Hi all,

Everyone has their own ideas and reasons for what they want at hookup.  I DO want my dogs to use hookup time as a warmup time for their muscles AND for their cardiovascular and respiratory system.....but not to be out of control about it.  What does that mean to me....?

I expect my dogs to sit quietly at the truck as I prepare the sled/cart/quad; if they start to get noisy about it, I change what I am doing to something they know is not related to "getting ready".  It might be doing something in the cab of the truck or in the back of the dog box.  They learn "it's not time yet".  I have some that sit calmly and others that sit quietly while their whole body trembles and their pupils dilate and constrict.  Once I head to the gangline with that first dog, I EXPECT that the whole truck will go bonkers.  The dogs that are in the gangline will be bouncing, surging and vocalizing to the level they want.  HOWEVER, what is important to me is that they are in control of themselves (yes, really); their bouncing is forward, no spinning and tangling, no "alligatoring" of the dog next to them and no mouths on lines.  And even through the ruckus, their focus is on ME; they always know where I am and what I am doing.

I want the dogs to be well-controlled as I walk them to the line (pulling is OK, but no spinning or jumping in my face trying to remove my front teeth), to present their rear to me when we get to their spot and then to move forward "into" their harness so I can attach their neckline.  As I am hooking up the dogs, I want their surging to be forward and in a way that does not tangle them.  Again, no hassling the dog next to them....and no teeth on the lines.....can I say that enough?!?  Even in their excitement, I want them to know where I am and to be listening to anything I say....yes, they can.  (If a dog is misbehaving, a quiet "Leave it" or "Quit" is all that's needed; if it has to be loud, they aren't listening.)  When I get on the "rig" and say "Are you ready?", I say it quietly and all ears pivot backward, waiting for the "Let's go".  ALL of this is trained behavior; every time I am working with a dog, I do so with a mindset of forming the behaviors that I want in harness and on the trail.

The time that it IS important to me that the dogs stand calmy is when I need to stop on the trail, whether to take a break, tend to a dog or a line, whatever.  Then I want them to stand without surging, not expecting to go until I give them a command.....not just the fact that I get back to the "rig".  Some sprint racers don't train their dogs to stop; if they have to during a training run or a race, the dogs don't know what it's about and are trying to pop the hook.  By training the dogs to follow my commands and that stopping IS OK when I ask it, I save time by having a controlled situation and a team that understands that this is just part of what we do.  Now, that doesn't mean that the team wouldn't take off without me IF the hook broke loose; they just aren't hell-bent on trying to do so.

Those are the behaviors that are important and acceptable to me.  By training consistently, I get them MOST of the time.  And although we're not perfect at it, we do get numerous comments that tell me that the style I'm after is noticeable to others.

(Written March ‘03)