A Dog or Two

The last two nights I slep out at the dog yard. What is the dog yard, you may ask? Well I'm going to tell you. It is a yard full of dogs. Not just any dogs, of course: Husky crosses. Shepherd, Border Collie, Greyhound -- all these and more are the breeds of dogs that are crossed with Husky's to make ultimate sled dogs. I am a dog-handler at the dog yard and the people who own it do dog sled rides for a living. We sleep out there at night during the winter to keep the wolves away. Polar bears are really not a huge deal because the dog yard is tucked into the Boreal Forest, and they tend to hang out near the coast line. There has been a few bears over the years, but not enough to pose a problem. The real problem are the wolves who can't resist a easy meal: Husky on a chain ala mode. But one thing about Wolves is that they hate humans. They will do anything to avoid them. We keep a humans presence at the dog yard every night in the winter so the wolves don't show up. Other things we do when we can't be out there is tie pots to a tree so they make noise in the wind, put up a scarecrow that looks like our musher, or pour human urine around the perimeter of the property. Gross, mabey, but effective. Wolves, though, are quite smart so we have to constantly change our tactics. When I sleep out there I luke to keep a dog with me in the cabin. The one I usually choose is Sony, a husky that has Arctic Wolf somewhere in his bloodline. He is Snow White and had long legs that make me jealous. So that's been my weekend and I'm looking forwards to spending more time out there this week.