Hunters Training diary
The beginning;
Ever since i was a little girl, I have had deep and strong connection with wolves. One day my father told me there was breeds of dogs that were still very much like wolves, which pulled sleds in the snow. I instantly fell in love with the romance of the sled dog. Now imagine my sheer joy when my dad asked me if i wanted to go see sled dogs pull dry land sleds?!! (we later found out were called rigs). So at the age of about 10 i went to my first sled dog rally! And there under a Land Rover, we saw our first pair of Alaskan Malamutes. We cooed at them my arent you guys beautiful Only to be spoken back to in what the mally world calls wooing! My life changed in that vocal moment, i was going to have a whole team of them, and so the Dream of owning a working Malamute started.
Needless to say several years on, I am finally the very proud owner of an Alaskan Malamute called Hunter. He is a Black and white seal, full coated. He has great working and lines in his breeding, and i too hope to work him in sledding, weight pulling and backpacking!
This first post will be where i keep Information and Terminology, as i know it can be annoying when someone talks about a subject without explaining what half of it means! Lol So itll always be at the beginning of the post, so is easiest to find ^_^
Living the Malamute dream Weblog -http://themalamutedream.blogspot.com/
Terminology;
AMCUK Alaskan Malamute Club of UK
AMWA- Alaskan Malamute working association
Mally, mal, malamute Alaskan Malamute (a Sled dog breed )
Sibe, husky, huskies Siberian Husky (a Sled dog breed )
Rig- A three wheeled vehicle which Dog(s) pull you around a rally track on
Scooter- A two wheeled vehicle which Dog(s) pull you around a rally track on.
A dogs lines or linage- A dogs Breed history (i.e. his parent, grandparents etc etc)
Shire/stud The male dog which is mated to a female to produce a litter
Bitch a female dog (Just to make it clear, Ill be using the word in its true meaning lol)
Here are the three fields of certification including the awards to be earned in each;
Sledding
Working Team Dog (If your dog is apart of a team of 2 or more dog) WTD
Working Team Dog Advanced- WTDA
Working Team Dog Excellent- WTDX
Working Lead Dog (If your dog is lead dog)- WLD,
Working Lead Dog Advance- WLDA
Working Lead Dog Excellent- WLDX
Weight Pull
Working weight pull Dog- WWPD
Working weight pull Dog Advance- WWPDA
Working weight pull Dog Excellent- WWPDX
Backpacking
Working Pack Dog- WPD
Working Pack Dog Advance- WPDA
Working Pack Dog Excellent- WPDX
Once completed, these titles will go after his name. For example here is his fathers;
Womble hawkam Leading the trail via Amaqqut WWPD WTD.
Womble is the dogs name, leading the trail is his kennel club name and via Amaqqut means he is going to another breeder/Kennel, in this case the kennel he went to is called Amaqqut. WWPD meaning he has gained his working weight pull dog title and WTD meaning he has gained his Working team dog title! (i hope that made sense!)
I aim to complete most if not all of these (probably not the lead dog titles), although until he is a bit older I can only start training on the backpacking.
Here is the official information, copied and pasted via the AMCUK website;
Working Pack Dog titles
Once your Malamute is comfortable with carrying their pack and you have built up the weight and distances, you can look at gaining a working title for your Malamute through the Alaskan Malamute Club of America (AMCA). For this, your Mal has to be capable of carrying 30% of its body weight for on average 10 miles a day. Each day the pack must be replenished to weigh that 30% and only use of food or water etc during the day is acceptable. The full requirements are as follows:
Working Pack Dog (WPD)
Dog must carry a daily initial weight equal to a minimum of 30% of the dog's weight. This weight shall not decrease except by normal consumption of items such as food or water.
Pack trips must be on natural terrain such as hiking trails or cross country.
OPTION 1: Dog must pack a minimum of 30 miles. Each trip must be a minimum of 10 miles per day or an overnight camp out with a 5 miles in and 5 miles out. A minimum of one trip include an overnight camp out.
OPTION 2: Dog must pack a minimum of 40 miles. Each trip must be a minimum of 10 miles per day.
Elevation gain may be substituted for mileage in the following manner: 1,000 feet of elevation is equivalent to 1 mile of flat terrain. Elevation gain will be figured as the difference between the highest and lowest points of the trip.
Packing requirements shall be spred out over a minimum of 2 trips.
An impartial witness must sign the form to be sent to the Committee verifying proof of distances and dog competing.
Working Pack Dog Advanced (WPDA)
1. The dog's weight and the weight of his pack must be verified by an impartial witness or trip official prior to the start of the trip. The dog shall carry an initial load of at least 30% of his body weight. The weight carried shall not decrease except by normal consumption of items such as food or water.
2. Pack trips must be on natural terrain such as hiking trails or cross-country. Campouts will be necessary due to the distance requirements.
3. A total of 80 miles shall be completed in 1 to 4 trips.
4. Each trip shall be a minimum of 20 miles with an average of 10 miles per day on travelling days under normal conditions such as maintained trails and normal weather conditions. Day trips from the base camp must adhere to the weight requirements unless the applicant does not wish to include those miles in the trip total.
5. Because some trips will take place in mountainous terrain, each 1,000 feet of elevation gain may be substituted for a mile of the total mileage requirement.
6. An impartial witness must sign the form to be sent to the Committee verifying proof of distances and dog competing.
Working Pack Dog Excellent (WPDX)
1. The dog's weight and the weight of his pack must be verified by an impartial witness or trip official prior to the start of the trip. The dog shall carry an initial load of at least 30% of his body weight. The weight carried shall not decrease except by normal consumption of items such as food or water.
2. Pack trips shall be backcountry trips with the dogs carrying equipment necessary for the trip. Backcountry is a remote area, inaccessible and unsuited to vehicular traffic at the time of the trip, where support and aid is not generally available. Campouts will be necessary due to the distance requirements. Campouts will take place in the backcountry, not at trailheads, roadside campgrounds and the like. Suitable locations for pack trips are National Forests, Parts, hiking and undeveloped natural terrain.
3. A total of 120 miles shall be completed in 1 to 3 trips.
4. Each trip shall be a minimum of 40 miles with an average of 10 miles per day on travelling days under normal conditions such as maintained trails and normal weather conditions. Day trips from the base camp must adhere to the weight requirements unless the applicant does not wish to include those miles in the trip total.
5. Because some trips will take place in mountainous terrain, each 1,000 feet of elevation gain may be substituted for a mile of the total mileage requirement.
The beginning;
Ever since i was a little girl, I have had deep and strong connection with wolves. One day my father told me there was breeds of dogs that were still very much like wolves, which pulled sleds in the snow. I instantly fell in love with the romance of the sled dog. Now imagine my sheer joy when my dad asked me if i wanted to go see sled dogs pull dry land sleds?!! (we later found out were called rigs). So at the age of about 10 i went to my first sled dog rally! And there under a Land Rover, we saw our first pair of Alaskan Malamutes. We cooed at them my arent you guys beautiful Only to be spoken back to in what the mally world calls wooing! My life changed in that vocal moment, i was going to have a whole team of them, and so the Dream of owning a working Malamute started.
Needless to say several years on, I am finally the very proud owner of an Alaskan Malamute called Hunter. He is a Black and white seal, full coated. He has great working and lines in his breeding, and i too hope to work him in sledding, weight pulling and backpacking!
This first post will be where i keep Information and Terminology, as i know it can be annoying when someone talks about a subject without explaining what half of it means! Lol So itll always be at the beginning of the post, so is easiest to find ^_^
Living the Malamute dream Weblog -http://themalamutedream.blogspot.com/
Terminology;
AMCUK Alaskan Malamute Club of UK
AMWA- Alaskan Malamute working association
Mally, mal, malamute Alaskan Malamute (a Sled dog breed )
Sibe, husky, huskies Siberian Husky (a Sled dog breed )
Rig- A three wheeled vehicle which Dog(s) pull you around a rally track on
Scooter- A two wheeled vehicle which Dog(s) pull you around a rally track on.
A dogs lines or linage- A dogs Breed history (i.e. his parent, grandparents etc etc)
Shire/stud The male dog which is mated to a female to produce a litter
Bitch a female dog (Just to make it clear, Ill be using the word in its true meaning lol)
- Barf (Bones and Raw Foods) or Raw diet - A diet of raw foods including meaty bones, offal, fish etc
Here are the three fields of certification including the awards to be earned in each;
Sledding
Working Team Dog (If your dog is apart of a team of 2 or more dog) WTD
Working Team Dog Advanced- WTDA
Working Team Dog Excellent- WTDX
Working Lead Dog (If your dog is lead dog)- WLD,
Working Lead Dog Advance- WLDA
Working Lead Dog Excellent- WLDX
Weight Pull
Working weight pull Dog- WWPD
Working weight pull Dog Advance- WWPDA
Working weight pull Dog Excellent- WWPDX
Backpacking
Working Pack Dog- WPD
Working Pack Dog Advance- WPDA
Working Pack Dog Excellent- WPDX
Once completed, these titles will go after his name. For example here is his fathers;
Womble hawkam Leading the trail via Amaqqut WWPD WTD.
Womble is the dogs name, leading the trail is his kennel club name and via Amaqqut means he is going to another breeder/Kennel, in this case the kennel he went to is called Amaqqut. WWPD meaning he has gained his working weight pull dog title and WTD meaning he has gained his Working team dog title! (i hope that made sense!)
I aim to complete most if not all of these (probably not the lead dog titles), although until he is a bit older I can only start training on the backpacking.
Here is the official information, copied and pasted via the AMCUK website;
Working Pack Dog titles
Once your Malamute is comfortable with carrying their pack and you have built up the weight and distances, you can look at gaining a working title for your Malamute through the Alaskan Malamute Club of America (AMCA). For this, your Mal has to be capable of carrying 30% of its body weight for on average 10 miles a day. Each day the pack must be replenished to weigh that 30% and only use of food or water etc during the day is acceptable. The full requirements are as follows:
Working Pack Dog (WPD)
Dog must carry a daily initial weight equal to a minimum of 30% of the dog's weight. This weight shall not decrease except by normal consumption of items such as food or water.
Pack trips must be on natural terrain such as hiking trails or cross country.
OPTION 1: Dog must pack a minimum of 30 miles. Each trip must be a minimum of 10 miles per day or an overnight camp out with a 5 miles in and 5 miles out. A minimum of one trip include an overnight camp out.
OPTION 2: Dog must pack a minimum of 40 miles. Each trip must be a minimum of 10 miles per day.
Elevation gain may be substituted for mileage in the following manner: 1,000 feet of elevation is equivalent to 1 mile of flat terrain. Elevation gain will be figured as the difference between the highest and lowest points of the trip.
Packing requirements shall be spred out over a minimum of 2 trips.
An impartial witness must sign the form to be sent to the Committee verifying proof of distances and dog competing.
Working Pack Dog Advanced (WPDA)
1. The dog's weight and the weight of his pack must be verified by an impartial witness or trip official prior to the start of the trip. The dog shall carry an initial load of at least 30% of his body weight. The weight carried shall not decrease except by normal consumption of items such as food or water.
2. Pack trips must be on natural terrain such as hiking trails or cross-country. Campouts will be necessary due to the distance requirements.
3. A total of 80 miles shall be completed in 1 to 4 trips.
4. Each trip shall be a minimum of 20 miles with an average of 10 miles per day on travelling days under normal conditions such as maintained trails and normal weather conditions. Day trips from the base camp must adhere to the weight requirements unless the applicant does not wish to include those miles in the trip total.
5. Because some trips will take place in mountainous terrain, each 1,000 feet of elevation gain may be substituted for a mile of the total mileage requirement.
6. An impartial witness must sign the form to be sent to the Committee verifying proof of distances and dog competing.
Working Pack Dog Excellent (WPDX)
1. The dog's weight and the weight of his pack must be verified by an impartial witness or trip official prior to the start of the trip. The dog shall carry an initial load of at least 30% of his body weight. The weight carried shall not decrease except by normal consumption of items such as food or water.
2. Pack trips shall be backcountry trips with the dogs carrying equipment necessary for the trip. Backcountry is a remote area, inaccessible and unsuited to vehicular traffic at the time of the trip, where support and aid is not generally available. Campouts will be necessary due to the distance requirements. Campouts will take place in the backcountry, not at trailheads, roadside campgrounds and the like. Suitable locations for pack trips are National Forests, Parts, hiking and undeveloped natural terrain.
3. A total of 120 miles shall be completed in 1 to 3 trips.
4. Each trip shall be a minimum of 40 miles with an average of 10 miles per day on travelling days under normal conditions such as maintained trails and normal weather conditions. Day trips from the base camp must adhere to the weight requirements unless the applicant does not wish to include those miles in the trip total.
5. Because some trips will take place in mountainous terrain, each 1,000 feet of elevation gain may be substituted for a mile of the total mileage requirement.
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