Try something new this year!
What’s one thing you’ve always wanted to try? Plan right now to make it happen this year!
One thing that I had always wanted to try was dog sledding, and it did not disappoint! After a few hours as a musher, let me tell you some fun things I learned.
*Dogs are trained to go to the bathroom while they run. It’s true—saw it with my own eyes while riding in the sled way too close to the doggies’ hineys. They squat and shuffle. Very impressive.
*Sled dog litters each have their own naming theme. “Sounds” was the theme of the litter that my favorite dog, Whisper, came from. Heidi’s favorite dog, George, had a “Seinfeld” theme for his litter.
*Your most loyal dogs are the leaders. Those dogs are chosen to lead because they are the most trustworthy to follow the musher’s vocal commands. But it’s an intimidating role for them! So sometimes they don’t want to lead… and they will sprint off the path to hide behind the trailer… *ehem Polar (named after a bear theme). Polar got sent to the back of the line after that little stunt.
*Sled dogs aren’t all big and fluffy! I guess I was picturing a team that looked like “White Fang” lookalikes to be pulling our sled. So when we pulled up and saw a group of dogs not much bigger than regular house dogs, part of me thought we had gotten scammed 
But these pups are legit! Some of them have even run in the Iditarod!
*One of the biggest factors of whether a dog gets chosen for a racing team is their appetite. They have to have an A+ appetite to be able to take in the amount of calories needed to complete a thousand mile race like the Iditarod. A dog that is slower with a major appetite will get chosen over a much faster dog with a small appetite.
What unique experiences do we need to add to our bucket lists?! Comment below!
