There were no safaris today so the plan was for me to go around the 13 km route with two teams, one after the other. So I watered the dogs in the morning and because it was not yet fully light I started moving some snow to make feeding easier for the dogs. Most of the kennels have a feeding hatch that can be filled from outside and the dogs stick their head through a whole in the fence to eat. However since it had snowed so much there was a lot of snow the dogs were standing on when feeding, resulting in an unnatural and probably uncomfortable position during feeding. Therefore, I removed enough snow that the dogs can stand comfortably again. While shoveling snow I also took some time to cuddle with all the dogs, especially Bäkku, pregnant female, which is due to give birth soon. At around 11 o’clock we had some lunch and then Ritva and I loaded up the eight dogs and she drove me to the starting point. She helped me put out the first team and then we were off. Nuppu, Pörrö, Smirre and Helge took me around the route in no time, probably even a bit faster than the team the day before. At one point coming around a corner I had to break suddenly, because there was a white ptarmigan (lagopus muta, part of the pheasant and partridge family) sitting on the track and it only took flight a few seconds before the dogs would have reached it. The rest of the trip was beautiful and the wide space with only trees, snow, the dogs and me was amazing. When we got back to the trailer I gave all the dogs a cuddle, took off their harnesses and put them back on the trailer. Then I turned around the sled and put the second team on the lines. Herva (siberian husky), Natt, Uuttu and Udmurti accompanied me on this trip. Uuttu and Udmurti were doing most of the work and we were not going as fast as with the team before. We had to stop a few times to fix the lines, but the snowhook did not always stay in the soft snow, so I had to catch the sled a couple of times and jump back on as it was slowly moving past, while trying to not get caught by the snowhook. It all worked out well in the end and we made it all the way back safe and happy, where Ritva was waiting to pick us up. Then we went back to the house, I cleaned the kennel, we ate dinner and then Ritva and I went to the grocery store. Afterwards I fed the dogs and cuddled a bit more with Bäkku.
Bäkku
Natt, Herva, Uuttu and Udmurti
Ptarmigans in their winter plumage (picture from pixabay)
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