The weather here has been crazy this week with cold temperatures at the beginning of the week, causing the lake to freeze over, to warm rainy weather to close the week. Even with the uncooperative weather, we were able to get in 4 training days.
This has been another busy week here in the kennel with the departure of Amorook to her new owner Kole Owens and the addition of Angel ( for more info. see her on the Profile Page). Also, I have added Casper to the Adoption Page as I continue to convert the kennel to Sprint Dogs.
Training this week was more for working with & trying new potential leaders. The above photos shows some of the new dogs that got to run at lead this week. All look good & with more training will eventually become leaders here at Miortuk. I couldn't be more pleased with the group of potential leaders we have here to work with.
This week all the 4.5 mile runs were performed without a rest stop. The dogs look great through the run & show no fatigue at the end.
Let's hope this coming week brings us some more seasonable weather!
Until next week........

It was a week that started with sorrow and ended with great excitement of the future.
On Monday, we lost Nanook to an aggressive form of cancer. A tribute to Nanook is posted on the "Reflections" page. Her passing has left a huge hole in my heart!
However, life in the kennel continues and with it great excitement to announce the emergence of some potentially great young leaders. So far this season, we have seen the emergence of Cobalt, Willy, Katie, Annie & Indigo as future leaders of our team. Cobalt along with Max look like they will be the main race leaders this season. The others will continue to get lead time for their future development. There are still a couple of more dogs that will get their opportunity at lead on future runs.
This was a good week for training getting in four days of running this week. On Saturday, we ran on snow for the first time this season. There is a YouTube Video of the second team running on the "Training" page. This week on Thursday the teams ran the total 4.5 mile run without any rest stops. We also ran the distance dogs with Charlie starting to run the dogs.
Charlie continued her training with the pups teaching them to pull while walking with the leash. They are enthusiastic & progressing as expected.
Until next week.......

Finally, we got in a week with four days of training. Although it wasn't easy working around the rainy & warm days. We did have snow flurries on Saturday which made the training more interesting. However, there was little accumulation and most had disappeared by days end.
The above series of photos taken from my Flip Video Camera, demonstrates the development of Vicky, the red dog at wheel. She started off the season slowly and after 100 miles of running this season, has developed into a very enthusiastic performer. She has improved so much that she ran lead yesterday for the last half of the run with Willy. She is an excellent example of a young dog that starts the season slowly and gets better as the season progresses.
As with Vicky, We continue to work on developing young leaders. We now have seven dogs that can run lead so far and still a couple of more prospects that will get an opportunity over the next couple of weeks. 
Both Sprint teams are now running, without a stop, to the half way & then receive a 2 minute rest. Returning the last half also without a rest and there is still plenty of speed left to sprint home the last 1/4 mile when called up. I am very pleased with the dogs performance!
Until next week.........

Yes, this has been a week of changes here at Miortuk kennel. 
Firstly, Charlie arrived here on the 1st of November from England & has started her adventure with Sled Dogs. 
David has decided to leave here and seek another kennel that was more suitable to his desires. David,while here, did a great job in the kennel with the ground work, fixing the houses and keeping the kennel clean. He learned very quickly how to harness the dogs and also had a great rapport with them. I wish David all the good fortune on his continuing adventures.
The dogs also saw several changes here. We divided the Distance Dogs from the Sprint Dogs for training purposes. We are now running three teams: two Sprint Teams of nine dogs & one Distance Team of seven dogs.
With the physical conditioning portion of the season competed, it is now the time to work on the cardio & endurance portion of the training/conditioning program. To accomplish this the Sprint Dogs now have work as a unit. With the two team concept, we can also train more Sprint Leaders. This is a great way & time to try new dogs in the lead position. Above you see Willy & Indigo at the finish of their first experience at running lead. Willy had one short (three minute) leg previously. Both these dogs were hooked up to lead for the last half of the 4.5 mile run. They performed amazingly! Due to the fact that Indigo is so young, she will not get more leader experience until the end of the season. Willy, on the other hand, will start to get some regular running time at lead. On the second team, Katie was introduced to lead running with Cosmos ( this is Cosmos second year at lead). Katie was showing signs all this Fall of wanting to get running up closer to the front of the team. She was great at lead right from the start leading the team from the kennel on her first run. So far this season, we have introduced four new dogs to the lead position. Three of those dogs are two years old & in their second season of running. I believe there are at least three other two year old's that will run lead.
The weather this week has limited our training runs again, allowing us only three runs. However, all these runs were quality runs with some good learning experiences.
Until next week.......

The above series of photos will give you a mushers view of the run. Only the leaders have a change of scene! 
It was another difficult week here for training with more rainy days making for very wet trails. However, we were able to get in runs on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday. Although the weather has been challenging, the dogs performance is excellent and they are getting into shape very quickly. The sprint team are hitting a consistent fast pace even with two people on the ATV, the motor running, the transmission in 5th gear and not using the accelerator. I am very impressed with their speed, strength and endurance. 
Cobalt has really taken over as the head leader & any dog the runs next to her catches her enthusiasm to perform. She is going to be a great leader. 
We experimented one run having Willy at lead for a short distance. He performed great and was not distracted. He will deserve more lead time in the future. Katie has also been showing a great deal of enthusiasm to get up front. She is now running in the first team position and will get a chance at lead in the near future. This is a great time of the year to try dogs at different positions.
Both Hurit & Halona were placed in the adult yard on Monday. They adjusted quickly and are now interacting with their new neighbors.
David has done a great job in leveling off the kennel and repairing the dog houses getting ready for Winter.

Charlie arrives here on Tuesday to begin her Sled Dog adventure. She will be also completing some University Studies, one on Animal Behavior. I wonder if she will be studying the dogs or the Mushers? HA! Ha!

Until next week........

Yes, it was a difficult week for running dogs due to poor weather conditions. With  the inclement weather, we were able to run on Monday & Tuesday, three days off & then again on Saturday and today. We had a heavy all day rain on Thursday which left the trails flooded. 
The dogs are doing great considering the difficulties. It is important to watch the long range weather forecast to enable training when the weather permits.
So far, we have been able to get in 14 days of running.
The dogs are even getting a little disgusted, along with the musher, with theses wet/humid conditions. However, weather is out of our control & we just have to be patient waiting for better conditions. This has been the wettest Fall that I have experienced here.
The puppies got their booster & rabies vaccine on Thursday. The two males are adjusting well to their new surroundings and we plan on placing the two females in the adult yard this week.
Until next week......

Here are a few photos, extracted from a video, of the home stretch on a conditioning/training run.
Unfortunately, the weather this week wasn't to conducive to running dogs. We were plagued with warm & then very wet weather. Even though the temperatures were around 8C, the high humidity made for undesirable conditions for running. These conditions can cause the dogs to overheat and is very dangerous for their health & well being! 
The upcoming week is calling for less rain & cooler temperatures that are more suitable.
We did however, get in two days of running on Tuesday & Wednesday, that were very good. The dogs are getting into better shape and are now running 3 minute run/2 minute rest intervals.
Both Hinto & Hok'ee were placed out in the dog yard with the adult dogs on Saturday. They were getting too big for the puppy pen and needed more room. They adjusted quite well to their new surroundings. Both Halona & Hurit are still in the puppy pen, as they are both a little too small to be placed in the yard with the adults.
There are a few photos of Hinto & Hok'ee adjusting to their new mates in the kennel on the "Puppy" page.
Until next week.........

Yes, it was a great week here getting a lot accomplished.
This was the first week this season to get in four days of running the dogs. Due to warm/rainy weather the first half of the week, we ended up running Wednesday, Thursday & Friday. It was rewarding to see that the dogs performed great all three days and maybe even the best on the third day. On the Friday run, we increased the run/rest intervals from two minute run/two minute rest to three minute run/two minute rest. Those three days, we started the day with below freezing temperatures for the first time this season. 
Now, we are in a heat wave with Summer like temperatures. 
This weeks running schedule was predicated by the forecast of warm temperatures & also this the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend. Thus, we had scheduled two days of rest (R&R).
On Saturday, we placed collars on the pups for the fist time & staked them out by the truck. In the beginning they were not impressed. However, they got used to the tethering and then we took them each for a walk on leash. This gave them time to experience new terrain & smells. In the end they were all happy & were then returned to the puppy pen & familiar surroundings.
This week, we also started kennel maintenance getting ready for the Winter.
There is a new video added to the Training Page of the dogs running. 
Until next week........

Here are a series of photos extracted from a video taken of this mornings run. This was the fifth time we have had the dogs out this season. I am very impressed on the progress of the dogs for this early in the season. In these photos it is Cobalt & Max at lead.
This week it has been warm & wet which is the reason we were only able to get in a few runs. Next week, the weather is forecasted to be cooler & hopefully we can get into a four day/week conditioning schedule. As of now, we are running 4.5 miles and using a 2 minute run/2 minute rest routine. As the  dogs get more in condition, we will change the run/rest cycle.
Now that we are back running the dogs, it is a great time here in the Northern Forest!
Until next week........

On Friday's run Cobalt was placed at lead for her first time. 
SHE WAS A NATURAL! 
She took to the position as if she had running there her whole life. She comes by this ability naturally as her father was also a leader (good genetics).
It was a great week: to start running the dogs again, introducing the yearlings (Blue & Indigo) into running in a team & the arrival of David on Monday.
Unfortunately, we were only able to get in two mornings of running due to warm temperatures. If the forecasts are correct, we will not be able to get the dogs back out running until late next week again due to the warm temperatures.
The two yearlings did a great job of running in a team and look like they are going to be great racers.
Of coarse, all the adult dogs enjoyed getting started in conditioning/training runs for a new season. ( there is a video on the "Training Page")
The Puppies are growing and getting big. Soon, they will be placed out in the kennel with the adults. If their Mother & Father are any indication of their abilities, they should be great sled dogs.
ALL IS GOOD HERE!
Until next week.......