This week really marked the start of Fall here at Miortuk.
The leaves are turning color, the Hummingbirds have migrated South and the Canada Geese have started their migration.
This morning at midnight the first large flock of geese flew over the kennel and more migrating geese were seen through the day. The flocks this year are larger than last year and their journey to their Winter Habitant has started a little earlier.
Although, we had a relatively warm week, the nights are getting cooler and by mid week coming the daytime temperatures are going to be in the mid teens.
It is also the time to start preparing human food for the upcoming Winter.
Most of the preseason chores are done and next week will be nail clipping time for the dogs. 
Everything will be ready for the start of training for the first of October when this seasons Handlers arrive.
It is really a beautiful time of year here!
​Until next week......

The first photo is just a teaser of the season coming up!
Although the weather has started to turn cooler, it is still too early to expect these temperatures to last.
This coming week the forecast is for temperatures back into the mid/upper 20's during the day and mid teens through the night.
Here at Miortuk, we look at starting our conditioning/training schedule the first of October. The reason for this is the temperatures are getting more consistent with early morning reading being below 10c. Also the first race of the 2019 Schedule is not until the end of January.
The schedule here starting in October will have the teams ready for the first race.
I also feel it is harder on the dogs to start too early and then have to lay the dogs off for several days and even a week due to warm temperatures. You could imagine giving children candies for a week and then suddenly cutting them off the sweets. They would not be happy!!
The same goes for the dogs, getting them all excited to run and then abruptly stopping training due to warm temperatures.
Patience is important!
Soon the conditions will be right and the new running season will begin here at Miortuk.
​Until next week.......

The weather here is starting to change with warm days and very cool nights.
The Fireweed had started to turn to silk a couple of weeks ago. The theory is when it goes to seed(silk), the first snow is 6 weeks away. That would mean early October.
Time will tell!!!
However, things are starting to take shape with preparations for the upcoming season.
This week you see the last three members of this seasons team.
Yoda is a four year old female. She spent last season learning and getting comfortable at the lead position and is already to run up front this season.
Hok'ee is a very versatile dog that can run in any position on the team. He is not a race leader, however can run the position in training. He is more suited to wheel or the team position in front of Wheel. He is very strong, serious runner.
He loves to talk to me whenever he sees me. 
Pearl is a great Point Dog. She has run many races for me and even at Lead in one race. She is steady worker and a great partner for training young dogs at the Point Position.
Well, over the last several weeks, you have been introduced to the 18 dogs that will make up the 2018/19 Team.
​Until next week......

Yes, there are Hobbits here at Miortuk!
But, as you can see, they are of the canine verity.
The Hobbits were named by Michele Vasquez when she was here helping me with the dogs as a handler/Trainee.
They are of the breeding from Valerie & Laurent Gonsolin with their famous leader/Stud Indy with Bella (sister to Blue & Fille).
The Hobbits matured at different speeds with Merry being the first to mature enough for racing. Next was Pippin and then last year both Frodo and Sam excelled proving their great breeding.
They are an example that not all dogs mature at the same speed mentally.
Due to patience, they have developed into great Sled Dogs.
They are are all now enthusiastic/confident athletes in the team.
This week, the weather has started to change from a hot/humid start to the week. After a couple rainy days, the temperatures are now closer to normal with the nights getting into the low teens celsius.
The trees are starting to change colors with some of the leaves falling.
Even the Fireweed is starting to go to seed, a sign of the end of Summer and the beginning of Fall.
Soon training will begin.
This week Chloe & Leo, a young couple from France, have desided to join the Miortuk Team for this coming Season.
Welcome, Chloe & Leo!
​Until next week........

Without Leaders a dog team goes nowhere!
Leaders have one of the most important place on the team as they are the ones that make things happen and are the driving force to head down the trail.
Leaders can be both male & female.
However in my case, I have found more females are adapted to be leaders,  more focused and generally less distracted. As seen above, all the leaders shown are females.
Most Leaders are born with the desire to be outfront and leading the pack.
Many are very quiet and reserved in the kennel.
However, that personality changes as soon as they get hooked up in the team.
Their enthusiasm to run sets the tempo for the rest of the team.
THEY LIKE TO BE INCHARGE!
Every Fall, I try other dogs up in the leader position with an experienced leader to see if they have the desire and potential to become leaders.
Even if a dog doesn't show the potential one year, I will give them a try another year as all dogs mature mentally at different rates.
That being said, I can usually tell which dogs have the qualities required when they are puppies. They usually stand out from the rest as being the first ones do everything ahead of their siblings. They are usually real characters!
Of the young dogs introduced last week, four have shown some potential with the most obvious being Lilly.
This week, we had a couple of Thunderstorms during the day and  a couple of the dogs were not easy with them. Even though the storms were far away from here, they could hear/sense them and would seek the shelter of their houses. Within half an hour of them seeking shelter, the storms would arrive.
The weather is getting a little cooler this week after the storms passed and getting a little more comfortable.
​Until next week........

It is hard to beleave these puppies are now three years old.
Time seems sometimes to pass all to quickly.
But, the one thing that is consistent is that they love to eat!
They now have two years running and soon will be entering their third season.
They are a fantastic litter with all being supper performers and loving/happy teammates.
Over the next several weeks, I will introduce you to this years team starting above with the youngest members.
THE "L" LITTER! Louis, Lloyd, Lance, Levi, Lilly and Libby.
Right from their first hookup, they displayed that they all were going to be Super Dogs with great attitude and running ability.
Last season they were all great with some showing signs of Leader ability.
This season, we will give them all a chance at Lead although, if last year was an indication, it seems that Lance and Lilly are front runners.
It looks like another exciting season coming up.
If you are wondering why all the photos of them they are eating, that is the only time I can get them to stand still.
Until next week.....

This week, we had some stormy weather with hot/humid conditions and now a nice cool down to finish the week.
The storm that passed through on Wednesday resulted in huge volume of rain causing the lake here to reach Spring levels. The forest needed the rain as it was very dry causing concerns regarding forest fires.
Along with the the storm, we had another Hydro outage the lasted for 15 hours. This was the second long outage since all the maintenance work in by Hydro in June. The first outage was 22 hours. 
However, the storm departed it left with an incredible Sunset as seen above.
There is always beauty here in the forest if you wish to see it.
The dogs are enjoying the cool down and are a little more active.
Looking forward to the next season of running dogs, it is only a little over two months away.
Had a nice phone visit with Doug McNeill this morning. Doug and I started mushing together about 30 years ago. It was a great visit reminiscing.
Doug was a pioneer in the mushing equipment making some of the best sleds, training carts and Dog Boxes for trucks. He was also a great musher winning an ISDRA Gold Medal in the Four Dog Class.
Until next week......

The heat/humidity returned here this week with worst days being Friday & Saturday.
With this weather, the dogs are being fed earlier in the day due to the heat.
It seems keeping the dogs on their Winter meat ration has payed off unexpectedly with helping to keep  the dogs hydrated due to the extra fat in the diet. Keeping the dogs well watered also helps.
The dogs seem to handle the heat better than the humans staying very relaxed and staying in the shape. They are more energetic earlier in the morning and also at dusk.
It seems strange, but this is the time of year the we are thinking of the next running season and evaluating what is required.
The performance of the dogs last season proved that there is no reason to look for additional canine help.
The equipment is all ready.
Planning is now on which young dogs will be getting more leader training.
Like all sport ventures, the Offseason is planning season.
Until next week......

It was a quiet week here at Miortuk.
The weather was more normal for this time of year with warm days and cool nights.
It was a good week for getting some chores done and spending some quality time with the dogs.
Although the Stable Flies and mosquitoes were plentiful, the dogs this year (so far) have not been bothered by the either.
The foliage (weeds) around the front of the chalet were cut down taking away the hiding place for these flies and mosquitoes making it much more pleasant for using the BBQ.
However with the cutting, the next couple of days was crazy with the flies migrating into the chalet. After a mass extermination, the problem was solved leaving the windows a reminder of the slaughter.
Now, the next job is to clean the windows to get rid of the remains.
Last week and again this week, a Wild Turkey was seen close to the chalet. This is the first time I have seen one up here.
​Until next week.......

This week was a challenge due to Thunderstorms, gail force winds, extremely hot/humid temperatures and then back to Fall type temperatures.
The storms caused a major Hydro outage that lasted for 22 hours causing concern for all the food (dogs & human) in  the freezers would unthaw.
Had to get the gas generator going to keep the food in the freezers frozen.
The other major challenge this week was the heatwave that lasted for 6 days creating temperatures in the lower to mid 30's celsius with a humidex readings in the 40's. 
The main task this week was keeping the dogs comfortable and well hydrated.
Several of the dogs dug huge/deep nests in the sand by their houses to keep cool. As you can see from the photos above, they did a good job. After the return to cooler temperatures, the houses were returned to being level.
Also, the storms with torrential rain, lightning/thunder and strong winds blew in some foreign species of insects as seen above with the Fishfly that normally is seen around the lower Great Lakes and Southern Ontario.
​Needless to say the flies and the mosquitoes thrived in these conditions!
On Friday the morning temperature was in the mid teens and single digits over Friday Night into Saturday Morning.
The cooler temperatures was certainly welcomed by the dogs and myself!!!
​Until next week.....