The Fan Hitch Volume 2, Number 1  November 1999

Newsletter of the Inuit Sled Dog

Table of Contents

Editorial:  Looking to the Year 2000
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Report: The North Baffin Quest
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Project: Impress Your Dog
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Behavioral Notebook: Tiri's Magic Carpet
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ISD News from Norway
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Feeding Tips
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In My Humble Opinion: Cause and Effect
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Janice Howls: The Spitz Group
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Featured Inuit Dog Owner: Jim Ryder

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Hudson's Bay Adventure
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Book Review: Running North
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Reflections


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Index of back issues by volume number

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Ordering Ken MacRury's Thesis

Our comprehensive list of resources

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              Editor: Sue Hamilton
              Webmaster: Mark Hamilton
The Fan Hitch Website and Publications of the Inuit Sled Dog– the quarterly Journal (retired in 2018) and PostScript – are dedicated to the aboriginal landrace traditional Inuit Sled Dog as well as related Inuit culture and traditions. 

PostScript is published intermittently as material becomes available. Online access is free at: https://thefanhitch.org  PostScript welcomes your letters, stories, comments and The editorial staff reserves the right to edit submissions used for publication.

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From the Editor...
Looking to the Year 2000

In October, Mark and I made our annual pilgrimage to the Northern New England Sled Dog Trade Show.  It's pretty much the same format every year. Seminars and a keynote speaker who is a well known musher in the racing scene, this year Jeff King.  There were vendors selling equipment and other sled doggie stuff.  As for the dogs folks brought, well there were a few sibes, a sammy, three well mannered Akitas,  a lot of dogs that looked sort of like our first dog, a pet shop German shepherd only with blue eyes, and several that for all the world looked like they ought to be chasing behind a mechanical rabbit around a race track instead of running in front of a wheeled rig.  We laid eyes on exactly three dogs that we knew to be freighting breeds. Of those, one was a magnificent red and white male Inuit Sled Dog belonging to Kevin Slater and Polly Mahoney who operate Mahoosuc Guide Service out of Newry, Maine.  In the three years we have been attending the event, this was the first ISD and one of only a handful of what we consider freighting breeds, we had ever seen there.  We felt outnumbered but not discouraged. Basically what we enjoy most is the opportunity to network with folks we wouldn't otherwise get to spend time with, to compare notes, exchange experiences and "rip off" the best ideas from each others' dog boxes. 

There is a potentially exciting opportunity on the horizon for Inuit Dog enthusiasts.  The International Sled Dog Veterinary Medical Association (ISDVMA) is holding its annual conference on October 19-22, 2000 (wow, that looks weird!) in Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA.  Perhaps not "Middle Earth" as far as the population of Inuit Sled Dogs goes, but there are several owners who have already expressed an interest in gathering there.  Although most of the ISDVMA focus is on the racing sled dog, the meetings present much good information valuable to non-racing enthusiasts as well.  This was apparent when we attended their annual meeting in Nashua, New Hampshire, USA three years back.  And there are at least two member veterinarians who do have an interest in freighting dogs, one a former breeder of malamutes and one whose practice encompassed almost the entire island of Greenland (except for the Sirius Patrol dogs, who are part of the Danish military).  I have recently been in touch with the person who is in charge of the scientific programs.  As of this writing, he is exploring the possibility of having as a speaker for the banquet who is well known in the world of the Inuit Sled Dog! Successful or not in arranging this, the meeting in Green Bay does present an opportunity for us and I am planning to investigate the possibility of ISD enthusiasts being able to gather somewhere sometime during the ISDVMA meeting to hold our own round table discussions. This may not be the ISD Summit we dream of having some day, preferably somewhere in the arctic, but it can be a good opportunity to gather. Your suggestions and support for next year are enthusiastically encouraged!  I can't do this alone. 

One year isn't a whole lot of time to plan for "a gathering of the clans".  Keep in touch! 

Wishing you smooth ice and narrow leads......... 
                                                                      Sue

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