The Capital Canine Carting Club is an informal organization of people
who practice together while training their dogs to perform draft
work. This type of training enables a dog and handler to gain a very
close understanding of each other, so that they can work together as
a team. The members of this group practice together weekly, training
their dogs to safely perform these tasks. Safety is very important to
a draft dog handler, and a responsible handler will never ask a dog
to perform a task that might in any way injure the dog.
The national breed clubs for Bernese Mountain Dogs, Collies,
Newfoundlands, and several other breeds hold draft tests for
nationally recognized titles.
Several types of dogs have been specifically bred to assist
people with their daily work, by pulling carts, wagons, sleds or
travois. Many other breeds can be trained to do this kind of work.
In many countries, even today, draft dogs are referred to as "the
poor man's horse". They haul milk and produce from farms to market,
make deliveries in towns, or provide basic transportation by pulling
dog sleds or small surreys. Although the dogs in our club demos
usually perform with empty carts or light loads, a single working
draft dog in the larger breeds can pull loads as great as 2000 pounds
for short distances.
As a sport, canine draft work can be participated in by dogs of
either gender and almost any breed, including rescue dogs and mixed
breeds. The primary requirements are that the dog needs to be sound
of body and in good health, it needs to perform well in basic
obedience work, and the size of the draft equipment and the weight to
be pulled must be in proportion to the size and strength of the dog.
Breeds as small as Papillions have been trained to do draft work,
using a modified toy dump truck for a cart.
If you are interested in canine carting, you are welcome to join
our group. Here's is some basic information to get you started.
CCCC Draft Instructor: Chip Burnette, (254) 933-7405,
burnette@vvm.com
Contact Chip for information on upcoming draft training classes,
draft tests, and workshops in this area.
CCCC Austin area contacts: Jay and Laurie Brandt, (512) 926-9770,
brandtfamily@sprintmail.com
Contact Jay , Laurie or Chip if you are interested in practicing
with our group, for the time and location of our practice sessions,
or for having the Capital Canine Carting Club appear in your parade
or at your event. We enjoy showing what our dogs can do, so long as
the weather is not too hot for them to perform safely.