Whether running through the snow, carrying babies to the vet, or keeping an icebreaker warm on a freezing night, dogs on sleds are helping humans survive harsh conditions by doing some things a little differently. Sled dogs have even helped humans survive the Ice Age, being able to cover large distances in temperatures below freezing.
Dog sleds help humans survive because they allow goods to be transported across frozen and snowed-over areas that neither humans nor vehicles are able to traverse. People have been using dog sleds as transport for centuries, and the msot famous competition for dog sledding is the Iditarod.
Studies have shown that for thousands of years, sled dogs pulled us, which allowed humans to survive in the coldest parts of the world. The use of dogs pulling sleds through the snow and ice began in Alaska and Siberia, where winters lasted for much of the year.
The History of Humans and Dogs in the Arctic
Scientists believe humans moved north of the Arctic Circle with dogs around 25,000 years ago and began using them for pulling sleds around 3,000 years ago. This suggests the sled-dog species diverged from the rest of dogs about 10,000 years ago, especially to help carry their human comrades all over the land. The sled dog branch of the family tree, which includes the different types of huskies and Malamutes, broke off from other dogs about 9,500 years ago, as opposed to something like a Labradoodle, which did not evolve as a breed until 1989.
The study compared genetics from contemporary breeds of sled dogs–including Alaskan and Siberian huskies, used in dog-sled races, and Alaskan and Greenland dogs–to DNA from a dog living 9,500 years ago on the island of Zhokhov, just above the Arctic Circle in eastern Siberia, where archaeological evidence for the first dog’s sleds has been found.
The analysis, which compared genes between the dogs from the ancestors of other breeds, has revealed a wide range of fascinating, and uniquely adaptable dogs. Researchers determined the sled dog and dog living today9 shared many of the same genes, creating a unique lineage that sheds light on sled dog antiquity and suggests their importance for human survival when humans expanded to the Arctic toward the end of the last ice age.
New research suggests sled-dog breeds are part of an ancient lineage that helped early humans expand to the Arctic region. There is also evidence that the current breeds of sled dogs are capable of flourishing on the type of high-fat, low-starch diets that became the norm for humans in the Arctic some thousands of years ago, as they focused on hunting sea mammals like seals, walruses, and whales.
The Modern Benefits of Sled Dogs
Sled dogs make amazing pets, and they have a history of carrying humans over bleak, icy landscapes for thousands of years, thanks to their specialized heat-regulation and fat-digesting traits. Sled dogs’ coats and metabolisms help them survive (and even thrive) in frigid, snowy weather, and their eager nature and pack-like mindset make them excellent runners.
The glories of the Huskies pulling the sled across the icy terrain are matched by the remarkable physical adaptations that not only help them survive in this weather but are also unaffected by the ice and snow. Huskies are proven to be one of the best breeds to sled, and they are an ideal dog for snow-related sledding.
Dog sleds allowed humans to hunt and go further distances, as well as through difficult terrain found throughout the tundra in the Arctic. By the early 1900s, dog sledding, commonly called mushing, had become a common mode of transportation in many of the northern stretches of the United States and Canada in winter months, as well as growing as a recreational activity.
In its early days, competitive races provided a good distraction from the harsh living conditions of northern climates, though aircraft began replacing dog-sled teams for transport, hauling freight, and delivering mail during the 1920s, many northerners continued to enjoy dog sledding as a recreational activity. The first hints at Iditarod were seen in 1967, as the dogsledders at the time attempted to establish a race that would keep the interest in dogsleds alive in the face of modern alternatives such as snowmobiles.
The Cultural Importance of the Iditarod
Those that played the biggest roles in organizing the Iditarod trail race had a particular focus on not just keeping Iditarod alive, but keeping the dog-sled culture alive. While it is possible that dog sledding has existed previously, the oldest archaeological evidence for the transportation method dates back around 1000 AD.
As best as archaeologists can determine, dog sledding was invented by indigenous peoples and the Inughuit in northern parts of present-day Canada, then quickly spread across the continent. People from around the world, attracted by the area’s gold deposits and the opportunities that it presented, migrated to the Alaska-Yukon area and learned the art of dog sledding.
Special breeds of dogs were developed for the pulling sleds, including the Alaskan Malamute, originating with the Mahlemiut Tribe of the Upper Anvik River. All of the other types of dogs intended to pull sleds were bred out of Canadian Eskimo, such as Siberian huskies, Alaskan Malamutes, or Mackenzie River Husky.
Because of the physical characteristics, such as several breeds of sled dogs having thick double coats, hairy tails, and leather-like feet, they are also capable of staying alive for hours at a time in sub-freezing temperatures and snowy conditions. The Akita is big for a racing sled dog, at an average of 26 1/2 inches long and between 85-110 pounds, but has double coats, hard feet, and the work ethic to make it able to pull in the cold weather…On Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido, Akitas are used in the job of pulling.
Research has also shown that sled dogs’ genomes have mutations related to their cold environments, like running and pulling a sled in oxygen-poor conditions. The fact that no evidence of wolves’ genes appears in Greenland’s sled dogs’ genomes suggests either the hybrids did not fare so well, or humans had a few reasons for not breeding them.