Dear Zuma,

We are a third grade class from Jupiter, Florida (like the planet).  We have just finished taking the FCAT and boy we are glad it is over!  The test took us three days (reading and mathematics) and we did our very best. We live 15 minutes from the beach and enjoy the warm weather year round.  If you would like to take a tropical vacation, Jupiter is the place.  We would love to visit with you.  Doesn’t a picnic at the beach and a dip in the refreshing ocean sound tempting?  We are always on vacation in Florida!

This is our first year tracking the Iditarod.  We have all picked a musher and are tracking them using a bar graph and line graph.  Each day we log on to see where our mushers are and what’s happening in the race.  We are excited about tracking our mushers and seeing what place we are in.  We can’t imagine how it must feel to be in cold weather and wear all those clothes.  We are wearing T-shirts and shorts today.  We have a few questions and if you have time we would like to hear from you.

Do you have any friends that are lead dogs and how do they feel about being in that position?

Have you ever been sick and how did your human take care of you?

Do you have a favorite game to play with your family?

Do you have a favorite musher and why?

Have you ever worn booties and if so, do they really keep your paws warm and safe?

We looked at pictures of our mushers and we want to know why Sebastian Schnuelle’s hair looked so funny?

We look forward to hearing from you.

Mrs. Weese’s Third Grade Class

Hello Boys and Girls,

Thanks for writing!

Yes, I have many fur-friends who are lead dogs.  They are very proud to lead a team, but they also recognize that being a leader means that most of all, you are a team player.  When you lead, you are not always out front.  Sometimes you are running in other positions on the team.

When I get sick, my human takes me to the veterinarian.  I enjoy the visits with my vet and I try to follow the rules I’m given, like eating healthy dog-meals and staying away from human meals!  Seeing my vet is important!

My favorite games involve chasing or staying active kinds of games because my human gets as much exercise as I do.  I really like to go for long walks or slow jogs.

I really try to not have a favorite musher, you know, because I am a journalist but mostly because I enjoy meeting all of the mushers and all of their dogs!

I have worn booties.  Booties are not to keep dog’s feet warm, though.  They are to protect the pads from getting cuts or scrapes.  

Really?  You think Sebastian’s hair looks funny?  I never thought of it as funny, I just thought of it as Sebastian.  Like K-9’s, everyone has their own color and style.  Some of us have short hair, some of us long.  We wear our winter coat all the time.  Unlike humans, the K-9 don’t get to make personal choices about this.  I think, the choices humans make about their hair help us to be able to tell who is who! 

Thanks for your questions,

Lots of Tail Wags, 

Zuma