A Perfect Example of Why "Retired" Sled Dogs Aren't for Everyone

Hey everyone! We’re coming to you this week with a bit of a different type of newsletter. Perhaps a bit of advice if you have/are considering adopting a retired sled dog.

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Over the last couple weeks, Riley had to travel to Florida to care for family, which left me alone with the dogs for a while. On top of that, we had several bouts of freezing rain and snow, with temperatures in the single digits and wind chills below zero. Outside of the weather, being home alone left me with more duties around the house, more duties with work, covering my own pickleball classes and Riley’s, etc.

Between allllll of that, I spent less time exercising the dogs. Boo was less-than-thrilled about that - and he let me know it. It’s hard for me to walk both dogs together by myself, let alone on ice, and after dark. I took them to free run at my dad’s house a couple times, but that means having to pack the dogs and related items up, drive a couple towns over, and hope that Pence doesn’t panic too much in the car.

Theoretically, I could have taken the dogs to the park in our neighborhood, but I’m fairly certain Pence remembers getting spooked there previously and would run away. And again, being by myself, I did not want to risk that.

So what happened since they did not get as much exercise as they needed?

Pence is 11 and a half years old now. She’s definitely more chill than Boo. She spends the majority of her days napping on the couch or on the bed. Honestly, sometimes I forget she is here, she is so quiet. She’s doesn’t typically care if she gets a daily walk or not, but when we do, she’s happy to go.

However, after multiple days in a row of no adventures, she did get a little restless. The last couple days she paced around a little more, like she was bored and looking for something to do. A couple times, she gave out a little whine while I was working on the computer to let me know she wanted attention.

Boo on the other hand, is 8.5 years old, and still FULL OF ENERGY. He is not shy about letting me know when he needs enrichment. Every time I accidentally make eye contact with him, or get up to go to the bathroom, or make food, or leave the house, or sneeze, whatever…he is immediately UP IN MY FACE. Parkouring off the furniture, screaming, jumping, whining, dancing in circles, smacking me with his paw, sitting on top of me.

He acted like he needed outside constantly, but it was likely out of boredom. Each time, he would go outside, eat several mouthfuls of snow, and do some zoomies. When he would come back inside, he would sit in the middle of the room, staring at me until I played with him again. He was driving me crazy!

So what did I do about this? Well, I played with the dogs out in the back yard, gave them lots of scritches and cuddles, tried to get Boo to play with his toys, and played hide and seek around the house. We also typically crate the dogs at night, but I let them sleep with me in bed so they had more time outside of their crates. Unfortunately though, I don’t think it was enough for Boo’s liking.

Sometimes life gets so hectic and you can’t get everything done that you’d hoped you would. Last week was one of those weeks. The dogs didn’t receive as much attention and exercise as they need. I’ve learned that for my sanity and theirs, I need to try as hard as possible to make time for their needs even during my busiest and crappy days.

All of this is to say, “retired” sled dogs are not for everyone! If you get a retired sled dog like Pence, that’s easy. If you get a retired sled dog like Boo, and don’t give him the exercise and enrichment that he craves, it could put you both in an unwelcome situation. And I would have to guess that a lot of retired sled dogs would fall on the “needing a lot of attention/exercise/enrichment” side of the spectrum. If you are not one that can frequently give a dog that type of lifestyle, maybe a retired sled dog is not for you.

Obviously, I know what we signed up for, and we are typically very good about keeping the dogs entertained. But life happens, and sometimes there are lapses in that, and the dogs let us know. The weather should turn more favorable this weekend, and we should be able to get back to our routines!

Just wanted to give you all a glimpse in to one of our not-so-perfect weeks in our life with sled dogs. Talk to you soon!

-Hannah, Riley, Boo, and Pence