Life with Siberian Huskies

Thanks to the heat we haven’t had any run time for a couple of months. It cooled off enough for a short run. Not much, but it was what we all needed. One year old and Ivan has a hundred miles in harness. No more than 1.5 miles per run. He is a natural runner, I see good things in his future as an adult.

Project Ivan (left):

He will be 11 months old next week. To date has 84 miles pulling the trike. 55 runs on an average of 1.5 miles each. Done to bring him up slowly as he grows. Now at 63 pounds, he’s a missile. He ends up pulling Cooper (right) along with him.

“Tonight’s run in the rain. Cooper and Ivan pulling a combined deadweight of me and the bike 250lbs. Top speed, 20.7 Mph. The average speed of 9.0 Mph. Baby they were born to run.”

If a Siberian Husky has a major fault it is being so beautiful! This is a huge detriment to the breed. Not because it’s false, but because it causes them to be purchased by those unaware of what they require to lead happy lives.

If you purchase a dog because of its beauty you are not only fooling yourself but doing damage to that magnificent creature. A true working husky requires a lot of work. There are no days off from this responsibility. They need to run and exercise regardless of rain, heat, freezing cold, or anything else nature can throw at them.

They are built to survive, and with DNA built over thousands of years, that says…run! Seek adventure, see what’s around the next corner…with a zest that says live like this is your last day on earth. Yesterday doesn’t matter to a husky, today does. Every day they wake up with a fresh start. Free of worry and wanting to find that next adventure. It may be as simple as chasing a squirrel or smelling a strange animal on the trail.

Everything new is exciting! The wanderlust in this breed is partly why they don’t mind running a thousand miles. New trails, new smells, new adventures await in front. What’s behind is soon forgotten. The journey is more than the destination for these dogs. It’s what they live for, what they were bred for, and what they require every day. Not just when you have time.

Would you buy a new car based on looks only? I would think you would want to know what’s under the hood. Maintenance requirements and cost etc. A dog should be no different. Do you want a Corvette or a Vega? Each comes with its own peculiar requirements. A fluff bunny or a working dog. A high-maintenance animal or a couch potato? Choose wisely, because it’s not only you but the dog that will suffer your mistakes.

Don’t ask if a husky is good enough for you. Ask yourself if you are good enough for a husky. It’s a huge life-changing comitment.

The Big Boys Team

Ivan turned 10 months old today. We celebrated with a run on the bike. Now at 60 lbs. and 25” tall at the shoulder he is reaching whatever his DNA has planned for him in size. He crossed 80 miles total in harness today. This video is a great example of the difference between a standard pure-bred Siberian vs. a racing line Seppala. The body lines are most self evident. Ivan has more of a “Hound” type body, and a short coat compared to Cooper.

True Ivan is an outcross and a product of two lead dogs. But, I’m very happy with this breeding. Cooper Lee on the left has his flag tail up and waving in the wind. Ivan’s tail is down and he wastes no motion in his gait. Coop when loping or galloping is somewhat of a rocking horse motion. Ivan is straight-line thrust. Ivan always has a least one foot on the ground pushing forward. A dog that runs with air-time is known as a “Floater.” Why is that important? Mainly because that air-time means a momentary lack of forwarding thrust. It’s the little things that matter. Constant thrust is better than momentary air-time where no thrust is being applied.

Rocking horse loping is not smooth. It is a series of jerking movements of thrust. In other words, it’s a lack of efficiency of motion. Coop is strong as a horse, but he cannot produce the speed that Ivan can. You can see in the video that at times Ivan is pulling him along. Attitude is another attribute, Ivan never stops. He always wants to go faster and eat up the ground. Coop wants to enjoy the sights, which is good unless you want a racing dog.

So is Ivan perfect? Hardly, he has quirks. His latest is being a klepto-maniac. In particular, he favors stealing the basement toilet brush and taking it outside like a toy. Nikki had the same fetish for toilet brushes. Perhaps dog toy manufacturers should just sell toilet brushes? I’ve countered this new tendency with some toys. Hopefully, his fascination with toilet brushes will subside with the introduction of fuzzy squeaky toys he can shred!

Ivan is a hard charger with issues dealing with his enormous amounts of energy that needs an outlet. This would not be a dog for a first-time husky owner. You have to understand so much about them that a novice would give up and take them to a shelter. Mainly because they just can’t understand it. If you don’t find a positive outlet for this energy your house will be eaten. That may sound funny but it’s truer than you think. If you have a car with 700HP and drive it to church on Sundays only, eventually it will break down. Same with high-performance dogs. They need to run, not because they want to (which they do), but because they have to. If they don’t get that release, they will break down, in ways that will come out in various forms.

This year so far my kennel partner in Maine has had her dogs win four International Championships in the show ring. I’m not of the “Show” mentality, but in this case these are actual working dogs that pulled a sled over 1500 miles this past winter to win their 2nd title in the Iron Paws 6-dog sled competition.

A husky that does what he was bred to do, is so important in letting that dog fulfill his purpose in life. Winning show titles is nice, and just icing on the cake. This is really a big deal! Complete Siberian Huskies, who work, and can win dog shows at the championship level. It doesn’t get any better than that for a breeder.

Northlane Siberian Huskies and Seppala Siberian Sled Dogs.

 Int Ch/Ch Black Soul of Northlane Wilcza Dusza (Kennel name Damarion).

It’s been a while since Ivan committed a sin. The last time was the case of the missing whole frozen chicken I bought for them. This time it was a little more expensive.

I was rushing around the other night, busy cooking supper after feeding the hounds. I ran upstairs to check on the food in the oven and left my Kindle on the bed. I’ve done that a million times and never expected the dogs to mess with it.

After supper, I came back downstairs with a cup of coffee and looked to finish my book. Guess what? No Kindle on the bed. At first, that didn’t seem like a big deal because I wasn’t positive where I’d left it. I took my coffee and went out the back door to finish it. I noticed something strange-looking laying out in a mud hole. It had been raining all day, and I couldn’t figure out what it was.

I went out and found my Kindle lying face down in the mud! Not only that, but it looked from the digging under it that someone had tried to bury it. Now there is only one dog in this house that would do something like that. You guessed it, Ivan. I went a picked it up, and washed it off. It had a few scratches on the face but still worked. Except for the fact, the book I had been reading was no longer on the screen.

I guess this was his way of telling me I spend too much time reading. Never mind that he gets a walk and a run every day. This boy is driven to be active all the time!

I looked at Ivan, “Did you do this?” I asked him. He lowered his ears and ran for safer places. I had to reload my book and find my place again. It wasn’t too bad, but I learned nothing is safe from this dog. He came back later looking guilty and went to sleep.

Yes, this is why I named him Ivan the Terrible. Hopefully, one of these days, he grows up and out of his mischief behaviors. I can’t seem to catch him in the act, but I know it is always him doing these shenanigans.

Quick run last night with Cooper and Ivan. We did a mile in 6 minutes with two turn arounds and a poop incident. They were moving last night for sure.

Well, Ivan is now at 9 months and 60 lbs. Ivan is becoming a force of nature when he’s hooked up to something to pull. He can trot up to 9.5 mph and top speed so far is 21 mph. I might see if he can make someone’s team that runs the big races like the Iditarod or Yukon Quest. To be continued as he grows.

I’m so fortunate and so are the dogs to have a great kennel partner in Maine. The purebred Siberian side of the house now has 7 Champion Siberians, 4 have made International champion status. Not only that they pull sleds and work like they were meant to.

Also, Seraph is currently the #4 fastest dog in the USA at “Fast-Cat” competition. This is a 100 yard dash chasing a rabbit lure. He’s clocked at 25.26 Mph. Pretty fast for a show dog?

On the Seppala side of the house, the Sepps took Hannah to her second win in the Ironpaws 2021 6-dog team sled classic. They completed 1526 miles by sled, topping second place by 1000 miles. We aren’t done yet.

Ivan is a cross between the Seppala lines and his cousins, the Purebred Sibes. So far he is a monster bred from two lead dogs. His future is bright, but time will tell what this outcross produced.

2.53 miles in 18:40 minutes. My boys, Mr. Cooper Lee, Left (6 years), Northlane’s Poison Ivy (Ivan), right (9 months). Both weigh around 60lbs; 24-25” tall at the withers. This was a daylight run which means there were lots of distractions out. It was good training for Ivan to learn to ignore them. He didn’t, but having them become commonplace is the point. Eventually, he’ll learn to ignore all of this. He has to be exposed to it first, in order to do that. Music by Deep Purple: “Highway Star,” because that’s what these guys are to me.