Photos and video: Keeping sled dogs happy, healthy in summer – Duluth News Tribune

FINLAND, Minn. — Getting treatment of sled canines is a calendar year-round affair, which indicates they continue to have to have to be cared for lengthy right after the racing period finishes.

Sled-pet racing is an intensive winter season sport. Some races, such as the John Beargrease Sled Doggy Marathon, acquire mushers and their puppies on journeys hundreds of miles very long by snow-packed trails and at any time-shifting chilly temperatures, like feasible polar vortexes.

For Blake and Jennifer Freking, who race teams of Siberian huskies, the coldest moments of the year are the perfect weather ailments for their canines. In accordance to Jennifer, who’s also a training veterinarian since 2004, “they love the cold.”

“We prosper when we get a good polar vortex at a race. They imagine that things is excellent, so they have nice thick coats,” she stated.

As the temperature rises, the snow melts absent along with significantly of their skill to coach. As soon as they enter March or April, they begin “de-schooling,” wherever they progressively start coaching a lot less. With the canines staying a lot less lively, they gradually fall their foods rations to about a quarter of what their winter rations would be.

Right after the temperature rises above 50 degrees, they maintain off on harness training until finally it cools down in the drop. To help preserve them amazing, each of their 62 canines has their personal kennel, the place they can lay in the shade if they get hot, and they have common entry to cleanse water.

During the summer season, they’re going to continue to keep their puppies active by getting them cost-free run in massive groups in their 2.5-acre fenced in lawn.

“It just allows them engage in close to and be pet dogs, but it also will help keep them in form as nicely,” Blake stated. To protect against them from overheating, they preserve the exercise confined to when it is cooler in the early mornings.

In accordance to the married pair, education would not really exist for them in the summer season. In its place, they’re centered on retaining the canines joyful and healthier, which, according to Blake, is what they get pleasure from about the summer months.

“Through the winter season, we are really targeted on definitely putting miles on, schooling and conditioning, whilst through the summer season, we can seriously focus on just getting enjoyable and let them have exciting,” he explained.

With the Frekings unable to educate in the summer months like they do in the winter, they now have time for one thing else: puppies. As of July 13, they have 12 puppies: 5 9-week-aged puppies and 7 2-day-previous puppies.

In the early levels, the puppies are fully dependent on their mom. “When puppies are born, they can’t hear or see,” Jennifer mentioned. As these, Blake and Jennifer’s focus at this phase is just to assist the mom and support her elevate her pups.

By getting there from the beginning, they hope to develop a bond with each individual dog and bit by bit mature that bond and believe in until eventually they’re completely ready to get started coaching with the other canine at all over 1 calendar year old.

“And they get off, quickly,” Blake reported. “We have hardly ever experienced to train a pet to pull they just go. From there, it really is just care and frequently developing on that rely on until we’re to the issue where by we’re asking them to do 300-mile Beargrease or 1,000-mile Iditarod, or a little something like that.”

Jennifer, who’s been racing sled dogs given that she was 8 a long time aged, says it is a enthusiasm of hers to elevate and coach Siberian huskies. “I adore the breed,” she stated. “I really like the way of life. Becoming out with the pet dogs is my happy position, performing with them. They are just your finest close friends and buddies. They really feel like your family.”