My Malamute whines and cries when we hook the sled up to him. He just sits down, cries and tries to bit the harness.. The only time we can get him to pull ( other than when we do get snow) is to put one of my cute friends out running in front of him. Is there anything other than my friends to get him to pull?
thanks... well he is a treat junky so maybe if i lure a treat infront of his face and he pulls then give him the treat after he pulls maybe i can slowly get him to pull! thanks!
Hi, I run a small team of Mals in the Uk and have recorded the fastest all mal times at a couple of events this winter, so hopefully have some experience to share.
Firstly when running a one dog "team" you have to rember very few dogs are natural leaders and have the confidence initially to really go for it up front on there own, confidence can play a huge part, hence many experienced mushers still perefer to run two dogs in the lead.
I started mine out by doing a few hundred yards following either another team or someone on a bike, just to give them the confidence of being up front, this is particularly true if the dogs are heel trained (even badly) as the message can be very mixed for them initially. Then after every run I treat them (even now) with a special treat they only get after running, lots of positive re-enforcement for everything they do right, and the only time I show anything negative is to signs of aggression on the trial. After a while I then encourage them to go out front on there own without trailing someone, it took my first mal about the first race season for it to truly click and then I still find they run better in pairs, though I also take them out singly on the scooter for additional training.
Using this method I can average between 10 mph and 14 mph (depending on the trail and weather) in sprint races here in the UK with my team, maybe not as fast as many dogs but certainly respectable for Malamutes.
Hope that helps a bit.
the only problem is that our other dog is not a sled dog, is old with bad hips and he out runs her. We have been trying to find some one else who is interested in sledding that we could get Mac to run with but no one seems interested.
What do you mean by heel trained? ( I'm kind new to all the sledding talk).
Thank you for your help! We are supposed to have a blizzard today so maybe before work i could take him out and try some new tacktics(sp?).
Thank you Matt!
this week is my spring break i am im up in idaho for it! it has been snowing non stop since we came up. we didn't have room to bring the sled, but we hooked a small log( about 3 feet long) and he stared good. it was light so it was easy for him. i decided to do the treat idea( seeing he is a "treat junky"). there was one moment that the log kind got caught but not so that he couldn't pull it, it was just a little heavy then what he was used to so he started to sit down, whine and try and bit the harness. i put a treat in front of his nose and didn't give it to him but held it close enough for him to want it. he started to get mad. our other dog( who is not a sled dog) came up to him and play bited him and he got so mad he pulled the log out of its slightly stuck situation. so he over came one obstacle (even though it mad him mad for a few seconds)... and yes i was not cruel and hold the treat and never give it to him ,i gave it to him( and more than just the leuring(sp?) one. so hopefully if we can practise down in colorado more we will learn that it is fun.
One of my dogs did the exact thing you describe - whining and crying. What you must do is teach the dog that dog sledding is fun, and that he isn't going to get hurt pulling the sled. When he pulls reward him with treats and encouragement.
In the beginning, someone running beside him is one of the only ways to encourage him - and make him feel more confident. It usually will just take some time.
Anybody have any other thoughts?
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