Rain

Last weekend we got rain for the first time in two weeks, but that is not what this post is about.

Rain is a big, fluffy, beautiful dog who is currently on the slacker team while he learns how to pull all the time instead of just when we are starting. Rain has a habit of jumping back and forth across the gangline when he wants us to get moving. Invariably he ends up on the left side once we are moving. A few days ago I decided to train him to run on the right side. Lets just say I failed miserably. No matter how I worked with him, he would wait until I released the brake and then make one last leap back to the left.

Today I had a special trick up my sleeve for dealing with Rain. I ran him next to his brother Hail. Hail also likes to jump across the gangline and also likes to end up on the left side, but even more so than Rain. I figured I could sit back and watch the battle of the leapers.


Sure enough, it worked beautifully. Hail almost always had the last leap, and Rain was forced to run on the right. I stopped the ATV frequently so they would get lots of practice in taking off with Rain on the right. A couple times I timed the release so that Hail was on the right, just to keep him from getting too one-sided, but most of today's training was for Rain. This ended with a very happy Rain because I never felt the compulsion to holler at him, and not once did I throw him across the gangline. It was just a happy run with a happy musher.