German shepherd sled dog?
 

Hey all!! Just wanted to share some new things we've been trying. We did the urban mushing and now since the trails are covered in snow I thought we would try sledding!!

Just a short video, Yrie really had a good time! We only did a short trip to ensure he didn't over strain himself with the sled. It's only a small sled with only me on it.

And wait for it..... Yes that tree jumped in front of me..... darn you tree!!! I then learned how far I could lean over for it to go where I wanted AND how to use the brakes!

Hope you enjoyed it, this is at Black Oak Park in Windsor Ontario, Canada

MYFULLMOVIE - YouTube

We borrowed the sled (made by Miro Sipos and Lori Lee) and it was a GoPro3 camera to get the footage, and windows movie maker.

Just be careful with a single dog on a sled- the x-back harnesses put a whole lot of strain on the lower back- I can see it in your video. I'd recommend getting your dog a different harness like the wheel dog harness from man-mat or a harness from non-stop. It can make a big difference for our long-backed shepherds to take pressure off the lower back and hips.

Do you have give/bungy in your tug line to the sled? That can help too.

Your dog has super drive for the work though! Keep it up!

Yrie! Go boy go!

I want to do this with Stark so bad! He pulls a regular sled (just one from a local shop) but I think he would enjoy this!

Wow !!!!!

Great video!!!! Thanks for sharing!

Yes there are special bungee ties that he is tied to on the sled. We NEVER use non bungee'd lines for anything Scootering or the sledding. This was the only time we have tried the sledding. Where I live were lucky if we get snow anywhere deep enough for it. Could you pm me which type of harness you are referring to? If it is something we are going to continuing doing I will look into another one :) But he loves it. He loves to run!!

Liz you can when you come visit if we have some snow!! Your welcome to come out with the group!

If I get some time off before my transfer (changing jobs/promotion) I will. I should be done next Tuesday and may even get a whole month off! :) HOPEFULLY!

I've included harness information below. I figured I'd post here since there seems to be some interest in ski-sled sports with the GSD. I race my malinois and husky- my GSD just never had any interest/drive for the work.

Here are a few you could look into: ManMat "wheel dog" harness for sledding with a low tug point: Wheel Dog Harness Info : Howling Dog Alaska, Simplicity Functionality Affordability Quality

FasBak Harness good for skijor: Skijor Now: Fastback Dog Harness

Non-stop "free motion" harness which works really well for skijoring with my long backed malinois and is adjustable for their somewhat different build- for her it's a thicker neck, really muscled front end, and longer back: Free motion harness / Harnesses / Our products / Non-Stop Dogwear - Non-Stop Dogwear

The trouble with Non-stop is getting the product over to North America. If you are really interested in buying something from them- they are based in Norway- let me know via PM and I can provide some more information.

Way to go!!! Kyleigh loves to pull my nephew on her dog sled ... took a couple of tries for her to "get" it ... but she has a blast, and so does my nephew!

he seems to get it right away with this stuff!!