Hi there!
We had an Alaskan first-ever KBD meet-up yesterday! For as rare as this breed is, there are quite a few in Alaska; not surprising really, because, you know, bears. Most specimens are not purebred, but good enough to pass as a representation of the breed. Unfortunately, Alaska’s backyard “KBD” breeders are not concerned with breed standards or purity, but that can be reserved for another blog post.
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| Fly thinks she's too cool to look at the camera. |
Anyway, it all started because a fellow KBD Instagram account announced that she and her KBD were road tripping from Canada to Alaska for vacation and she sent me a private message asking for recommendations of places to hike and see. We got to chatting with another local Insta account and it was suggested that we get together to meet, which then spiraled into inviting all the local KBDs! So, I spearheaded the invitations and announcements on social media and we ended up with 10 people who said they would attend. How cool!
We met after work at a local off-leash dog park; let me tell you, it was so exciting to pull into the parking lot and see a group of other Karelians together. There was one interloper who requested if he could attend our shindig, though he’s a Shiba Inu, and who could say no to adding one more spitz dog to the group.
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| Who could say 'no' to that face? He and Fly are pals. |
It turns out that Cricket was the only male to attend – I am very pleased to say that yes, it is possible for six female Karelian Bear Dogs to group together and not fight. Some of the people we invited on Facebook said we were destined for trouble: that KBDs can’t be together, that they would fight, and that they couldn’t be off leash. We have proved them wrong. The pack consisted of very well behaved, well socialized KBDs, with owners who were calm, assertive, and knew their dogs well: e-collars helped us recall our dogs and when one dog would get too excited, the owner would call for the dog to come sit and take a break. It was effective and made for a positive experience.
Our pack romped around the entrance of the park for 20 minutes or so while we waited to see if the 5 others who said they could attend would show up, but they didn’t, so we began our walk. There were other dogs on the trail, as well as their owners and families with small children and strollers. Our pack stuck together, for the most part, only occasionally spiraling out into the woods for investigation, and though they did the usual dog greetings to the passerby, there was nary a snarl or fuss.
Eventually we made our way to the lake that is in the park and our pack had a nice time running along the sandy beach and traipsing through the water. Fly and a few others even swam a bit. Tails wagged, tongues lolled, and we were a happy bunch. Our sixth pack member eventually arrived and we were able to meet and enjoy the newcomer’s company for awhile. Two hours passed quickly and our group reluctantly said goodbye and slowly trickled back out of the park.
It was a wonderful summer evening of play for our KBDs and really great to meet and chat with fellow KBD owners.
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