Re: drafting
Hi Molly, Congrads on winning the cart..The first rule, NEVER NEVER NEVER put a dog that doesn't know how to cart and see what happens..Once the dog gets spooked it will take much longer to get past that stage..Plus he or she could easily get hurt.. Start by just having your dog wear the harness. Than if no problems put the traces on and have her just drag the tracesThan add a drag, such as a small log or detergent bottle filled half way with water...Stay at this step.. Make big wide turns and go over different surfaces..grass to gravel to blacktop.. Take very small steps, make the lessons short,but make them fun.. I don't have the room here to give you a full lesson, but Potomac which is your local club does have carting workshops.. Just as Watchung on April 6 and Nashoba starting on March 29th. Some dogs you could get away with hooking up and see what happens, but why take the chance.. I had trained many dogs to cart from Berners to Goldens to Chessie's They all can be taught some just take a little longer time Good luck Bill Wilczek Wilczek Woodworks www.geocities.com/wilczekwoodworks
Re: drafting
Hi Bill, I did mention in my message that we had done all of that - the weights attached to the end, wearing the harness around the house, tying things to it and having him pull them around the yard, loose tracers - we followed the book and did all the prep work as it is recommended it was a disaster and this is after doing the weights on the end, the loose tracers, etc! For some reason the noise associated with the plastic cart is what set us back to ground zero. So we had taken the small steps although my note may have made it sound as though we jumped from the frying pan into the fire. Now to get dad to make brakes for the shafts and we can get him working. Molly and the gang + 3 squirts Charlottesville, VA Hi Molly, Congrads on winning the cart..The first rule, NEVER NEVER NEVER put a dog that doesn't know how to cart and see what happens..Once the dog gets spooked it will take much longer to get past that stage..Plus he or she could easily get hurt.. Start by just having your dog wear the harness. Than if no problems put the traces on and have her just drag the tracesThan add a drag, such as a small log or detergent bottle filled half way with water...Stay at this step.. Make big wide turns and go over different surfaces..grass to gravel to blacktop.. Take very small steps, make the lessons short,but make them fun.. I don't have the room here to give you a full lesson, but Potomac which is your local club does have carting workshops.. Just as Watchung on April 6 and Nashoba starting on March 29th. Some dogs you could get away with hooking up and see what happens, but why take the chance.. I had trained many dogs to cart from Berners to Goldens to Chessie's They all can be taught some just take a little longer time Good luck Bill Wilczek Wilczek Woodworks www.geocities.com/wilczekwoodworks
Re: Drafting biomechanics
Sherri wrote: Okay folks, I have a question. I was at a seminar this weekend for canine structure and the question came up as to whether a dog uses their front or rear to pull with. My initial reaction was their front, but after thinking about it further, I think it's much more complicated than this. I think terrain, weight load, not to mention the type of harness the dog wears all affect how they pull and drive. My therory is that they use both front and rear, sometimes equally and sometimes one is used more than the other. After watching a video of a Swissy at a weight pull, it seemed to me the dog was using its rear much more than its front. I don't have any proof that this is the case, but I can tell you the dog squatted its rear down, kept his rear feet planted, and pushed with the rear. The front end of the dog lifted up and the front legs seemed to claw at the ground in an effort to keep the dog going straight (instead of arcing around on the end of rope) more than pull the dog forward. Now maybe with a carting harness that has stays the dog wouldn't feel like it could swing around and thus would be able to use more of its front for pulling. I just don't know the answer to that. John Engstrom Plano, TX _ Add photos to your messages with MSN 8. Get 2 months FREE*. http://join.msn.com/?page=features/featuredemail
Re: Drafting biomechanics
Sherri, I can tell you they can't pull without the rear. I participated in a weight pulling demo once years ago. My berner was cart trained but not weight conditioned and she was 7 yrs old. We started with about 10 dogs including Sibs, Mals, a Great Dane, some GSs, Sammys, and other pure-bred dogs. Each dog pulled on level to slightly sloping up hill ground and we started with a 100 lb gig (3 wheeled thingy) and the dog had to pull this from a dead stop a distance of about 16'. All the owner could do is call the dogs name. After each dog had a try those that didn't/couldn't pull dropped out and they added weight at about 50 lb increments after each round of pulls. At the 550 lb level the four dogs left were my Jeni, a Mal and a couple other sled dogs (either both Sibs or a Sib and a Sammy) The Dane and a GS didn't even make the first pull because they didn't have the proper rear for digging in and driving forward. Too much angulation in the GS so energy was wasted. This is of particular concern in our Berners today as many many have too much bend of stifle and couldn't pull a load on their best day. Sandie Hawkins
Re: Drafting Equipment
- Original Message - From: Karyn Waugh [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Drafting Equipment . I do however need a good harness. I have a training harness to start with Really, really good work harnesses that distribute the load well at Newfoundland Saddlery, Gary Barnes is apt and they are grand! http://silverweb.nf.ca/html_docs/crafts/avalon/nfsaddry.htm that is the address and contact, here are some pics of his dogs in harness http://www.cartingwithyourdog.com/cpgnewfsaddlery.html Rusty C Good Company
