Dear Work,

How should I describe you? I haven't really said what an average day of work here is like. Mostly because there is not an average day. Each day is unique from the rest. Part of that is due to when tours are scheduled and part is working with live animals.

One thing is guaranteed though. Every morning I wake up around 6:45. Some days I go for a jog and some I'm lazy and just write in my journal or cherish the last few minutes in my cozy cocoon. At 8:00 it's time to visit my 46 fluffy friends. I walk from the caravan through the barn, cutting on the water, and round the corner to the kennel. There's something special about saying "Good Morning!" to a pack of stretching, yawning and yapping dogs. The wagging tails and excitement gets me every time. Judge and Odyssey are closest and always get the first pat. Narnja across the way makes her usual "oooooooh" noises as I walk to get the wheelbarrow and trusty shovel. I get the same shovel every time. It has a smooth wooden handle, a curve towards the bottom with a flat rusty blade and then a T grip up top. By now all the dogs are up. I start with Judge and Odyssey and work my way down to Jake and Magyuk scooping, spraying and filling bowls. Jake by the way is a funny dog. He's really shy but likes a pat. He'll look at you and then look away slowly getting closer while wagging his tail. After that row it's on to Maniitok and Mauricette down to Jasper who lives alone. I always have to pause along the way to say Hi to Nukilik the gentle giant. He does look down on me when standing and looks quite fearsome. But he's just a big puppy. A dog that didn't forget his childhood. When I walk away he'll turn his head sideways and wave his paw asking for me to return. Most of our dogs do this, it's really cute. Then it's on to my last row, Nilak and Nanooq down to Graumann and Nikita. Nilak and Nanooq like their brother Nukilik are giants. Graumann is another character. He's always grumpy. He growls a lot but he's just misunderstood. He's a good guy. His roommate Nikita is a sweetheart.

Cleaning and watering all the dogs takes me between 30-60 minutes depending on the poo situation. Afterwards on most days it's back to the caravan for a hot drink and breakfast. Sometimes though we have a tour at 10, no break these days. We offer tours at 10, 12, 2, 4, sunset and midnight. People go for midnight to gamble at seeing the northern lights while out. A typical tour costs $160 which sounds steep but after tax and dog expense only $3-4 out of every $10 is profit. To prepare for a dryland tour we get the cart (2 people) or trolley (3-6 people) ready. This means rolling it out next to the chain, attaching a gangline and puting concrete blocks in front of the tires. This is when the dogs get excited. They know they're about to run. You can feel, and hear, the joy. Next we bring out the harnesses for whichever team is being taken out. You take the harness and step into the cage to place the dog between your legs before slipping it over his/her head. Most dogs will pick up their paws when you ask for them to put through the holes. Once dressed you take the dogs to the chain, lead dogs up front and wheel dogs in the back. The front two are smart or should be. They listen to commands. The two behind them are the swing dogs, they help steer. Between the swing and wheel dogs you have the team. Your wheel dogs drive, they're your real power. When its time to go you ask the customers to hop on to add extra weight before you put the dogs on the gangline. The dogs will listen for the "Ready? Ok!" go command but they're so excited they might run off without you. Extra weight helps. On the gangline you hook them by the back of the harness as well as the neck. It's pull or be pulled. Slackers bring down the others' moods and makes for a slower run. When it's time to go the lead dogs are unhooked from their cement blocks while the ones from the tire are removed. Then the dogs are off!

While the tour is out unless I go I usually take time to do additional cleaning and make sure the dogs have water. Some days I may do a little grooming. Or if like today a family member stays behind I'll chat with them. Every now and then folks are driven to us by a guide service called Eskimoes. The driver that comes to us is named Karlina and she's fun to talk with. She thought my confusion over the company name was a real riot. In my ignorance I expected real Eskimoes. I look forward to her visits but she may be done for the year, we'll see. She once invited me to sit in the company Range Rover to warm up and it was this moment that I realized how much I smell like a dog. Next time we sat in the barn. When the team finally returns I'll help guide them in. We unharness the dogs while one person goes into the kennel. Once unharnessed you can let go of the dog, say "In", and they head for their home. People love watching that part. This process repeats on days with multiple tours. And no weather is bad enough to cancel. Rain, snow, shine. Or like today with a bit of a dust storm. In Iceland. Who knew?

On days without tours I spend most of my time grooming or walking dogs. Often there is an odd task to be done like strengthening the kennel walls or cleaning the barn. There usually isn't much of a schedule. At some point I'll take another break for lunch and maybe some journal writing. After this I'll work until it's time to feed. Feeding can be stressful. The dogs know when it's coming. When you chain up the first dog they go wild. We chain the dogs up so they don't fight over the food and they know this means dinner time. We bring out the bowls and place them in front of the cages then go down the lines filling them with food. Different dogs get different portions depending on how hard they work and how quickly they gain weight. Of course food goes in and poop comes out. Unless it's raw meat. They hang onto that. But usually afterwards it's scooping and filling water bowls. It's anywhere between 4-8pm when we finish and I'll eat my own dinner. The rest of the night is listening for a possible fight and checking in on the crew.

Breaking up a fight is unfortunately part of the gig. 90% of the time the dogs are calm. Maybe some barking or minor arguments and lots of howling. They're like roosters that howl. But every now and then it gets rough. You know it when you hear it. Most of the time you get there and pull them apart before any damage is done and life continues. Sometimes you show up and someone is missing half an ear like poor Jaquan. Aquilles got a snack. And rarely you get some bad news. Like when Iceman went to the vet to get put to sleep to have a couple teeth removed but didn't wake up. Life can be hard. The dogs can be a source of just as much sadness as joy. But it is mostly joy.

Working with this pack of dogs is something I'll never forget. I'll probably think of it often for the rest of my life. Like the description said it really is more of a lifestyle than it is a job. Every day I feel lucky to be saying "Good Morning!" to the kennel. I just wish they pooped a little less.

Sincerely,
Zeb