Reaching Out with Helen Newman and the Prairie Isle Samoyeds
Helen writes: Over the years I have provided education to young people concerning dog
safety, basic dog manners and Tellington TTouch. This past winter I
also included dog sledding to my talks. Since safety around dogs and
TTouch are part of the way I am with dogs, adding my love of dog
sledding to the talks was natural for me. I talk about how to approach
dogs whether on a leash or on the picket, different breeds/type of dogs
used in dog sledding, training --from 9 week old puppies to adults--
dryland/snow, care of the dogs, equipment and how used, and I also talk
about winter survival and safety the musher must be aware of. I also
involve the children: they do math (I provide the length of gangline
section, number of sections and sled), they practice approaching my
"demo" dog which is life size stuff dog, they pretend they are part of
the team, etc.
on picket, left to right: Cooper, Ruby, Pilot, Thyme, Ice, and Whisper.
All these dogs are Rose and Gavin offspring
When I speak at schools, usually I take the equipment and one of the
Samoyeds for the children to meet and also so I can use him for
demonstration. I also send ahead of time to the teachers a word list
with definitions and labeled pictures of sled and team so the teachers
can incorporate these into the class. This really helps to get the kids
involved.
Emerado ND Elementary School 4-H group
Other groups I have provided presentations to are girl scout troops,
4-H, church youth groups, hearing impaired young people winter fun day,
and also a career day at a middle school that wanted unique careers
ideas presented.
Cooper and elementary school children, Crystal ND
Only 20 students at this school.
Some of the groups have fun with an experience dog sledding,
snowshoeing, geocaching, and winter fun.
saying hello
Foreground: Hudson, Background: Ice
When I do youth groups at the RWBC(Red Willow Bible Camp), I have
~15 miles I use. I have "dog sled stops" (like a bus stop) and I take one
out for ~ 5 miles, come to the first "dog sledding stop", drop off [a]youth and
pick up the next, do a different 5 mile loop, stop and switch and do one last
5 mile loop that is different. This really helped to keep my dogs excited about
doing multiple runs in a day. The mileage did not bother them but repetition
sours them. While I am out, the other youths are snowshoeing, cross
country skiing, geocaching, or having hot chocolate---they are
supervised by their chaperones and I have high school teens that help me
too.
Red Willow Bible Camp, Christine, ND
Passenger in sled is an Ethiopian immigrant,
learning about winter and sled dogs
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