Second time running both huskies, with it being some time since their last runs it's not surprise that they were easily distracted. It was the first nice day in some time so the park was pretty busy and a barking dog proved to be a huge distraction.
Regardless, up until that dog they both did pretty good and were easy to redirect their focus on running. They do need more practice in a neckline, so we'll definitely have to start using it during walks. Here's a video of the majority of the run:
When hiking in the woods, there's always an opportunity to bump into some of the wildlife. At the park we often hike in there is a population of Sika Deer (Cervus nippon), a species of Asian deer that were imported when the park was once owned by a Sportsman's Club. These cuties are significantly smaller than the native White Tailed Deer, with an adult weight being about 50-80lbs. Here are images from some of the encounters we have had of them, we had the dogs each time so in the videos you'll be able to hear their frustration.
Not really the safest way to run a dog, but I couldn't wait to test it out so I put on a helmet and (with the help of the fiance) we took it out with all of the pups. We hooked everyone to it, including the fiance, and here's the video of how it went. Sadly the angle isn't the greatest, hopefully I can get a better angle next time around.
The snow wasn't ideal, but it was still a lot of fun and a good work out for the pups. The fiance tried it out, but his weight caused the skibob to sink into the snow enough to make it difficult for the dogs to pull. I plan to add some sort of braking system to it so I have a better means of stopping the dogs besides just digging my feet into the snow. Once those are attached, and we have snow again, I can't wait to take it out again.
Took Titan out for good run, he was really aching for it as the snowstorms and bad roads made it hard to go out. This time around we didn't go out by ourselves, we had the pleasure of being joined by Paul of Pawesome Dog Training. Paul is practically the only other person on the island who does mushing with his dogs, so it was great to see how Titan compares with huskies who already know the ropes.
He seemed to keep up pretty well, though my poor cycling skills slowed us down greatly, especially with all of the crashing I did. I found that he does enjoy following the other team, though during U-shaped turns he will try to short cut off trail to catch up.
Being that he still has that puppy mentality, he did lose focus towards the end especially when we caught sight of a white tailed deer herd. After that, he kept tangling around trees so it was time to call it quits. He was good once out of the woods and on the way back to the car.
Anyways, check out the video and, even if you don't want to watch the whole think, make sure you catch the ending. Enjoy!!
This pic was taken in the yard and not during today's run
As an experiment, I wanted to try both huskies together and see what happens when I run them together. The results were quite interesting and I've learned a few things about them both.
Tikaani is good at listening to commands, having a decent amount of obedience training under his belt, which makes him somewhat easier to control. But since he's been so used to stopping to sniff and mark every few feet whenever we took him into the woods, it was pretty hard (and frustrating) getting him to just focus on running.
Titan on the other hand, loves to run and keep going. He's gotten better with ignoring distractions, aside for the random person or dog which are rare occurrences (rant coming later on). He has a lot of energy and still learning the commands, been doing some obedience on the side to help boost his listening skills (which he's doing great with, btw).
Taken in the yard and not during today's run
So I opted to try and see if their strengths can counter balance the others weaknesses. And well, I was quite surprised and somewhat pleased with the results. When we first started up, we had a few tangles as both pups had to get used to being tethered together and wearing a neckline. I used a neckline that I made and was modified to have a bungee inside it, so allow for the two to have more space between each other should they need it while also keeping them from getting a foot caught in it. Found that they didn't really need the extra room as they stayed pretty closed together for the most part. I've also learned that Tikaani has a preference to being on the right side of Titan, so switching the two made the tangling go away.
Took a little bit to get to the trail head, the parking area by the trail wasn't plowed so I had to find a spot further up. Wound up flipping over a few times to the trail head as the bike really doesn't like it when the snow is thicker than an inch. Once we reached the trail, they really started going and the snow wasn't that thick. Titan's desire to run counteracted Tikaani's desire to sniff, in the video you can see Tikaani try to sniff and Titan pull hi back onto the trail. There was a few times when something got both their nose and I had to get off of the bike to drag them back on the trail, but it wasn't that bad.
One of the biggest things I need to work on is passing people and their dogs, which have been a rare and annoying occurrence since they tend to chase us down to ask questions or try to interact in various ways, so the dogs have gotten inadvertently reinforced to stop and greet. Had that today as someone came driving by, honking their car horn, and trying to show off the husky they had in the car with them. Definitely would love to get both huskies some controlled practice with people and dog distractions, just need to find some volunteers.
After that it was a little harder to control them as they both wanted to follow the car and the dog inside it. Luckily, we were right by the car so I just walked them both instead. Overall, it turned out better than I thought, especially since I was expecting to be chasing after a bike being dragged by two dogs.
I hate my bike, especially when going uphill. Really need to get it looked at to see if there's a way to fix it.
Titan will not run on ice and will try to find a way around it instead, which can be both a good thing and bad thing.
If
I'm going to "park" a bike that is hooked to a dog to take a few
pictures, make sure that the ground is not a sheet of ice and by the
trail head where the running begins. Titan was very much ready to go
again.
With this new year, I hope to work on several goals that I've been aching to get done. There is a lot on my list, with several involving the dogs. Luckily, many are linked to each other, so working on one can help with another. Anyways, here is my 2014 Goals list:
Get outside and exercise more, this hiking GPS is not going to go on adventures by itself.
Actually get off my butt and work on a means of making money from
home; if I can get something established even as just a supplemental
income to another job, then moving to another state will be an easier transition.
Take Tetsu, and possibly one of the other pups, to a few Barn Hunt
Matches/Trials. I really think he would be awesome at it and with
several matches/trials happening within a 2hr drive it is very doable.
Attend, and possibly sign up for, a few dryland mushing races.
Getting out there to meet mushers and gain more experience for both me
and Titan, even if we run at a snails pace there will still be a lot
gained.
I know I said this last year, but I really want to get
Tikaani his WPD title (and Titan as well now). Just another great
reason to get out there and exercise.
Figure out a special activity
I can do with Miyu. Her hips and attitude really limit what she can
do, even though she can have the desire to do it.
Do more art, I
miss doing it and haven't really done any since we bought the house as
there really isn't a comfortable place to do any.
Organize reptile room to make a designated art corner and upgrade the caging I don't like to caging I do.
Hang out and meet up with the friends I've been missing or wanting to meet in person (for the first or millionth time).
Likelihood is that I will be adding more to the list as the day goes by, but for now it is what it is. Here's to hoping that 2014 will be an awesome year!
