HISTORY OF THE BREED
The secret of the far north
From the first days of the Eskimos' existence on earth, their dogs lived and hunted with them. Over time, the Eskimos began to develop dog breeds in accordance with the requirements of their needs, it was mainly about endurance and the lowest possible energy consumption.
Polar dogs were bred by the original tribes in ancient times beyond the Arctic Circle.
Isolation also had a direct effect on dogs that bred in a limited community within each strain. The tribe was a closed community, where every peculiarity and diversity was transmitted in its characteristic form from generation to generation. In this way, many Nordic breeds were created. The International Cynological Federation recognizes these four breeds: Alaskan Malamute, Siberian Husky, Samoyed and Greenland Dog.
In the desolate regions, man and dog were dependent on each other for most of their lives and would not survive without each other. A dog that could not tolerate the company of other dogs was unusable for the original inhabitants. When traveling on the white plains, no one could risk the pack being murdered and he would be left alone with a sleigh!
Another case that was out of the question was a dog that would show signs of aggression towards people. The bite meant not only the danger of a terrible death as a result of rabies (formerly very widespread and incurable in the settlements), but also the unsolvable problem of medical treatment on the trail. To be bitten by a dog in the middle of a snowy plain would almost always be suicidal.
Even the mere poor handling and disobedience of dogs could mean problems for people, but also the whole team. For example, if the dogs followed in the footsteps of game with sleighs and loads, they often signed the ortel of death not only over themselves, but also over their master.
The tribes believed that aggressive and unmanageable dogs should be killed in front of other dogs for warning. Such dogs also ended their lives in the arenas of dog fighting in the Far North, known from the stories of Jack London.
On the contrary, friendly individuals and excellent dragons who survived the hardships of the snow roads returned to the settlements and passed on their genetic potential.
Following the tradition of breeding in the original conditions, the requirement of controllability and rejection of aggression in Nordic dogs got into the FCI standards.
The Klondike Gold Rush was the migration of more than 100,000 people to the desolate Klondike area near present-day Dawson City, in the Yukon Territory of Canada, between 1896 and 1899. Gold was discovered there on August 16, 1896, and after discovery reports were published, caused a mass displacement of people longing to get rich. More and more Europeans flocked to Alaska and Canada to find their fortunes. It was necessary to use animals to transport cargo. Donkeys and mules were completely unsuitable for this area. On the contrary, friendly dogs with tremendous strength belonging to the Mahlemiuts were directly destined for this task. More and more gold diggers began to rely on the robustness, strength and endurance of malamutes.
The year was 1909, the desire for pastimes grew among the settlers, and so the idea arose to organize the first dog sled races. During the early years, locals realized that the Malamute was too slow for these races. Thus began to approach the crossing of different breeds of sled dogs. The rescue of this breed came literally in the last minutes. A few admirers of this breed set out on a difficult journey to remote Inuit villages to look for purebred Malamutes. These selected Malamutes became the cornerstone of the purebred breeding of the Alaskan Malamute breed.
1925 Great Race of Mercy
The big run is a sign for the relay transport of anti-diphtheria serum from Nenana to the harsh winter-cut town of Nome, where a diphtheria epidemic broke out. The epidemic was so serious that it could gradually destroy the entire city. Traveling across the white plains was not easy at all, and in 1925 air transport could not be considered here at all. The only possible option was to use a sled. And so it was decided that 20 mushers with almost 150 dogs would try to transport the serum. The road was almost 674 miles (1085 km) long and 20 teams managed it in five and a half days. With the courage of these 20 men, the town of Nome was saved from the epidemic. Their names were brought out by the press and radio. No one told them other than the heroes.
And the biggest dog hero became Balto the dog. the leading dog of the sled, which ran to the town of Nome. People in Nome were waiting to see if the serum could be delivered when they saw the Baltics, they knew they were saved. And the hero also received his statue, which is located in Central Park in New York City.
In 1970, the first Iditarod race was organized, which runs as a memorial to the Great Run to Nome and the rescue of the town of Nome.