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Merits and what sort of races you are training for?
We train for MidDistance races in Central Europe of about 30-60 km on two or three days and for Trans Thüringia, a nine days stage race about ca. 400 km. Since this season we want to train longer distances to make tours in Sweden.
How many dogs in training?
9
Favourite dog and why?
Every dog is special in its way. But of course I also have that favourite dog- Alka-Shan’s Hat-Trick (Gipsy). He is my dog and I belong to him. We have a special relation to each other. In addition he is my leader and knows about his exceptional position.
Important dogs?
I think all my dogs are important to form a good team. According to our breeding aims and so for a future team constellation I would say that we have one great male and three really good females. The male was already mentioned: Alka-Shan’s Hat-Trick. Females: Alka-Shan’s Only-On-Time, Alka-Shan’s Peppermint-Patty and Howling Spirits Zoe.
Which lines do your dogs come from?
Can you say something about these lines? We found “our” line in Seppala origin, here in Germany superficially represented by the dogs of Anneliese Braun-Witschel und Manfred Witschel (Alka-Shan). Most of our dogs are a little bit Zero outcross. We like this type of compact and muscular dog. Their bodies reflect their power and will to go infront of the sled. They have good mental strength, metabolism and endurance. Furthermore they are really social in their group and friendly to people.
Why Siberians?
Why not Siberians? The Siberian Husky is the perfect sleddog for us. It is a special bred dog with special working abilities. His coat and paws are best prepared for cold weather. We really like the friendliness of this type of dog and their personality. Their will to go is inborn.
Do you exercise your dogs during summer and how?
We spend every free minute with our dogs- even in summer: They are a kind of our family and so they are an important part of our life. We try to train our dogs as soon as temperatures are below 15 degrees. But during hot summer months (mostly June and July) there is no cart-training possible. So we take a dog with us when we go jogging or walking through our little forest. We also use this time to train discipline and behaviour outside the kennel life. Furthermore we play with balls and water in the garden.
When do you start serious training in the fall?
As already mentioned we start to train the dogs as soon as possible. But at this time we know that it isn’t that serious but a good start to build up muscles and endurance before. We start training seriously when temperatures are below 15 degrees regularly. Mostly it is in the end of September when we extent the distances and train harder.
How does a typical training week in December look like?
In December we have our dogs on about 20 km runs on hometrails without snow. We train 3 to 4 times a week with different sequences for runs and resting days. If it is possible we go out twice a day so that the dogs learn to race in stages. In good winters here in Germany we take part in snow training camps in the end of December to go for longer distances up to 40 km. Racing season starts for us in the end of January.
Do you have a special story to tell (from a race, training run, about a special dog etc.)?
Our highlight up to now was the participation in Trans Thüringia 2006. It was our first stage race with longtrail character. Although we broke up after 6 days we learned a lot about ourselves, our dogs and about equipment and training. So our future racing aims are established in longtrail races, also in Scandinavia.
Do you do any exercise yourself?
From time to time we jog in our forest. Marco often goes by bike with our Weimaraner and I play football in a team.
Important qualities you look for when breeding?
We are looking for dogs that are proved on Middle or Longdistance races. They should be able to run minimum 40 km on several days running. Dog’s physical and mental appearance should fit to our other dogs and to the bloodline. Further on important is a good quality of paws and metabolism. Because of effective and optimal runs good eating and drinking habits are a must. But also harmony in kennel life is an important fact so that only dogs with good social behaviour become a part of breeding program.
Important qualities for lead dogs?
In my opinion you can’t see a good leader before he/ she is three or four years old. In younger age you can only see his abilities according to run in front of a team and you can only divine his qualities. A dog needs time to develop and to learn- also a “born leader”. A good lead dog for me is a dog that can also run in front of an open team, that holds its tugline tight, that is all time responsive and that follows the commands of its musher.
The Siberian Husky standard – do you feel your breeding reflects it? Do you show your dogs? Why/Why not?
After only two litters that are now nearly nine and three month I can’t really say anything about standard of our bred dogs. But our breeding dogs all take part in a dog show. So a special qualified person surveys our dogs regarding to the standard. We are not ambitioned to show our dogs because of winning titles. We attend our breeder club’s dog show as a part of breeding approval. Here in Germany it is difficult to be good at national and international dog shows with our racing Siberian Huskies. Breeding had developed so different that there are two lines: racing and show dogs. We found our favourites in the racing line and think that they reflect the standard.
What do you consider important health issues in breeding today (HD, eyechecking, goniscopy etc.)?
Besides the standard health issues are very important in our breeding. We test our dogs according to heritable diseases. That are fixed rules of our breeding club to X-ray the hips and to check the eyes including goniscopy. A further aspect is our working certificate of about minimum 100 km during snow races that also reflects a little bit of dog’s physical condition. Only a healthy dog can show his full potential and good performance.
To sum up we totally agree with Dr. Dieter Fleig’s order of important criteria for dogs: health- intelligence- physical fitness- beauty!
Other things you find important to avoid or work for when it comes to the SH as a breed?
There is no perfect dog without any faults. As a breeder it is important to be open-minded and to recognize these mistakes. When looking for a breeding partner you have to be aware of his qualities that can balance the mistakes out. Furthermore the above mentioned things around standard and health issues are important for a breeding dog. We also take in consideration social behaviour, eating and drinking, responsiveness, metabolism, quality of paws as well as physical and mental strength. Next to the fact that a dog should combine most of these aspects we try to breed in line (see above: Which line do your dogs come from?)
Feeding routines, - what do you consider important?
During the training and racing season we feed nearly ½ high-performance dry food with 30 percent raw protein and 20 percent raw fat and the other half good cow meat. We add vitamins to balance the meat out, fish oil with omega 3 and 6 fatty acids and for the older dogs gelatine or GSM. Every morning all dogs get a warm soup without reference to training or racing runs.
We feed all our dogs together.
How do you keep your dogs(yard, chains etc.)?
We have three kennels for our dogs. We like it more to let them in groups instead of only pairs. Kennel number one isn’t a real kennel but our 120 square meters court next to the house. Consequently dogs love it to be there because every person that goes in or out has some share of kindness and affection. That’s why we change groups every day. Kennel two is 60 square meters and situated on two levels. The upper level is the roof of the doghouse. We decided to integrate it because our dogs really enjoy it to have a surveying view. The roof is on same level as the court so the dogs spend most time there. Kennel three is for the puppies or our females in heat. It’s about 30 square meters with also a doghouse.
All kennels have separate boxes and heightened lying areas. The ground is mostly fixed with paving stones or a mix of earth and sand.
Our dog yard is our garden where we spend most time with the dogs. It’s not that big but hopefully interesting.
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