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Anyone else keeping up with the Iditarod?

2K views 19 replies 9 participants last post by  shepherdmom 
#1 ·
Man I'm so bummed that King is ahead of Zirkle and Buser.
 
#2 ·
Nope but as a sort do aside comment I've been dealing with the first husky puppy raised from those working racing lines ever at work and they are the toughest puppies I've ever seen right out if the box. 11 weeks old and nothing can faze him. Doesn't sleep much. Always whines to be let out or is watching intently.
 
#3 ·
Shepherdmom I haven't been following it but I did catch some of the initial starting line photos online. Love seeing all the pups!

Hahaha strap in Baillif. I get the feeling that husky pup is getting ready to take you for a ride!
 
#4 ·
Yup hes super vocal has a seemingly bottomless energy supply. Most puppies his age sleep 90% of the day and he only really seems to nap very shortly in the crate until night time. He will shrug off the highest level of physical correction i feel comfortable giving a puppy and come back like it was entertaining. Luckily super food motivated.
 
#6 ·
Hes not. The family will have a hard time dealing with this guy. He is very objective oriented. He was throwing himself against the glass door repeatedly because they managed to condition him into thinking he could get the door open that way. I tried ignoring it for a while didnt really work. I tried corrections to no avail because i had to open the door to deliver it and thats what he wanted in the first place so unless i "killed" him which i wont do it wouldn't stop it. Finally i played the it opens when you dont jump against it game and finally got it done that way. It hasn't fixed the jumping completely ofc but im trying to create a new superstition. Moving away from the door gets it open.
 
#8 ·
That would drive me crazy Baillif!

I'm not keeping up with the Iditarod, but I went dog sledding a few years ago and my guide from that trip just finished the Yukon Quest 2014 1000 mile international dog sled race and came in 8th, so that is pretty cool!

If anyone has the chance to try dogsledding, it's a ton of fun!!
 
#10 ·
Baillif do you have pics of the little fiend? That's my friend's favorite breed, she's on the waitlist for a racing line husky pup next year, but she actually sleds her dogs :)



Also is there some place to look at the dogs on these teams? :p I found the individuals bios on the iditarod site and I guess they have their own sites, dang I want to look at the dogs :)
 
#12 ·
If anyone is really interested, it's easy to get a racing line husky. Just go to the Fairbanks Animal Control in the spring or check out this rescue with dogs pulled from the shelter Dogs | Carol Kleckner's Fairbanks Husky Rescue. Carol does a great job with the dogs and will adopt out of state to the right home.

I enjoy following the Iditarod and have quite a few friends who mush recreationally, but in order to field a top-line racing kennel a musher needs to breed A LOT of litters. This leads me into a bit of a moral conundrum. Racing dogs are super well cared for, but once they reach retirement or get injured.... not so much.

I've heard from various sources that only 15% of pups in a litter will make the racing team. If a musher needs to keep at least 22 top dogs for his race team, and most dogs are retired/no-longer-racing by age 8 or so, you can calculate how many excess second-tier dogs are being bred every year to keep a racing team going. Some go to pet homes, some to other racing kennels or recreational mushers... and the rest... umm.... that isn't talked about much. Let's just say, you don't see many professional mushers with a bunch of 8 + senior dogs hanging around until they die of old age.
 
#16 ·
That was exciting! Aliy a runner up again and I'm disappointed because I was hoping for a woman to win... but Dallas proved to be the strongest person out there- both mentally and physically- and earned first place. Most surprising was King breaking down in the final stretch, that was a twist I didn't see coming.

Sounds like many mushers were battling the mental demons of sleep deprivation at race's end. Nicholas Petit was running in fourth and why he dropped out remains a bit fuzzy.

Hoping for safety for the remaining mushers, sounds like a nasty storm is hitting the Bering Sea and some stretches are pure ice. Could blow dogs right off their feet.
 
#18 ·
I had the privilege of getting to know Bruce Langmaid when he set up his kennels just east of my location. The meeting was one of those side benefits , the great people you meet when you provide a dog for them and then share a friendship because of that dog ... and then beyond ... to the second dog ... and then beyond that .

Bruce is a professional racer . His sole source of income is from his dogs. The care he gives is exceptional .

Bruce has raced the Iditarod several times. Dogs that he has produced are sought after internationally.
I met the young pups and the adults many times.
I've gone on training races with his off season rigs .
Proudly both of the GSD were able to keep up time and distance with the sled dogs.

I even purchased his wooden handmade Quebec craftsman retired racing sled when he upgraded to lighter weight air craft metal sleek beauty.

I took that sled and hitched up my dogs and took my sons primary grade class mates for a spin around the school yard . This was part of a winter-fest that the school had (long ago)

The last time we got together for any concentrated time was when he was prepping for the Yukon Quest. I really got to test the supplements which were part of the dogs diets, and to see results of studies done by a panel of vets. I got some first hand experience and knowledge of the needs of dogs in extreme sports .
I followed the Iditarod and did not see his name there ?

Ontario Dogsledding Tours  - Dogsledding Outfitters
 
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