Summer Fitness

Overall fitness of our dogs and our mushers is extremely important. We believe that maintaining their fitness all year long is key to success. There are different ways to do this during the summer “off-season”.

One way is to continue training dogs in harness. This is the easiest method to maintain fitness during the summer. Running a team of sled dogs on abbreviated training runs is excellent for their muscle memory, attitude and team dynamics. Throughout Alaska there are quite a few mushers who train their dogs in harness in June, July and August. However, these are teams that are usually located in cool and damp regions of the state: on the Kenai Peninsula, Southeast Alaska or some mushers will move their teams to glacier locations for the summer.

Other mushers forgo the change in location and bring the cooler environment to their backyard. There are dog teams that train in harness on a treadmill in an artificially cooled environment during the summer.

In Interior Alaska, where SP Kennel is located, our daytime temperatures have been in the 70’s and 80’s this summer. These temperatures, along with the fact that there has been very little precipitation, makes it impossible to train in harness without overheating dogs. And, although we do have a treadmill on the property, we choose to exercise our dogs outdoors and not in harness during this summer “off-season”.
Why?

1. It’s fun. The “off-season” means we are under no pressure and no time constraints. Chasing tails, running around and rolling about are not common activities race dogs do during the racing season. They enjoy this zero pressure environment during the summer.
2. It’s amusing. To watch different aged and ability dogs run around, play and act like silly puppies. There are no expectations and no stress from their team mates or their musher.
3. It’s exciting. To see the formation of new relationships between dogs who might not have trained much in harness together. All of our dogs will be training in teams starting September 1st. Every dog needs to be able to run next to any other dog at SP Kennel with no exceptions. Therefore dogs need to know each other and form a true relationships.
4. It’s rewarding. For our mushers to bond with our dogs intimately on a one-on-one basis instead of in a team. This is the bond that will keep us going down the trail when conditions get challenging.

L-R: Tig and Chemo practice ‘recall’; Schmoe models for the camera; Daisy enjoys the Walk.

We have a routine for Dog Walks. The Walk Calendar is kept on computer and dogs rotate on a schedule. Groups of 5 to 8 dogs will go together. Females in heat do not get to walk. At the kennel, the dogs are loaded into airline crates that sit on an ATV trailer. The trailer is pulled approximately 1/2 mile from the kennel. The Dog Walker lets the dogs out of their crates one at a time. There are no leashes on the dogs; however the Walker always carries a leash. The Walker gets all of the dogs’ attention and walks away from the ATV. The dogs follow and soon run ahead. The standard Walk is 1 mile out and 1 mile back with a short break at a beaver pond. The extended Walk is 2 miles uphill and 2 miles back. These are the distances that the Walker covers, not the dogs. The dogs generally cover about twice as many miles as the Walker because they run back and forth, into the woods and around in circles. There might only be one Walker per group or several depending if their are SP Kennel guests or visitors present. At the end of the Walk, the dogs will race each other to the “finish”. No human Walker can keep up with SP Kennel dogs who are racing to the “finish”. This is the reason we park the ATV with airline crates where we do. That is their finish line. By the time a Walker reaches the finish, several minutes later, some of the dogs have already loaded themselves and are ready to go home.

L-R: The dogs rush to the “finish line” airline crates; Tig and Lester are loaded and ready to roll!

Keeping sled dogs fit all year long is just another part of trying to succeed at the highest level in sled dog sports. But, not only is it a key to success, it can also be fun, amusing, exciting and rewarding. For both dogs and humans!