I love Chinook pups.  The youngsters you will see in this section are some of my favorites. Working with pups is more fun than you can imagine. Taking pups to a show is hilarious. First off, you want them to have fun. Second you want them to -- if only for a brief moment -- look nice for a judge and get the judge's comments on what their future may bring. This last one can be difficult and you have to have a sense of humor about it.   Chinooks are puppies up to two or three years age; they may look full grown but still have baby brains.  So when showing or working with them, you have to be prepared to laugh at yourself .  I figure a pup is successful at his or her first few shows if they make it at least half way around the ring on their own feet and don't pee more than once. Matter of fact, when they grow up, gait nicely, and hold a stack while they are being examined, it just isn't as much fun anymore.  And an even greater sense of humor is required when teaching them to run with a sled or a rig.

The youngsters you will see here are not yet ready for breeding but we have high hopes for them. We're still working with them to see if they will pass all the necessary screens to join the Rain Mountain breeding program. Some of these screens are for physical, structural attributes -- does the dog have the right conformation for a Chinook, does it have good hips and eyes that are clear of genetic defects. Our Chinooks though also need to show what they can do as sled dogs -- do they have the drive to run and pull. Temperament and personality are very important in breeding and training in a variety of venues helps develop it further. Obedience training, agility, herding, and light weight pulling can teach me a lot obout the dog's temperament. And since Chinooks are slow to grow up mentally, I won't breed a dog, escpecially a female, until she is old enough to cope with raising a litter.  I also wait until at least the age of two so that I can have a full OFA hip evaluation.  It is quite common for bitches to not be bred until they are about three years old and males are not bred until the right girl is available.

So keep your eyes peeled and you'll probably see members of this gang at shows across the country in 2002. I'll update the information on each as it becomes available (such as hip certification, eye screens, and so on).  O also hope to add at least one female pup to our gang during the summer or fall of 2002.