Puppy Runs

The Cheese and Office Litters are now about 6.5- 7 months old. The Fire litter (Spitfire, Fox, and Fly) now exercise in harness, but we have yet to introduce the youngest RK athletes to a harness quite yet. For now, they get their energy out by chasing the snowmachine. We stage the snowmachine at the beginning of our exit trail, release the horde, and then rocket down to the Chena River for some zoomies.

These two litters have been quite a handful- getting into scuffles, barking incessantly, and growing monstrously large. Compared to the Fire Litter who were perfectly behaved from day one, these nine make for a chaotic horde and definitely try my patience. All that being said, when they’re out running, stretching out into full speed torpedoes, it makes my heart soar. Their love of running is so apparent that I feel lucky I get to be a part of it.

Big Tuna loves to be in the front. You can see in the last portions of the video, Tuna is going all out at the front of the pack, not caring about the dogs behind him and just enjoying eating up the trail. Beesly is often at the front as well and likes to dart around the snowmachine to lead everyone when we’re on narrow sections. Holly is one of the most athletic, and it’s spectacular to watch her run. She alternates from being near the front to playing with her siblings farther back. Mose likes to rocket ahead when he sees Tuna up front and shoulder bump him. Like Holly, Mose has an impressive build and can cover some ground when he puts on the turbo jets. Dwight is enormous. Because of his large size, he’s still kind of clumsy and gangling, so he’s normally farther back in the running group. Cartel often joins us on the runs, and he TOWERS over her. Cheddar is super speedy. She doesn’t have the confidence of Tuna and Beesly, but she spends her fair share of time at the front of the pack. When stopped, she likes to run ahead, then turn around, lie down, and mad dog (meaning stare at everyone like a Border Collie) as if daring them to run past her. Muenster is the fluffiest of all the puppies, which hides his athletic build, but when he gets going, Muenster can hang with the best of them. He prefers to pester and play with Cartel and Havarti rather than push for the lead. Havarti is taller and more graceful than her sister Cheddar. She LOVES pestering Cartel, and Cartel is slow, so Havarti normally ends up being farther back just because that’s where Cartel is. Mozzerella was one of the most confident pups early on, but as he’s gotten older, he’s definitely become a bit more introverted. He’s normally near the front but likes to keep out of the fray. He’s always very attentive on where the human is and likes to sit, hoping for a treat.