Reba came to us as an adult when we were looking for another leader. That was before our pups came on the scene and showed such great lead potential, but in the end a kennel can never have too many lead dogs! :)

Reba ran lead for us the first year but over time she no longer desired to be up front and gave up the position to some of our more confident dogs. We were told by her previous owner that she didn't like to run for more than 20 miles and over the years we have discovered that this may not be a physical limitation but more of a weak confidence issue that hinders her performance.

Many dogs work well up in lead, some thrive on the job like Juno, while others would happily give it up to another dog and take a different role. Reba may have had the confidence to lead early in her career but when we gave her a choice of position we noticed her work ethic improve dramatically in swing or in team.

Her change in focus may be due to a number of reasons... the tough trail conditions we run, a slower or faster speed than shes used to, Juno being too bossy as her running mate or it could be as simple as one bad run on the trail.

We never really know what triggers a dog to change focus and we would love for them to be able to talk and explain to us what we often overlook. Over time we try our best to solve these problems so we can put each dog in a place where they can feel comfortable and succeed at the job they love to do. In the end finding that happy niche for them is all that matters.

Reba is a very hard worker and even though she is a bit on the small side, compared to most of our other dogs, she works hard and never fails to give us all she can. She is my go-to lead dog when we take clients out for trail tours and need a leader to outfit their small team. She is extremely calm and patient with new mushers and loves to lead for our out of town guests, as long as our main team is leading the way down the trail.

Reba has attracted a lot of attention over the years through her classic Siberian looks and the silly wave she does when shes super excited to go (see video at the bottom of this page). It is even more comical when shes at the head of our second team waiting to go. No matter how much work we've done or how tired we all are I cant help but laugh hysterically when I turn around to see her exuberant wave!

It has been delightful to work with this girl and even though we missed out on her puppy years, and the ease of teaching her at such a young age, it amazes me how much of a perfect fit she is to our kennel.

No matter where we are I can trust her. Whether its loose dropping the dogs from the truck, turning her loose on the trail while I snowshoe ahead of the team or getting along with any of our other dogs Reba is always close at hand, extremely laid back and very easy to work with. Ive never known her to chew a harness, run off or start a fight with anyone...

She is also blessed with a wonderfully thick coat natural to her Siberian lineage that keeps her warm during the cold months of winter and protects her during our camping trips when the protection of dog houses are hard to come by. Her undercoat is a joy to work with and transforms easily into our softest husky hair hats.

We look forward to sharing more of Reba's life with our clients and friends. She thrives on human attention, hugs and love and even though she gets a lot of that here from us at the kennel she can never have too many extra human hands available for pets and scratches!

Reba is sponsored by one of our wonderful doggy donors!