Introduction-E

How many seals would you use to feed them?
Pauloosie: If it was an adult seal, one used to be enough.
How often did you feed them?
Pauloosie: I used to feed them every day during the winter when it was really cold. I
was not the only one who fed their dogs everyday. The dogs don’t get as skinny and
they don’t tire out as easily if they are fed properly. When they go hungry too often, they
get weak and tend to stop more often.
What did you do with them in the spring?
Pauloosie: In the spring camp, I would always have them tied up, not leaving them to
roam freely.
In the beginning, how did you start your dogteam?
And how old were the pups when you would start to train them for the team?
Pauloosie: I’d let them follow, not harnessed up, not using them, but just letting them
follow along to get them used to going. Once you would start training them later on,
then they would be easier to train.
How did you make them stop or turn?
Pauloosie: “Ai, ai, ai, ai,” is how you would have them turn to the right. “Ai, ai, ai, ai.”
How about left?
Pauloosie: I would say, “qua, qua, qua,” and they would turn that way instead. When
being taught, they used to learn just like people.
How about if you wanted them to stop?
Pauloosie: I’d call “huu” to them. Also, if I was getting ready to go outside or out on the
ice after having been at a place for some time, just saying “atii (go)” would [make them]
go. They can really learn, and especially if they are not hit too much they seem to learn
better.
Were they trained right from the time they were small?
Pauloosie: Dogs need to get out. You could add new ones every year. When there were
too many, I would kill off the newborns. But it also happened that some people grew
116 Introduction to the Oral Traditions