Winter draft work-the beginning

10 days ago Olive and I started working on sledding toward the NCNE winter draft test.  Maya, my last  draft dog,  was a natural drafting dog...I hoped Olive will be just like Maya.  Oh, boy, I was so wrong (lol).  I knew she is not as bold as Maya, but she was 100% scared of the sled which was "chasing her".     I don't know if we will be ready to take a test in one month, but no matter how long it takes, we will eventually take a test in the future.

The starting point was she gets used to be around the sled.  Absolutely NO hitching.  I, as usual, used the clicker training.  I clicked and rewarded every time she gets close to check out the sled.  Then I started making her step in between shafts.  One leg at a time.  At the Newf draft test, a handler basically has two options to hitch his/her dog to the cart/sled.  One by pulling the cart from behind the dog.  The other by asking the dog to step in between shafts.  I used the first option with my previous dogs.  However, I chose the second option with Olive.  Why ?  Because I know she hates something behind, especially something which makes loud noise.  I expected to be harder to teach her to stay still when I bring up the sled.  No need to scare her more.  While she was learning to step in, she hit a shaft and made a little bit of noise.  But the noise was much quieter than the noise I could make from pulling.
Here is our first practice video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkOAtWOmMvI

Here is the second practice on the same day.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDLs_-R94sQ

In March, Olive passed the NCA draft test.  Now she is Kilyka's Amity Lights Up Snowhaven DD.