Malamutes excel in many different venues, from sled dog to weight puller to companion dog. They do best when they have a job to do, and are wonderful teammates to work with! Listed below are some of the activities our membership do with their malamutes.
Working Team Dog
The Alaskan Malamute Club of America honors the working heritage of our breed by recognizing malamutes who run in harness. Certificates can be earned for completing requirements while the dog is pulling as part of a sled team or even with just one dog skijoring. The Alaskan Malamute is not as fast as many of their counterparts bred for racing, but are excellent companions for excursions on skis or a sled and can pull heavy loads for long distances. If you are interested in learning how to begin mushing with your malamute, please feel free to reach out to our club, or get in touch with our friends at the Cascade Sled Dog Club, where many of our members also volunteer their time.
AMCA Working Team Dog Requirements
Method 1 - A malamute may complete a WTD certificate by qualifying in a minimum of 3 ISDRA races where the class the team is entered in has at least three teams in the class and the team completes the race at an appropriate speed determined by the AMCA Working Committee. Each race’s mileage must at least equal the number of dogs on the team (i.e. 5 dog team entered in a 5 mile race), with a minimum of 3 miles required per race.
Method 2 - A malamute may complete a WTD certificate by accumulating 25 racing miles. The team must complete the race course for each race for it to count towards the total mileage. Minimum distance is based on the number of dogs on the team (1 mile per dog), and has to be at least 3 miles per race.
Method 3 = A malamute may complete a WTD certificate by accumulating 40 miles of excursions. Each trip must be a minimum of 10 miles. An impartial witness and/or GPS data with photographic evidence is submitted to verify each trip.
Working Weight Pull Dog
Malamutes are bred to be able to pull heavy loads and weight pull is one of the places where they shine as a result of that. Weight pull competitions test to see how heavy a load a dog can pull over a short distance. There are several organizations that put on pulls— AMCA, IWPA, APA, and UKC pulls are just a few!
There are a few UKC pulls a year in the PNW, which can be found on their website under ‘Events’.
For those interested in getting started, we recommend reaching out to Evergreen Canine Enrichment Center for training and learning more about other weight pull competitions in the area.
AMCA Working Weight Pull Dog Requirements
Malamutes may complete the Working Weight Pull Dog certificate by completing 4 pulls where the dog pulls at least 8x their own body weight on dirt or snow (12x on concrete or carpet). Pulls must held to either IWPA or AMCA rules.
Why Title a Dog?
by Sandra Mowery
Not just a brag, not just a stepping stone to a higher title, not just an adjunct to competitive scores, a title is a tribute to the dog that bears it, a way to honor the dog, an ultimate memorial. It will remain in record and in memory for as long as anything in this world can remain. Few humans will do as well or better in that regard.
And though the dog itself doesn’t know or care that its achievements have been noted, a title says many things in the world of humans, where such things count.
A title says your dog was intelligent and adaptable, and good-natured. It says that your dog loved you enough to do the things that please you, however crazy they may have sometimes seemed.
And a title says that you loved your dog that you loved to spend time with it because it was a good dog that you believed in it enough to give it yet another chance when it failed, and that, in the end, your faith was justified.
A title proves that your dog inspired you to that special relationship enjoyed by so few; that in a world of disposable creatures, this dog with a title was greatly loved, and loved greatly in return.
And when that dear short life is over, the title remains as a memorial of the finest kind, the best you can give to a deserving friend, volumes of pride in one small set of initials after the name.
A title earned is nothing less than love and respect, given and received, and permanently recorded.
Working Pack Dog
Malamutes are well suited to hiking in the PNW, and make for excellent partners by carrying their own load. The Alaskan Malamute Club of America’s Working Pack Dog program recognizes dogs who work by packing at least 30% of their body weight on day hikes and backpacking trips. This is an excellent activity with our abundance of trail systems in the area, and is great for those who may only have one or two malamutes! CAMEO members meet through the Fall and Spring to go on hikes of varying difficulty— some to meet WPD requirements, some just for fun or conditioning! Reach out to learn more about our next group hike.
AMCA Working Pack Dog Requirements
All hikes must be completed with a dog that is at least 1 year old to qualify. At the start of each hike, they must have 30% of their body weight worn in their backpack (ex a 75lb dog would have a pack weight of 22.5lb). Dogs should be weighed prior to every hike. Items that can be consumed (food, water) can deplete over the course of the hike, but the weight of the pack should never be under 10% of the dog’s weight.
Method 1 - Accumulate at least 30 miles of hiking while the dog is packing. Each hiking trip should be a minimum of 10 miles, or a backpacking trip where the team packs in at least 5 miles to their campsite and packs back out 5 miles the next day. At least one trip must include overnight camping.
Method 2 - Accumulate at least 40 miles of hiking while the dog is wearing their pack. Each trip must be at least 10 miles.
1,000ft of elevation gain = 1 mile for both methods.
GPS tracking data plus photographic evidence and/or a signature from an impartial witness must be submitted for each hike.
Performance Sports
Despite their reputation of being “stubborn” and “hard to train”, malamutes are an extremely versatile breed, and can excel in many different venues of dog sports. There are several organizations that hold events with different rules, from AKC to UKC to smaller organizations that focus on one sport like CPE or BHA. They love to work, and often love even more to show off! Some of the sports that CAMEO members have trained for or are competing in include:
Agility
Obedience
Rally Obedience
Coursing Ability Tests
Scentwork and tracking
Barn Hunt
