Pumpkin the musher

Here is the "rest of the story" for giving tablets by dropping down their throat. Pu the pill back there, shut the mouth, Ok, here it is.......... [b]Blow in their nose. [/b] Not hard, just a puff. 99% success, everytime.

I agree to an extent. That's why I won't bow hunt- Hurling a sharp stick at an animal, even with allot of velocity and force still does not result in instant death. Whether we like it or not, humans are part of the ecosystem- our digestive system supports an omnivorous diet. As I said before, we use everything we can, and the parts we don't, i.e. the offal that remains in the woods, feeds mink, fox,ravens, small birds, coons, and even the lowly skunk, who has just as much right to be in the woods as any other animal, including me. My deer stand consists on an old tree that I sit next to, and for the last 3 years, the roots have been inhabited by a weasel (like a small mink). I have spent whole days watching him go about his business while I've been hunting, and I've probably missed seeing deer because of this preoccupation. These are the kind of details that escape people who focus simply on the killing aspect of hunting. There is so much more to this activity(It's not a "sport" in my book) than people who oppose hunting are led to believe. I hunt for food. There are still people who do this, believe it or not. The fewer items I have to buy in the grocery store, the less impact I have on environment. When is the last time you ate at a fast food place Kittygirl? Yesterday? Last week perhaps? I don't begrudge you the right to believe hunting is cruel. However, the majority of people base these beliefs on sketchy information, bias and the rantings of PETA type extremists. I also noted that you said you would never "use" (your word) your dog for anything but a companian,so I guess I'm doubly cruel for being a musher, but you know what? My dogs [i]are[/i] my companions; I don't "use" them for anything. I have the most trustworthy and amazing companions you could ever want-we have the kind of relationship that people with mere "pets" only dream about.. I'll think about you and the dog you "use" for companionship the next time I'm sitting next to a campfire at 1AM with my "companions", watching the northern lights, in absolute silence and solitude, waiting to hear the wolves. Dream on, city folk. Dream on.....

Pomeranians were bred to be lap dogs. Their [i]ancestors[/i] were sled dogs. Yeah, the bird dog thing threw me for a loop too. :tard:

It's weird about the pictures, sometimes if I right click on the red X and choose "show picture" it works, sometimes not. :niewiem: Anyway, it's illegal to hunt deer with dogs in Wisconsin, but it isn't necessary, there are [i]allot[/i] of deer! Our neighbor hunts bear and coyote with dogs, he runs Plott and Bluetick hounds and some combinations of those breeds. Racoon hunting with dogs is also legal in Wisconsin, and of course retreiver/pointer type dogs for duck/pheasant/grouse hunting. We are just starting to get the European wild boar moving into our area- and they are very destructive here too. Deer hunting here is with both bow and gun,(seperate seasons), but I just gun hunt. Walk a couple hundred yards out the back door, sit in my lawn chair and wait. If there is snow, I build a fire, take bird seed with me to feed the birds, maybe read a book. Here is a link to the pic, maybe that'll work. [url]http://groups.msn.com/Dog-O-Maniaphotohosting/apostleislandssleddograce.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=1498[/url]

Could it be possible that you are saying[u] too [/u]much? I limit my verbalizing somewhat, especially in races. The lead dogs have allot to think about, and if you say too much, they could just tune you out. Genuine praise is good, don't get me wrong, but what you say has to have consequence and meaning for them. Did that make sense? I'm kind of tired tonite, not thinking to clearly... :sleep:

Hear Hear!! :klacz:

Hunters are like that, but fisherman are worse.... :D

Awwww, puppy breath.... :iloveyou:

I have to agree with Hmmmm. Being confident about your knowledge should be enough to convince people that you know what your talking about. But when you have to point out how much you know.... The only thing I know about Bull and Pit breeds is what I've read on this forum. I've never even seen a real Pit Bull, but having been involved with dog sports(mushing) for over 27 years, I still feel I can contribute to most dog discussions without sounding too foolish. There will never come I time when I believe I know it all about mushing. I learn something with and about my dogs every day.

I use the command "on-by" when the team comes upon something that may interest them, say deer, livestock, other dogs or whatever. They will slow down to look, but they will go buy just about everything, even ostriches! :drinking: Yes, one winter I was going down the trail, and there were about a dozen ostriches running around! In Wisconsin! In January! Really!! (They escaped from a farm that had a (herd? group? gang?) of ostriches.

Hey pigman- there is one hunter here! I've deer hunted for almost 30 years now, and while I understand the feelings of people who don't want to hunt, I have a hard time being told I'm some sort of monster for doing so. I hunt [u]primarily [/u]because I like venison, and secondly because the resource is very abundant where I live. We utilize as much of our kill as possible, and never take more than we can use. The scraps and fat get cooked for the sled dogs, the bones are ground for garden fertilizer, and the hide is tanned for rawhide and leather. I enjoy being out in the woods, and we live in a remote enough area that I can sit on the edge of our yard to hunt. I [i]personally[/i] don't like bowhunting because I don't think it's humane. I much prefer my .308. Faster, cleaner than sharp sticks. Never shoot at anything you aren't sure you can down with one shot is my motto. Here is my 2002 "record book " buck; The little dog in the photo was my first Pomeranian- not a froo froo dog that one! [img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0UwAQA9sY4f*pyaJEJ8cnbgZ2iTbWv7Kup5DKsv6fkAI!Gc3kJ459mNkOvwNxvyW*IKhWuDP8Jc5k7ttDC035DtLIHV4JkvIZbOv09Kft8B7CqpvzPdQmdIaj7HGcKdCB/75595_04.jpg?dc=4675475529664986908[/img]

Stop? Stop!?!? :Help_2: They know quite a few commands, but "whoa" is'nt one of them. First rule of mushing: [i]Never,never,ever let go[/i].... I give my guys credit tho, they do slow down alittle when I say whoa. Sometimes. :roll:

I've never done the scootering-when I start training in the fall I take all 11 dogs, and I use an ATV. That way, even the retirees get to go, since our initial runs are fairly short. As our mileage increases, the older ones drop out, and my husband takes them for short runs and I keep working with the race dogs. The Sled Dog Central site is pretty comprehensive- it's funny tho, it's run by a couple who live about 40 miles from me, and I've known them since about 1980, andI buy all my meat from them in the winter. It's hard to connect the two for me sometimes! I tried skiing behing three dogs once and damn near killed myself. I'll stick to the sled and the 4-wheeler, thanks! [img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0XQD5AsAa0qgBsQYQpcB31PrDqsXBbU4NpSHxCZMO6xnnLVlIo*g6bSDf1*pOfsr1D5e!P94WLGY!J6fWpBltGtc5KGlFn8LVmG!74j90DasqNbd*yii!tfVMouFDlR3GQF4Q*SSa0RM/0619650-R1-044-20A.jpg?dc=4675500527140035070[/img]

I'm for a ban on not allowing ignorant [i]people[/i]to breed.

Elkhounds would be fine for recreational pulling-either sled, ski or roller blades. They are too heavily built for competitive mushing, as are most Siberians,IMO. you would have to be careful if the temperature/humidity was high, as the Elkhounds I've seen have super heavy coats and would overheat pretty fast. There are one dog sleds, called "kick sleds", looks like a small lawn chair with runners... or you can skijour- XC skiing behind one to three dogs. Almost any dog can skijour, I've seen everything from Standard Poodles, Blue Heelers, and even Dobermans. You can check this site out- tons of links for supplies, mentors, and a great discussion forum. [url]http://www.sleddogcentral.com/[/url]

I agree- I think their dogs look great- allot of people think racing Alaskans look thin too, but when you consider that two of the dogs used in creating the modern Alaskan were Greyhounds and Salukis, that "belly-tuck" that some people see as thinness is a natural posture. Also, the mushers who over-feed will know it within the first ten miles of a race...

:lol: Sorry, I'm not laughing [i]at[/i] you, I'm laughing [i]with[/i] you. After 25 + years of mushing, and plenty of dog induced injuries including a broken hand, 3 broken fingers,(all seperate occurences.. :roll: ) a couple of stitched up knees, a torn diaphram muscle, more pulled muscles, bruises and scrapes than I can count, 3 black eyes (dogs heads are very hard) and a lacerated tongue(don't ask) , all I can say is- buy a helmet and some knee pads. Health insurance is handy too. Welcome to mushing!! :wink:

Most of the puppies(of all the breeds) pictured looked terrified. They try to make them look "cute" by putting a ball or toy with them, but it just makes them look all the more sad .

:cry: [url]http://heddinskennel.com/[/url] Gee, do ya think it might be a puppy mill?!?!

oh yeah...... :bigcry: Let's see, 12 dogs, 16 toenails each, 192 toenails. :o Some of them just lay there, but a few have a real problem and it ends up being a wrestling match, with the only one coming out bloody and bruised is me. Bernie is particularily bad- I literally have to lay on him to hold him down- funny thing is, nothing "bad" has ever happened to him involving toenails, he's just a dork. Thank dog I don't have to cut nails in the fall and winter- running keeps them short. Hi!, I'm a dork! [img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0UQAVA4AZ3C0iRB675ibRclLBsg1Mcv*!xfk!s!yBP8f5StLzYoK5up82yReJqcD*yktyxKZ*BLO4u7OGfHlmhOJAvrMbuU7SSPNMgOheTF3CaNRGZCsJLJ1Pt2NqTokJ/bernie.jpg?dc=4675509679070232396[/img]

I hope they aren't pulling by their collars- too much stress from pulling on a collar can cause tracheal problems- there are plenty of places on the web that sell pulling harnesses for under 20 dollars a piece. If you guys are going to be pulling that much, a harness would be a good idea. Also watch their paws for cracks between the toes and in the skin between the toes. Happy trails!

Some of the puppies looked so sad :( Allot looked really poorly bred- not like Poms at all, and these weren't the puppy uglies either....

But [b]WHY[/b] Why can't you Felis Sylvestris' common name? Inquiring minds want to know!

Look at this poor little Westie! :( [img]http://www.fluffypuppies.com/slides/Westie%2014184.JPG[/img]

Hey, whatever works. When I'm training, we usually see at least a half dozen deer, if not more- I've even had them jump over the team- anyway, everytime we see deer, I yell DEER!, and they of course run faster because they think they are chasing the deer. They never leave the trail, but it sure speeds them up. If I'm in a race and need some extra speed, I just yell DEER! and off we go.... :lol: