5/20/2005: Strange angle on sled racing dog

[Lady Sidhe]

Originally Posted by hampor

The sled dogs do work hard and don't really know why. They look smart, especially in the eyes, but they are really bred to run in the cold and not think. Even dog experts rank the breed as below median. Beleive it or not standard poodles are near the top.

My roommate had a husky that he kept in the back yard in a dog house.

Most of the time the dog prefered to sleep in the snow, but if it got really cold my roommate would put a doggie bed in the dog house. He had to be careful though, because if it got above 25 degrees (F) the dog would rip it to shreds, and wouldn't have a doggie bed anymore.

But they really do prefer the cold. One time I came home and saw the dog licking it's frozen water dish. I felt sorry for it, so I knocked the ice out and refilled it with room temperature water. The dog sniffed it and walked away.

I've heard that german shepherds are the smartest. I watched some dog show on tv, and they put different breeds through intelligence tests. The German Shepherd came out on top, and the Afghan was Mississippi.

Also, I was told that Huskies have no depth perception, at least according to the vet who took care of mine. That's why they'll run at a car and get hit. They don't realize how close they are. I don't know if it's true, but....if it is, I find that very strange....what purpose would lack of depth perception serve? Especially in the snow?