care for them.

Do More Than What’s Asked Of

A great lead dog somehow always manages to do more than what’s expected of them. Whether it’s fearlessly leading their team through a fierce blizzard or running up front for the entirety of a race, a great lead dog somehow never ceases to impress. They always find a way.

We have learned a lot about what it means to be successful because of the drive and devotion our sled dogs show us. They never cease to amaze us; our great dogs have turned us into better humans.

Dog Sledding Commands: What They Are And How We Teach Them

Sarah · September 27, 2017 ·

Our shared language with our sled dogs plays an important role in how our dog team performs. Having uniform commands across the sport of dog sledding allows dogs to fit more easily into a new team or training routine. Today’s mushing terminology is the same throughout the english speaking world.

A musher relies on the quality of her dog training to get her and her team safely down the trail. Unlike horse drivers, mushers do not have reins. Everything sled dogs do is by verbal command. Although dog sleds come fully equipped with brakes, if a dog team does not want to listen to the verbal cue to stop the team (“whoa”), the team, in all likelihood, will continue down the trail.

Because a musher’s only control of the team is verbally, the dogs responsible for interpreting these verbal commands play a vital role in the team’s success. The sled dog or, more often, pair of dogs at the very front of the dog team are in charge of listening to the mushers commands. These dogs are called lead dogs. The lead dogs not only have to correctly interpret the mushers commands but they are also responsible for keeping the team in a line formation in front of the sled. The lead dogs are taught to stay at the front because if they turn around massive tangles of the various lines used to connect the dogs to the sled can occur. Because of the importance holding the team out takes, teaching a lead dog how to stay is extremely important. After a lead dog has mastered stay, it’s time to work on the rest of the commands! It takes lots of time and patience to train new lead dogs.

Commands Every Sled Dog Knows

There are several commands that every dog on the team must know in order for the team to perform as a unit. These commands are relatively basic and refer to the stopping and starting of the dog team. In general, the dogs learn this during their first several runs when they mature out of puppyhood and begin running with the team. When our young dogs begin running for the first time they are hooked up along side some of our older dogs who can show them the ropes. They also help them learn these very basic commands. The commands every sled dog should know are “Ready,” “Alright,” and “Whoa.”

Ready & Alright

Ready is the command to tell the dogs to get ready to run. It is used any time the dogs have stopped and are about to resume running. This alerts the dogs to pay attention, detangle themselves if necessary, and prepare to head down the trail. Ready is shortly followed by “alright” which is the dogs signifier that it is time to run.

In our kennel we try to teach our sled dogs to be more or less quiet while we hook them up. They must contain themselves quietly because a team of dogs, quite frankly, can be deafening. “Ready” is our cue to the team that they are allowed to make noise before we run. Doing this allows us to maintain more control of our team during the hook up process.

Ready is also used if the team stops for a quick break on the trail — to eat a snack, drink water, or if the musher has to fix something. By telling the dogs ready, they know to alert themselves so that when the musher says “alright” a dog is not caught unaware and pulled by his teammates.

We teach the dogs ready and alright through sheer repetition. The dogs learn that “ready” means they are about to run and that “alright” is the signal to go. More often than not, a musher is actually holding their dogs back preventing them from running; saying alright is the command that says “I’m getting off the brake, you can run now!” though a well trained and well traveled team will not move until the command has officially been given.

Whoa

Whoa is the command we use to stop the dogs and it seems like it’s the hardest command to get them to do sometimes. All season long we work with the dogs so that when we say “whoa,” they stop. Sixteen dogs is an unbelievable amount of power – we want to make sure they listen. This command, believe it or not, can take a lot more work for the dogs to obey because sled dogs want to run.

Selecting Lead Dog Training Candidates

Lead dogs are an essential component to a good dog team. Without lead dogs that are well trained, even a short training run is likely to end in disaster. Because good lead dogs are the foundation of a well disciplined team, a lot of consideration needs to go into selecting good candidate for training. Training a new lead dog is a continual process and requires a lot of commitment and patience from both the trainee and the musher.

We often look for the Three A’s in prospective lead dog candidates — these are: athleticism, attitude, and aptitude. Athleticism is important because the lead dog sets the pace of the team so naturally a dog that sets a quick pace is ideal. Attitude is essential because the attitude of the lead dogs is like an electric current — it travels down the team. Lead dogs are often like the captains of a team, providing the boost of confidence or surge of energy when the team needs it most. Finally, aptitude or a dog’s natural ability to lead and to learn to lead is important because it can cut down dramatically on training time. Believe it or not, we have found that when we breed two lead dogs together, the pups produced are also likely to be lead dogs.

Working with new lead dogs is a continual process in many kennels that happens throughout the year as mushers work with dogs and help them develop as athletes. Training lead dogs never really stops as there are always new experiences to work through, obstacles to overcome, and things we learn about each other.

Commands The Lead Dogs Should Know

In order to graduate from training and to be considered a lead dog, a sled dog must have successfully mastered their duties as a lead dog as well as several commands. Lead dogs must hold the line out whenever the team is being hooked up or unhooked and also when the team stops. This is the single most important thing a lead dog does. If a dog knows all the directional commands but cannot reliably stay up front and hold the team out then that dog is not a lead dog!

We have several directional commands that lead dogs must know: Gee, Haw, and Straight Ahead.

Gee

Gee means “Go Right.” This command can be used at a trail fork or on an open area of land to better direct the team. A lot of people are curious about the etymology of our commands. The first known uses of the word “gee” come from Scotland during the 1620s.

Haw

Go left. This command can be used at a trail fork or on an open area of land to better direct the team. Haw, as a command word, was first used in 1777 but its exact origins are unclear.

Straight Ahead

This means don’t deviate! Keep going straight! This command could be used at an intersection or while traveling down a river to get the leaders to stop zig-zagging. It can also be used as a way to say “hey don’t pay attention to that thing on the side of the trail, keep going!”

Training Mushing Commands

Once we have selected candidates, we generally begin incorporating lead dog trainees into the swing dog position, this position is directly behind the lead dogs. A swing dog can watch and learn as the lead dog responds to a command and, if they are sharp, will begin to pick up on what those commands are. After several successful runs in the swing position, we generally begin putting a lead dog trainee up front with a well trained tried-and-true lead dog. This pairing allows the trainee an easier transition and also tests our older lead dogs: will our older lead dogs help the young dog paired next to them learn the mushing commands or will they be led astray? If you have selected a good, confident, older leader than you should not have any problems hooking up a young rookie leader to a tried and true veteran leader.

We actually use our dog sled tours to help train lead dogs as we have found it is the perfect opportunity for a young dog to learn: they get to run up in front of the team but are not up there for too long. The trails we use for our summer dog sled tour are specifically designed to encourage our dogs to learn their directional commands. We love this approach as it creates a very interactive tour dynamic and allows us to show what we love — training dogs — instead of just taking people for a quick ride. Learning how to be a lead dog requires a lot of mental focus so utilizing shorter runs is less stressful on our dogs. It is also less stressful on the older dog who is teaching the younger dog how to behave.

We have found these short session are a wonderful training tool as we do not overwhelm our lead dogs. With several tours a day we have lots of opportunities to work with different lead dogs per day. Our trainees may have one or two training sessions per day, day after day. The brevity of our runs, under two miles, but the fact that they are done day after day, really helps our dogs learn. It is also very exciting for our guests to watch and be a part of a real training exercise. We enjoy running our tours far more because our dogs are not just moving, they are also learning.

Training is very simple; when the lead dogs get a command right we continue on down the trail. If the lead dogs do not get the command right then we stop. We do not use the “Whoa” command in this instance. Because our sled dogs love what they do, letting them do it is the positive reinforcement alongside our praise. When they are forced to stop running because of an error, that is actually a punishment. We do not need to use food to train our dogs; letting them do the work they were bred for is enough. Our job, in training, is simply to harness the desire to run and channel that love as our best training tool

When we transition out of our tour season, we begin fine tuning our lead dog training through the use of ATV training in the fall. The ATV is a wonderful training tool because when our lead dogs correctly interpret a command we can give the machine a little bit of gas, allowing the dogs to run faster, which is positive feedback to the dogs. If the dogs get the command wrong, we use the brake and work with the team until they figure it out.

Usually at this point in the season our lead dog trainees have done many runs with an older partner. We have watched the lead dog trainee develop and have watched their progression from being pulled by their partner to the correct side when a command is given to correctly interpreting the command on their own.

At this point in the season, it is time to let the lead dog trainee run on their own. This is exciting because we can truly see how much our dogs have learned over the summer. Sometimes without the older dog present to give them confidence, our young dogs may falter despite knowing their commands. This is why using something like the ATV is very helpful; we can give very quick feedback to our dogs.

If a lead dog struggles with understanding a command, for example when we say “Haw” but they are not going to the left, we may employ pointing if the lead dog looks back in confusion. Thousands of years of domestication and selective breeding have given dogs the unique ability to understand human gestures.

Finally, as a last resort we may have to stop the team, ensure our brakes are set, and physically move the dogs to the left/right depending on the command we have given them. This is not ideal but can be necessary during the first few times a dog is running in lead. It is always important to use lots of praise and repeat the command.

Lead Dogs Never Stop Learning

One of the greatest joys of mushing is working with our dogs from the day they are born. Watching an individual athlete’s progression is truly satisfying. As a musher, our job teaching our dogs never ends. Because our sled dogs are capable of error and learning bad habits, any time we hook them up is a training and teaching exercise — though more often than not, it seems, the learning is done by the musher. Whether we are out on a training run or leading a tour, it is always important that our dogs perform their job.

As a musher, our job is to bring out the best in our dogs and in return our dogs bring out the best in us.