shuffling

Against my better judgement (and it was) I put Norrin in single lead while Reese was on the bench. Things seemed to go ok for about half the run, although there were a few concerning moments when Norrin simply stopped running until the swing dogs slammed into him and pushed him forward for a few strides. I left him up there by himself until about a half mile from the house, when he decided to take a sharp left into a random driveway for no reason I could see, and stopped. I got off the ATV and pulled him back onto the road, but he was a wreck. He wouldn't line out or even look forward, and he was shaking with stress. I quickly unclipped Pico from swing and moved him up - the two had run together up front all summer on the bike, after all. Pico, however, was already a bit off and ran sideways, not pulling, all the way home (more on this later.) I'm kind of surprised we made it back without further disaster.

It was a bad idea to put Norrin up front alone, and I think I'm putting too much stock in what I hope for him and not enough in the reality of what he can and can't offer. He is a strong dog with a good work ethic who completely melts down if anything - even a tiny little micro thing like a fluctuation on the speed of the ATV behind him - goes wrong. This is what I have to work with, and I need to start putting him in positions where he can succeed, and build confidence. Forcing him into my pipe-dreams isn't doing either of us, or the team, any good.

Due to scheduling and hesitation on my part, we didn't run again until Reese was back to 100%. I put Norrin and Reese up front together, still hoping that my big foster boy would shine. Norrin did great initially, but when we had to U-turn on our out-and-back route, the few seconds of chaos was too much for him. He twisted in his harness and lay down in the road, unwilling to straighten out or move forward at all. I dropped him back into the team, switching Pepper, our new girl from Skunk's Place Kennel, up front. She ran great and pulled hard, taking my "gee" command before Reese responded to it on the way home. Yes! I figured this would be our new line-up - the two white dogs up front and Norrin secure in the team, free to pull hard without the stress of leadership.

Ever-happy Pepper, on the ride home from SPKennel.

On the next run, I hooked Reese and Pepper up and they held the line out like champs. Reese has taken to laying down with tension on his line, yelp-howling and rolling lazily in the snow until hook-up is done. I am thinking that Pete's initial moniker for him - the Dude - is more apt than we realized. Peter had decided to come with me on this run, so he was waiting on the ATV while I made some last adjustments and ran back to join him. I released the brakes and the team surged forward. They ran straight for about five yards - just to the beginning of the trail - and Pepper darted off into the woods, dragging the team and tangling the lines around several bushes in an instant. I was confused and disappointed. After some quick untangling and reassuring of the team, it was clear that Pepper was headed anywhere but down the trail with Reese. I unclipped her and switched her out with Xtra, who I had in swing.

Our little dynamo was pretty nervous up there with no dogs ahead of her. I stood her next to Reese three times, only to have her turn and follow me back to the ATV, dragging him along with her.  Finally, I had Pete start moving forward, and I ran alongside the leaders. As soon as the team outpaced me, she picked up on what was happening and surged ahead. I hopped on the ATV as it passed and we were (finally!) off.

Xtra did great up front and I have put her up with Reese on the couple of runs we've done since then. She's still hesitant at the start, but once we get going she pulls hard alongside Reese. Neither of them seem sure about the turns but they both try hard.  When we stop at an intersection, they both surge towards every possible trail, track or opening in the trees to figure out which way I want them to go. They are thinking, and at this point that counts for a lot. It should be more straightforward once we have real trails with simple two-option intersections to work with. Road-running with the quad is not a good setup for attempts at command-leader training.  Norrin, in the mean time, continues to have little melt-downs back in the team and I'm really not sure what else I can do for him except try to make the runs as smooth as possible.

Reese & Norrin in Lead

Xtra in Swing

Pepper & Pico in Team

Parka & Devilfish in Wheel

We've gotten a little bit more snow, but not quite enough for sleds. I got a second loaner sled from a friend, and am casting around for another dog or two (without success, so far) to give us enough for two small teams if Pete wants to tag along some this winter. In the mean time, the ATV is going back to its owner this week so he can start his trap line. We'll have a couple more ATV runs, and then it'll be a waiting game for some good snowfall and a few more inches of ice on the creek.