Perhaps you’ve wondered what Kuma and Balto were like when they weren’t working…
After all they live in the house with us and have a yard like many other dogs.
I’ll take a moment and tell you a bit more about them and their personalities.
All of our dogs are very loving and affectionate to the family.
At the same time they are possessive and can at times be jealous over me and my attention.
At times each of the larger dogs will see who can sit at my feet or sleep at my bedside.
Occasionally the dog who is near me will warn off the other dogs, but they all get over it quickly.
I wonder if it isn’t some kind of ritual type behavior when one of them wants an exclusive on the “Pack Leader” which is probably how they view me!
Kuma
Kuma is a serious watchdog and is always watching and guarding what he considers to be his territory.
Kuma: at breakfast
At times he can go somewhat overboard and bark up a storm!
He is also the most bothered by thunder and fireworks.
That’s when he wants to be reassured and comforted by one of us.
Kuma is very loyal and attached to us and is eager to please.
We raised him from a pup that we found at a shelter, as detailed early in these Real Dog Stories.
Cats
All of our dogs are good with our cats and consider them family/pack members.
Some friendly chasing goes on at times, but never with any harm intended.
At the time of this writing my daughter just brought home a small kitten (again).
This little ball of fur has had nothing but kind and considerate treatment from all of our dogs.
I think it is remarkable that we did not communicate in any way with the dogs about this kitten.
Kitten: treated well by the dogs
Somehow they read our intention that this was another pack member and treated her as such immediately.
The other two cats had more of an issue, as they are cats…
Balto
Now Balto has grown into quite the canine character!
You may recall that he started out as a pretty withdrawn pup, responding initially to our other dogs more than we people.
He is also a pretty serious watchdog, which is actually quite rare in huskies.
Balto: at breakfast
Perhaps he has another breed in his makeup…
When Balto hears fireworks, he barks back at the booms.
Huskies are known for “talking” and Balto seems to be able to make just about any sound you might think a dog could make.
He took up howling at some point, recruited the other dogs, and now we have a full choir starting at bass and ending at soprano.
It reminds me of the “Call of the Wild” and I find it quite musical. My wife, however, is less appreciative.
When I get a chance, I’ll tell you about the other choir members.
As Balto grew he took up the somewhat strange habit of communicating frequently by growling.
I say it’s strange because he could be affectionately licking you as he growled. I suppose this could be confusing to an outsider.
It’s more of Balto’s sound effects.
Balto is extremely attentive and also eager to please.
Action!
Both Kuma and Balto are always on the lookout for” action”.
This could be chasing a squirrel in the back yard, or especially pulling the scooter.
I have seen Kuma and Balto executing what looked like a football or military maneuver when stalking a squirrel.
If they think it’s scooter time, they get very noisy, excited, and revved up to go.
They only start to calm down after pulling the scooter for a bit.
I think for them that this is the ultimate in “action” or at least near the top of their list.
I would guess that this is when they are out getting to see the countryside, view other animals and of course get some more exercise.
