imported_Cassie Posted November 21, 2004 Share Posted November 21, 2004 Scrooll to the bottom of the page. It's quite cute. (Pumpkin, do you think they could compete with the Alaskan Husky's :lol: ) [url]http://members.tripod.com/~steinplatz/index_2.html[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DogPaddle Posted November 21, 2004 Share Posted November 21, 2004 Well they are big and strong, maybe they wouldn't do as well in extreme cold weather but I bet they could do a decent job of freight pulling. The team looks very impressive in their harnesses. Here is a link to an all Border Collie team: [url]http://www.dogscouts.com/sled.shtml[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mouseatthebusstop Posted November 21, 2004 Share Posted November 21, 2004 wow they are all at it I will have to get a shar-pei team up :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seijun Posted November 21, 2004 Share Posted November 21, 2004 I saw a picture in a book on sled racing a picture of a Dalmation team... :o ~Seij Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtnek Posted November 21, 2004 Share Posted November 21, 2004 [quote name='DogPaddle']Well they are big and strong, maybe they wouldn't do as well in extreme cold weather but I bet they could do a decent job of freight pulling. The team looks very impressive in their harnesses. Here is a link to an all Border Collie team: [url]http://www.dogscouts.com/sled.shtml[/url][/quote] they do look very strong and healthy, but I agree the cold might be a bit much.....are they double coated, like labs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imported_Matty Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 [quote]they do look very strong and healthy, but I agree the cold might be a bit much.....are they double coated, like labs?[/quote] There are a few professional dog sledders who use border collies as sled dogs. Also Alaskan husky's are mainly border collie mixes. Alaskan Malamutes are useless as sled dogs cause they get hot too quick. They are too big to be sled dogs and would probably die on a sled race. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtnek Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 sorry, I meant the rotties...I have seen BC's being used before, but dont remember seeing a lot of rotties. :oops: :oops: my PC crashed, I'm using my sons laptop...I dont get all the "features" yet.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xavierandrea Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 Courtneck> Rotties are double coated and they adapt to the climate that they are brought up it. So it wouldn't surprize me if they made good sled dogs, but I could be wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Queen Bitch Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 Several years back there was a team of Standard Poodles I believe that tried to race in the Beargrease. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imported_Cassie Posted November 22, 2004 Author Share Posted November 22, 2004 They make a lovely team, don't they :D coming from a Rottie owner this may be a little biased. :D I have a genuine dog sled for my dogs as well. I will get a picture of them hooked up this winter. Maybe I'll call the Rottie owner and see if she wants to race :lol: I have never had them hooked up to a sled before, so this could prove to be quite interesting. :lol: I got my sled for free; it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DogPaddle Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 [quote]Alaskan Malamutes are useless as sled dogs[/quote] Malamutes are good for long distance and/or freight hauling. The don't go fast but they can haul a mean load and go all day. The just don't race well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imported_Matty Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 [quote]Malamutes are good for long distance and/or freight hauling. The don't go fast but they can haul a mean load and go all day. The just don't race well. [/quote] They are large draft dogs and can pull weight. But as far as sled dogs used up north even for every day life they are useless. They are too big and get hot too easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 :o wow!! too cool!! lol gesh ZOey looks like a midgit compared to those dogs!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DogPaddle Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 Maybe you are thinking of the now popular oversized version of a Malamute. One of my profs bred, showed and competed in sledding events with his Mals - in cottage country no less, not a paticularly cold winter. They did fine, even won once in a while. They did races more suited to their breed of course. He also used them for camp/sledding and took them out on canoe trips in the summer - they ran along the shore keeping up to the canoes all day. His dogs were average or slightly under standerd Mal size, but not much. He had one giant in one litter and refused to include him in his breeding program or sledding. Lancaster was such a cutie though, big hairy beast that used to love nothing more than leaning against you until you buckled and fell down for snuggles. [url]http://www.alaskanmalamute.org/intro.htm[/url] , [url]http://www.alaskanmalamute.org/workgam.htm[/url] has some good info on Mal sled dogs and freight sledding. Here is something from their site that is applicable. [quote]The Standard of the Breed calls for a Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imported_Matty Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 Yeah, I am thinking about the bigger Malamutes. Believe me, they are useless. Great in the show ring but falling apart at the joints :lol: And the show variety are way too big for doing any work at all. I think that goes for a lot of breeds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pumpkin the musher Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 Matty is correct that the giant show type Mals are useless, but there is plenty of"real" Mal in most Alaskans- mine run from 1/4 to 1/8-the two leaders in my sig pic are 1/4 Malamute .Most Siberians are just as useless,too heavy boned.Most Alaskans ar not, however,BC mixes.(Sorry Matty) :D Certain strains are heavy in Border Collie, but their build is usually not the best for stamina- backs are too short, hind legs not angled correctly. In Alaskans out of Gareth Wright,called Aurora Huskies, there is Siberian, village dog and Irish setter, and the hot new thing now is German shorthair crosses. Fastest thing on 4 legs as far as Sprint racing, but still need to be moved back tword Alaskans for distance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malamum Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 [quote]Alaskan Malamutes are useless as sled dogs cause they get hot too quick. They are too big to be sled dogs and would probably die on a sled race.[/quote] Sledding is not always about racing. Malamutes were originally bred to pull very heavy loads, over long distances at a steady pace in extreme cold. Yes, they do get hot easy but most other breeds can Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pumpkin the musher Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 True! I find it amazing when we are at a race and the temp. is below 20 degrees F. all the "designer"sled dogs are bootied and coated to keep them warm. Sort of defeats the purpose... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DogPaddle Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 "Designer" sled dogs sound odd. I'm sure, as in many breeds, there is a large difference between working sled dogs of all types and show versions of the breed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pumpkin the musher Posted November 22, 2004 Share Posted November 22, 2004 These are not designer sled dogs meant to show, but to race- Alaskans are an everchanging breed, and because there is no "registry" of what the dog is suppose to look like, racers will breed the existing Alaskan to whatever will make it run faster and farther. The "breed de jour" as I said, is the German Shorthair Pointer. I guess that I'm a bit old fashioned and like my dog to look like sled dogs. Then again, I hardly ever win races. To quote Malamum- "you can't have it both ways!" :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malamum Posted November 23, 2004 Share Posted November 23, 2004 I must admit I Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtnek Posted November 23, 2004 Share Posted November 23, 2004 Who remembers the Alaskan sled teams that hauled ass across country to bring vaccine to the outposts? They did a kinda baton hand off at every station, where a new series of fresh dogs were ready to go the next leg....were those Mals, or Huskies, or something else entirely? saved a bunch of lives those dogs (and mushers) did. There was apparently no other way to get the vaccine out there.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pumpkin the musher Posted November 23, 2004 Share Posted November 23, 2004 I think the fact that Alaskans aren't a registered breed encourages people to "experiment" . That's how Alaskans came to be, and are still evolving. When I bred the litter which is the foundation of my current kennel, I had a sprint trained Alaskan named Teddy who I bred to a half Mal, half Alaskan because I wanted dogs that I could take out in any weather, but had the speed to get me from A to B in a reasonable amount of time. Teddy helped train all those new puppies to pull, but they soon were able to outrun him because Teddy was trained to run full out for 10 miles then take a nap. Old Ted spent many a trip home sitting in the sled because he simply hadn't been trained by his previous owner(a sprint musher) to pace himself. Our training runs now are aroung 15 miles at a brisk trot which translates to about 12 miles an hour. Sprint dogs are running around 22 to 22 miles per hour. :o Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seijun Posted November 23, 2004 Share Posted November 23, 2004 [quote name='courtnek']Who remembers the Alaskan sled teams that hauled a** across country to bring vaccine to the outposts? They did a kinda baton hand off at every station, where a new series of fresh dogs were ready to go the next leg....were those Mals, or Huskies, or something else entirely? saved a bunch of lives those dogs (and mushers) did. There was apparently no other way to get the vaccine out there....[/quote] I have always heard that they were sibes, but in the pics they look like mutts. I think they were probably just the "original" sibes, what they looked like before being standardized. ~Seij Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pumpkin the musher Posted November 23, 2004 Share Posted November 23, 2004 Seijun, you are right- they were "Siberians", or actually dogs that were the foundation of current Siberians. If you look at Seppala Siberians (named after Leonard Seppela, of the serum run fame) they are not much like the current show Siberians. There are a couple of breeders in Canada that have some original bloodlines and are trying to bring back the original look and working ability. When I started mushing in 1978 I had registered Siberians, some of them having some Seppela blood. I'll see if I can dig up some old pics to scan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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