[]
You were asking about sleddogs crossing ice.
Coincidentally, there's a discussion of just that going on
in another forum:
http://www.sleddogcentral.com/forum/...?TOPIC_ID=8428
--
Melinda Shore - Software longa, hardware brevis -

Prouder than ever to be a member of the reality-based community

"Melinda Shore" wrote in message
...
[]
You were asking about sleddogs crossing ice.
Coincidentally, there's a discussion of just that going on
in another forum:
http://www.sleddogcentral.com/forum/...?TOPIC_ID=8428
--
Melinda Shore - Software longa, hardware brevis -

Prouder than ever to be a member of the reality-based community
=========
Ok, just read it all. I would think it could get pretty hairy running dogs
over ice. I wonder why they don't come up with something skid resistant for
their feet; some type of boots with rubber bottoms.
If the lead dog falls, don't they all pile on top of him then.
I would think the ATV would be the easiest way to control the speed of the
dogs, but you can't use those in races.
When they plan and map out these dog races, do they make you use a
particular trail, or can you run any where in that vicinity. Also, do they
check out the areas where you will be racing and purposely avoid icy areas
when planning a race?
As you can see I know nothing about dog racing, but am still interested.

In article ,
pfoley wrote:
I wonder why they don't come up with something skid resistant for
their feet; some type of boots with rubber bottoms.

I'm not sure, either. We don't run on ice around here -
it's just too warm to be safe. I do know that over the
course of a race each team can go through a mind-numbing
quantity of booties (they wear out, they get thrown, the
dogs chew them, etc.) and the cost really adds up.
Apparently the Iditarod trail has booties scattered all over
the place from dogs throwing them as they travel, and that's
a lot of dogs (90 teams * 16 dogs/team = 1440 dogs).

If the lead dog falls, don't they all pile on top of him then.

Sometimes. It's not so much that they fall but that they
slide in unpredictable directions. The worst problem is
tangles, where the team gets tangled with the lines. It can
cause injuries.

When they plan and map out these dog races, do they make you use a
particular trail, or can you run any where in that vicinity. Also, do they
check out the areas where you will be racing and purposely avoid icy areas
when planning a race?

They use particular trails, and the trails are groomed for
the races to make them safer. There are generally trail
markers up although I know someone from NH who raced in the
upper midwest and complained a lot about the lack of trail
markers.

A lot of the Iditarod and Yukon Quest run on the Yukon River
(and tributaries), and the last part of the Iditarod
includes a section over the sea ice (Norton Sound), but
there's typically a pretty good amount of snow over the ice.
--
Melinda Shore - Software longa, hardware brevis -

Prouder than ever to be a member of the reality-based community

"pfoley" said in
rec.pets.dogs.behavior:

I would think the ATV would be the easiest way to control
the speed of the dogs, but you can't use those in races.

The point of some of the posts was that some dogs are more
stable when they can control themselves.

I certainly see that when teaching beginners agility: If you
keep a tight leash on some dogs when learning the dogwalk,
they'll pull against the handler, scrambling and scratching
across the obstacle and sometimes jumping off. With a loose
leash, they're in control of their own destiny and are often
more comfortable and confident.

--
--Matt. Rocky's a Dog.

"Melinda Shore" wrote in message
...
In article ,
pfoley wrote:
I wonder why they don't come up with something skid resistant for
their feet; some type of boots with rubber bottoms.

I'm not sure, either. We don't run on ice around here -
it's just too warm to be safe. I do know that over the
course of a race each team can go through a mind-numbing
quantity of booties (they wear out, they get thrown, the
dogs chew them, etc.) and the cost really adds up.
Apparently the Iditarod trail has booties scattered all over
the place from dogs throwing them as they travel, and that's
a lot of dogs (90 teams * 16 dogs/team = 1440 dogs).

If the lead dog falls, don't they all pile on top of him then.

Sometimes. It's not so much that they fall but that they
slide in unpredictable directions. The worst problem is
tangles, where the team gets tangled with the lines. It can
cause injuries.

When they plan and map out these dog races, do they make you use a
particular trail, or can you run any where in that vicinity. Also, do
they
check out the areas where you will be racing and purposely avoid icy
areas
when planning a race?

They use particular trails, and the trails are groomed for
the races to make them safer. There are generally trail
markers up although I know someone from NH who raced in the
upper midwest and complained a lot about the lack of trail
markers.

A lot of the Iditarod and Yukon Quest run on the Yukon River
(and tributaries), and the last part of the Iditarod
includes a section over the sea ice (Norton Sound), but
there's typically a pretty good amount of snow over the ice.
--
Melinda Shore - Software longa, hardware brevis -

Prouder than ever to be a member of the reality-based community
==============
I have always been curious as to why they so often use mixed breed dogs
instead of pure bred Huskies.

In article ,
pfoley wrote:
I have always been curious as to why they so often use mixed breed dogs
instead of pure bred Huskies.

Bigger gene pool. They can select for the qualities they
want from any dog, rather than from what really is a very
narrow gene pool among purebreds.
--
Melinda Shore - Software longa, hardware brevis -

Prouder than ever to be a member of the reality-based community

"Melinda Shore" wrote in message
...
In article ,
pfoley wrote:
I have always been curious as to why they so often use mixed breed dogs
instead of pure bred Huskies.

Bigger gene pool. They can select for the qualities they
want from any dog, rather than from what really is a very
narrow gene pool among purebreds.
--
Melinda Shore - Software longa, hardware brevis -

Prouder than ever to be a member of the reality-based community
=============
But I never see a lot of coat on the mixed breeds that they pick; don't they
get cold. At least the Huskies have a thick coat. It always amazes me how
those racing dogs keep warm at night outside and don't freeze to death. Has
that ever happened.

In article ,
pfoley wrote:
But I never see a lot of coat on the mixed breeds that they pick; don't they
get cold. At least the Huskies have a thick coat. It always amazes me how
those racing dogs keep warm at night outside and don't freeze to death. Has
that ever happened.

I imagine it has, but I don't know of any specific
incidents. I do know that when it gets extremely cold the
dogs are jacketed. These days in the lower 48 people are
breeding for lighter coats because of warming. A few years
back a purebred Siberian Husky team scratched from the
Iditarod because it was just too warm (it actually rained
during the race) and the dogs were at risk of overheating.

-20F is widely considered ideal weather for sleddogs.
--
Melinda Shore - Software longa, hardware brevis -

Prouder than ever to be a member of the reality-based community