New Puppy!!---(Pictures included)

[Danegirl2208]

oh hes a cutie

I know you'll find Yukon a good home, and while its extremly sad, i respect you decisans...you know whats best for your dog..give him a big hug for me ok? I love that big sweet face of his.

[tikeyas_mom]

Well, I was trying to keep my mouth shut on this one, but I'm loosing the battle. Attitudes and actions like this are the single biggest problem in the mushing world. Rehoming/dumping dogs that "aren't good enough" is the reason why I have 23 dogs in my yard. Almost everyone of them wasn't good enough for someone else. Their loss, my gain! It's the reason why over 3000 huskies a year die in the Fairbanks, Alaska shelter. Almost every one of those dogs is a working sled dog that didn't meet their mushers' standards. That doesn't count the thousands more that never make it to a shelter or never have the chance to be rehomed. It's the reason why I will never be a serious, competitive musher. The attitude disgusts me.

My dogs live and die with me, regardless of their interest in pulling. Of the 23, only 15 pull. My retired leader is currently lounging on the couch. Heyoka, who should have been a great freight dog but hates to work, is running around the yard, playing with Mac. I gave Heyoka's harness away last year, never considered giving the dog away! If you had adopted Yukon from the shelter I work with and then rehomed him, you immediately go on our Do Not Adopt list and would never get another animal from us.

And now I'm going outside to take my not good enough sled dogs for a 20 mile run.

ALL I have to say is.. Touch'e.. I wish Yukon could come live with me.

[Husky_mom]

despite the sadness Yukon didn´t work, I hope he now can get all the attention he deserves without having to do something he didn´t enjoyed (I KNOW he is very loved andit is not fair to leave him behind). he can now be the couch potatoe he might want

as for the newbie.........now I definately have to go visit you!!!..........adn come back with a stuffed suitcase

how lovely I want to steal him!!!...........

[BC_MoM]

Wow, GREAT post, Glacier.

[Husky15]

I have to agree with Glacier on the Yukon topic. Boy, I wish I could take Yukon, I always thought he was gorgeous.

Congratulations on Kodiak. He is such a cute puppy!

[dab_20]

Glacier... I wish there were soo many other people in the world just like you. All of your dogs are so lucky to have you in their lives, to save them from heartless people. I thank you for that.

I do not agree at all with your reason to rehome Yukon, but I wish him the best of luck in finding a furever home and a family who loves him for who he is. He is such a handsome boy.

Kodiak is adorable!

[Anita Cholaine]

Well, I was trying to keep my mouth shut on this one, but I'm loosing the battle. Attitudes and actions like this are the single biggest problem in the mushing world. Rehoming/dumping dogs that "aren't good enough" is the reason why I have 23 dogs in my yard. Almost everyone of them wasn't good enough for someone else. Their loss, my gain! It's the reason why over 3000 huskies a year die in the Fairbanks, Alaska shelter. Almost every one of those dogs is a working sled dog that didn't meet their mushers' standards. That doesn't count the thousands more that never make it to a shelter or never have the chance to be rehomed. It's the reason why I will never be a serious, competitive musher. The attitude disgusts me.

My dogs live and die with me, regardless of their interest in pulling. Of the 23, only 15 pull. My retired leader is currently lounging on the couch. Heyoka, who should have been a great freight dog but hates to work, is running around the yard, playing with Mac. I gave Heyoka's harness away last year, never considered giving the dog away! If you had adopted Yukon from the shelter I work with and then rehomed him, you immediately go on our Do Not Adopt list and would never get another animal from us.

And now I'm going outside to take my not good enough sled dogs for a 20 mile run.

Tamara, after your post, I don't think I could add anything else. I wish there were more people like you in this world.

It's your own decision to rehome Yukon, so I don't think there's much we can do. I hope he finds a forever, loving family, I'll definitely keep him in my thoughts and prayers.

Kodiak is such a cutie, but what if he's not good enough as a sled dog? Will you also rehome him?

[elizabethann]

Sorry if some of the replies aren't what you were expecting. But I'm with Glacier on this one.

[T-Ice]

Hello All,

I first want to say that without opinions we would accomplish nothing, so thank you all for your opinions on this topic!
There are many types of people in this world. Some people have too many dogs, even in their opinion. Some have many but are always adding more. Some people have one and would love one more.Some people don't have any and would die to just have one. Some people like like dogs but feel they are too much work. Some people think dogs are creatures of disgust and feel no person should keep them as pets. I know who I am and I think you all know who you are. For the people who have dogs some think of them as creatures of higher power who desrve not to have one human tell them what to do, their owners live at their will, they are alpha superior to all. Some people keep them as couch potatoes. Some people keep them as pets and provide fun and stimulating activities for them do do.Some people keep dogs as working animals only.
Some people make sure each dog has a job to do, believing it not right to own one of these magnificiant animals without having them do what they should be doing naturally. For example I myself (and yes I know I'm going get slammed on this one) don't think it is fair to have a husky as a pet only. Huskies are suppose to have a job to do( in my pinion, of course), a real job. Unfortunatly, and I guess fortunatly also, some huskies are having their working intsicts and desire bred out of them making them easier to keep as house pets. Laid back , Lazy , lovable house pets.
On With Working Sled Dogs: A PT Musher, who also replied to this topic, has many sled dogs. More than half of which are working. This person also stated that she would never find a new home for one of her huskies if it no longer wanted to pull. And this is okay for her. This her her decision and a correct one for her indeed. Meaning therefore she would have just as many huskies as she has now even in none of them pulled. And again this is okay for her. What is not okay is for her to scold other people's opinions, in public (could have PM'd) with the intent to make the other person get definsive, about their decisions on their sled dogs. For some people, myself included, have a hard time keeping a husky if it does not want to pull. Not because I don't love and respect the animal but because I am a musher, With a goal to continue mushing, and in order to mush I need dogs that pull. I could have 100 huskies in my kennel but if none of them enjoy this activity I wouldn't be able to mush. I am a musher, I have sled dogs. I am also a pet owner, I have pet dogs.

I am also one of you, I have an opinion.

[cassiesmom]

Holy socks! This is like playing Where's Waldo - only it's Where's Kodiak! Which of these is the actual living, breathing, adorable, precious pup?! What a darling! Pet Talk Cuteness Warning!

[DrKym]

T-Ice, well said and well thought out. Thank you your post is what I was trying to get across in mine. Thanks for calm and equitable opinon.

[buttercup132]

I think what she means (I don't know if this is right or wrong but this is how I see it) is that her way of giving her dogs attention right now and showing them love etc is when she trains them, sleds with them , and works with them. Since Yukon isnt up for that she dosent have time between school etc to give Yukon "pet" time.

So why not let Yukon go to someone who like Karen said wants a Husky but might not want all the Husky qualities ie: wanting to pull all the time and really hyper. I know there are alot of people who want certain breeds but can't have them because of the personality of the breed and ould probly jump at the opurtunity to own that breed without some of the aspects that wouldn't fit into yourlife style.

Congrads on the new puppy.

[wolfsoul]

Aw, Kodiak is adorable!

I was never able to understand, until a couple years ago, when I got Visa, how a breeder or someone with working dogs, could give up a dog that could not breed or work. If a dog is retired from working because it is old, it's old -- it doesn't need alot of exercise or training anymore. But if a dog retires because it just won't do the work, it still needs the attention and the training. It won't lay around like the older retired dogs. If you only have time to do your regular training and exercise with the other dogs, and not give "special" and seperate training and exercise to another one, how fair is it to keep that dog, rather than giving it a home that does have the time?

For instance, I have to bike to work everyday. If Visa refused to run beside my bike, she would be at home in her crate for 10-12 hours a day, while Solo comes to work with me. When I get home from work, I have way too many things to do before I go to bed, and I don't have time to give her seperate exercise. How fair would it be to keep a dog with such a huge amount of energy in that situation?

Sometimes it's more selfish to keep a dog than to give it a better home. If everyone kept dogs that didn't suit their lifestyles, I wouldn't have Visa.

[Glacier]

On With Working Sled Dogs: What is not okay is for her to scold other people's opinions, in public (could have PM'd) with the intent to make the other person get definsive, about their decisions on their sled dogs. For some people, myself included, have a hard time keeping a husky if it does not want to pull. Not because I don't love and respect the animal but because I am a musher, With a goal to continue mushing, and in order to mush I need dogs that pull. I could have 100 huskies in my kennel but if none of them enjoy this activity I wouldn't be able to mush. I am a musher, I have sled dogs. I am also a pet owner, I have pet dogs.

I am also one of you, I have an opinion.

But it's ok for you to scold me publicly??? I have discussed this further with sled_dog by PM.

Sled dog rescue is my life's work. This weekend alone I had three phone calls from mushers wanting to get rid of their dogs--one guy his entire team of close to two dozen dogs. It is extremely rare that a full week goes by where I don't get a call from some musher who's got too many dogs, too many puppies, the dog is too old, too young, too unfocused, funny gait, health issues, temperment issues, claims he's sick and has to get out of mushing, or just doesn't want to bother anymore. While I believe there are legitmate reasons for placing a dog, I think they are far more rare than most mushers like to believe. The market for working sled dogs, of any age and any caliber, is extremely limited. The average pet dog owner runs screaming in the other direction as soon as they hear the words "sled dog", even where I live, in the middle of mushing central. Most of the dogs I get calls about end up dead and not always a humane death. Their deaths keep me up at night. So don't expect any sympathy or understanding from me when you dump a dog.

I do hope Yukon gets a great new home where he will be loved and appreciated for the rest of his life.

[Vela]

[QUOTE=T-Ice}On With Working Sled Dogs: A PT Musher, who also replied to this topic, has many sled dogs. More than half of which are working. This person also stated that she would never find a new home for one of her huskies if it no longer wanted to pull. And this is okay for her. This her her decision and a correct one for her indeed. Meaning therefore she would have just as many huskies as she has now even in none of them pulled. And again this is okay for her. What is not okay is for her to scold other people's opinions, in public (could have PM'd) with the intent to make the other person get definsive, about their decisions on their sled dogs. [/QUOTE]


Umm, in one breath you tell HER to take it to PMs and then turn around and scold HER in public? I don't think that is appropriate at all. You are welcome to your opinion, like anyone else, but please don't presume to tell someone else what to do, and then turn around and do exactly the same thing you are accusing them of; and I thank God above for people like Glacier, or there would be a whole lot of sled dogs that's other's don't want anymore languishing at the shelter or put down.

Yukon will, I'm sure, be placed in a loving and caring home. He isn't being dumped at a shelter, but I still feel badly for him that his current home didn't work out for him.