The Road to Alaska

The racing team is headed to Alaska! 19 dogs piled into the dog truck yesterday morning. It is a long journey, requiring several stops, but the dogs were more excited than I had ever seen them.
Instead of running them, I woke up early to feed, since they needed a couple hours to digest before we packed them into the truck. I spent five minutes with each dog, saying goodbye. There were a lot of tummy rubs, head cuddles, and low howls. They were just happy to get the extra love. They didn't know what was really happening until the dog boxes opened. As soon as Bill, Jodi, and I opened those boxes, the yard went wild. Usually, when the dogs are that enthusiastic, we hold onto their collars so they don't evade a quick harness. In this instance however, every dog went free.

With the anticipation of a trip in the dog truck and a run on snow, the dogs made a beeline for the truck. The veterans most likely knew that the truck was going to Alaska, based on the four sleds packed on top. The young dogs just fed off of that excitement. Each dog has a designated spot, based on who they get along with and their size. The veterans knew exactly where to go. They ran up to the truck and jumped up to place their front paws on their box. Then it's an easy task for us to pick up their back ends and place them into their box. They all took a second to arrange the straw into a perfect bed and then settled down.
Juno was the only one that evaded us. She came down to the truck, checked it out for a second and decided she'd rather go see Maverick. For the next half hour we tried every trick in the book, but as a lead dog, she's smart and quick. Finally, we ignored her. Obviously, we should have tried that first.
With all the dogs loaded, Bill headed out. The plan is to drive north through Wyoming and Montana and straight up into Alberta, Canada. They drove straight through the night, so within 16 hours they were able to make it to the border. Every few hours, a "dog drop" is required. The dogs are hooked to the side of the truck to do their business, get some water, and stretch out. Inevitably, dog drops usually lead to tourists taking pictures as well.
So, for the next week, Bill will be driving and making dog drops. It's a long haul to Homer, Alaska, but the benefits of training there will be worth it. Even though I can't be there with them, I can't wait to hear about how they're all doing.
I'll have to make do with my puppies and retirees. All 18 of them...