Americano Blue's musher/mushing chat thread

what type of mushing?

  • Distance

    Votes: 8 53.3%
  • sprint

    Votes: 3 20.0%
  • Rec

    Votes: 8 53.3%
  • Other

    Votes: 8 53.3%

  • Total voters
    15
Anyone ever use 'satin balls'? I have a dog who needs to gain some weight quickly and preferably cheaply and was wondering how much the satin balls helped. He wants to eat but he doesn't gain no matter how much I feed him. Right now he is getting 6 cups of Diamond High Energy kibble, 3-5 chicken/duck eggs, along with chicken meat scraps. I just don't know what else to give him and with him eating as much kibble I don't think I will able to continue to feed him as much as he is getting because Diamond kibble isn't cheap. The bag says 2-3 cups for a 50-60 pound dog and he's getting 2-3 times that. He just eats and eats without gaining (that I can see anyways). I'm going to start weighing him daily to track his progress. His hips, back, and ribs are where the lack of muscle/fat shows the most. Then his hindquarters and shoulders don't have a whole lot of muscle either. Has anyone tried satin balls? Supposedly they make them gain weight within a few days but I don't want to make them to find out they don't work. Also, should they still be pulling the bike? They get time off leash to run but the pulling would help the build muscle, I think. But then again I also don't want the skinny dog to loose more weight from having to exert more energy. What do you think?
Cooked eggs(raw eggs rob a dogs body of amino acids), cooked rice(about a cup when it's cooked), raw fat(4-6oz+or-), raw cooking oil(tbsp), $lbs of raw meat and meat stuff(Liver, kidney.tongue, heart etc).
Not a good idea to have anyone to gain wait too fast. Hard on the entire system. Pancreas can only do so much at a time. Liver can be taxed as the Kidneys.
And don't fool yourself into thinking a dog needs to be weighty to be healthy. Ask yourself when the last time was you saw a weighty marathon runner.
I had one woman come and say my dogs are skinny. She kinda took offence when I said"Ya. It doesn't look like you run 20 miles a day."
If you saw what and how much I feed my dogs. You may even say I was cruel by"starving dogs". I know what it feels like to run with as much as I weigh in the summer and how much easier it is when my weight decreases by 15-20 lbs in winter.
But if you say he/she(the dog) "needs" to gain weight fast....sugar. Within moments of consuming sugar the body is triggered into storing fat. it's the same with humans and animals and even birds.
When my dogs are fed commercial dog food(kibble) they get fat. When they get fat they have a tendency to diabetes and liver and kidney probs as well as coat and immunity issues. Much less now the strain it must put on their heart eh.
I like skinny dogs, cold water, fat beef and hot coffee.
 
Hanks 65 lbs at 6 1\2 months
He's got LOTS of muscle thou,

With Hank is it OK for him to give rides yet? He's got all commands down, he's my wheel dog,
He gave my nephew (25lbs) a quick little ride today

With Nala she's 44lbs and little muscle but can pull 25-30 she gave my other nephew(35lbs) a ride today but had a little hard time. She's got almost all lead commands down!! Just working on her going at a trot or faster, not a walk.. LOL

My plan for 2-3 years is to get an already trained or experienced pup from this lady in Alaska!
Then my senior year(3yshcoolearsish) o get a Catahoula Leapord Dog pup ( I like the breed and I need a herring dog)


Did I tell you guys that Hank is 1\2 Sib 1\4Great Dane 1\4Lab
The owner of he dad stopped by and talked to us because he heard about how his dog gpoy Nala prey and he thought he deserved one, oops sire all gone Lol

Phew. Thaza bigga bigga doga. Frieghter. definitely not a racer. LOL. Size and color fro the dad, temperament and spirit from the mom. Hmmm....Yup. good frieghter
 
I hooked Hank up in Lead and Nalain Wheel/team and Hank was amazing,,
They pulled the Bike attachment thingy I posted a while back, its only 5-6lbs
And they only pulled for 5-10 Minutes
I'm going to do some one-on-One with Hank on Lead after I find my book to remind me on tips ect..

Talked to mom about the dog and so far its a no..... :/
Its only a 14hr drive there 14hrs back LOL
Maybe I can get my brother together her as "his"
 
Hanks 65 lbs at 6 1\2 months
He's got LOTS of muscle thou,

With Hank is it OK for him to give rides yet? He's got all commands down, he's my wheel dog,
He gave my nephew (25lbs) a quick little ride today

With Nala she's 44lbs and little muscle but can pull 25-30 she gave my other nephew(35lbs) a ride today but had a little hard time. She's got almost all lead commands down!! Just working on her going at a trot or faster, not a walk.. LOL

My plan for 2-3 years is to get an already trained or experienced pup from this lady in Alaska!
Then my senior year(3yshcoolearsish) o get a Catahoula Leapord Dog pup ( I like the breed and I need a herring dog)

Nala's weight is good for a Sibe *****. She should be able to pull half her own weight all day at a trot......'once she's been conditioned properly'.

Hank should not work hard till he's at least a year old. The ball and socket joints can have irreparable damage done. How that happens is the lubricant is still very thin and the rubbery cushiony tissue on the bone(joint area) is still soft and thin. Thusly if hard work is performed the heavy action wears out the rubbery cushiony tissue wears out because the lubricant is thin and then you have bone on bone.
owy owy owy. That's how my knees are from hitchhiking all over NorthAmerica with a 150-200lb pack on my back ...and running for exercise ...and working where heavy lifting was involved ..and ...and...
So ya, I say again, wait till he's a year+ to work him.
It's OK to let him pull light weights for short distances I would think but kinda take it easy till he's a yr+.
Oh ya, another thing to keep in mind is larger dogs are more prone to hip problems anyway and Danes are notorious for dysplasia.
Even Labs are starting to show that in some lines. I personally think it has to do with breeding too close in genetics as well as working them too hard too young.
I hope this helps.
 
I hooked Hank up in Lead and Nalain Wheel/team and Hank was amazing,,
They pulled the Bike attachment thingy I posted a while back, its only 5-6lbs
And they only pulled for 5-10 Minutes
I'm going to do some one-on-One with Hank on Lead after I find my book to remind me on tips ect..

Talked to mom about the dog and so far its a no.....
hmm.png

Its only a 14hr drive there 14hrs back LOL
Maybe I can get my brother together her as "his"

Only 14 hrs there and 14 hrs back. Is that all? LOL.
I usta(used to) travel in a vehicle for 20-27 hrs straight (actually I would stop to potty-break and grab a snack) but I'm almost positive I wouldn't or even couldn't do that anymore.
Thaz a long trip. I think the only way I would make a trip like that is with a cpl or 3 more ppl on dogsleds. And just for the trip, not to just go get something.
I'm glad you're working with your dogs. Go Rosie girl.
 
Hey Rez! I'll trade you Hank for 1-2 of you dogs/pups LOL I need an experienced Leader....

I don't think you would get a cpl of mine. I think he's a looker and good genetic diversity and all but....
But yes an entertaining thought. The best ways you'll get an experienced leader you can work with is 1)spend lots of time training and using your own or 2)spend time with a mentor and her leaddog/s then inherit 1. That way there is already comprehension of each other(you and dog). Actually kinda works the same with a human to human relationship. I don't mean with the "mushing someone else's dogs and mentor" thing. I mean the "spending time with each other, getting to know each other before getting in the operators chair" thing.
Ooops. Kinda personal for some I guess.
In reality it is a personal thing this mushing. Ask any musher.
 
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Those are today's
I feel like when I work 1on1 with the dogs for Lead, that at the end I'm breaking there Spirit. :\ idk if I'm doing it right, and mom said no mentors I don't think she wants me to mush :(
 
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