Life is never boring here, especially during Fall Training time. 
We had three great runs this week with both teams. 
The "A" Team went through some more fine tuning with different pairing of dogs to make a more cohesive unit. By moving Teal back with Blue, we straightened out the line.  Moving Fille up to Point when Perle is at lead, made Perle feel more comfortable in the lead position. We also increased the training to 6 mile, thus preparing the team for longer runs. They handled the increase with no problems being able to keep the same intensity as the 4.5 mile training runs. We will probably increase the length of the sorties to 8 miles around the second week of November.
The "B" Team also underwent some tuning adjustments with re-positioning the dogs. The changes made for a more balanced team. The team is also progressing nicely with the young dogs getting more experience. This week, they started to really look like a team with all the dogs starting to work as a unit.
The puppies got their first experience outside their whelping area. This process is delayed until they have received their second booster vaccination. They really enjoyed their experience exploring.
Yaluk & Tepeu also received their first experience with the leash & showed a positive desire to pull. After a few more outings, they will be ready for harnessing.
Julia is working with Halona bikejoring and she is really enjoying the new experience. Maybe, Julia will make her a sled dog after all. 
The weather this week has been crazy with rain early in the week and snow flurries from Wednesday on. However, with the milder temperatures during the day, the snow does not last on the ground.
Until next week........

The weather is changing getting colder and wetter! Earlier in the week, we seem to enjoyed the last of Indian Summer with warm sunny days and the week ended with wet, cold damp conditions. After the heavy rains on Thursday night that continued through Sunday, the training trials were left with standing water the size of small lakes! I embellish the size of the puddles.
The training is going great and we will soon up the runs to 6 miles.
The puppies, Yoda & Darth, are growing rapidly, eating like little pigs and very active. 
The series of photos above is one of those captured moments.
It is hard to believe they are 3 months old already!
There are a couple of new videos posted this week on the Training and Puppy Pages.
The last four dog houses were completed this morning, just in time for the weather change.
Until next week..........

Yes, it was an awesome week here of training and the dogs performance was supper! We upped the size of the teams to two teams of 12 dogs each, moving Hinto & Annie into the "A" Team. The "B" Team now has the 4 Hobbits (Merry, Sam, Frodo & Pippin) graduating into the team. It is incredible how quickly the Hobbits have progressed! 
I am very fortunate to have such a great Kennel of dogs!
The weather here this week has been just about perfect with cool mornings & beautiful warm, sunny afternoons.
The blog this week is relatively short. However, there is several new videos posted on the Training Page.
Until next week........

It was a great week here with training the adults, hooking up the Hobbits for their first run and building dog houses.
The adult teams are progressing nicely with their conditioning/training program. We had an opportunity to work with new leader combinations & introducing Perle to lead for her first time. Perle did great until, on the last third of the run, a squirrel ran across the trail right in front of her. The temptation was too great & the Pointer in her distracted her from her job! The photos above shows her adventure! I think she learned her lesson that you don't chase a squirrel with 8 other dogs running behind you! Other than that one instance, she did great for her first time.
On Saturday, we hooked up the Hobbits for their first run and they did great! 
A quote from a friend summed up their run, after seeing the video, "They ran like adults!". The hobbits are a true testimony to Indy their father.
Julia is doing a great job with the dogs and leaning rapidly.
With Julia's help, we completed another 3 houses & cut pieces to complete 10.
There are new videos on the Puppy & Training Pages.
Until next week.......