A Siberian Husky Born to Run

One of my favorite songs is Bruce Springsteen’s “Born to Run.” Actually, it also happens to be the favorite tune of my Siberian Husky, Merlin.

The Husky is a magical but challenging breed of dog -- sobaka --that is over 3000 years old. As the name implies, Siberian Huskies originated in the wilds of Siberian Russia.

The breed was developed by the Chukchis, an Eskimo like people who lived in northeastern Siberia near the Kolyma River Basin. Dogs are domesticated gray wolves that belong to the canis family -- canis familiaris --along with wolves and coyotes, and the similarity between wild wolves and domestic dogs is quite apparent in Huskies.

The Siberian climate is cold, with blowing winds and temperatures plunging to minus 100 degrees Fahrenheit. It is in this inhospitable environment that the Chukchis isolated and bred Huskies as sled dogs for transportation, as guardians of their property, and even companions for their children. The Huskies’ thick fur insulated them from the sub zero temperatures, so they were able to survive, work, and thrive in the cold.

In fact, the term “three dog night,” also the name of a band, derives from the Husky and the measurement of night temperatures. A three dog night meant that it took three dogs to keep a body warm in the freezing cold!

Huskies played an important role in the survival of the Chukchi tribe and they were vital to their economy. For example, a Chukchi would take a team of Huskies to go ice fishing over long distances.

The Husky also played a role in Chukchi legends: it is believed that two Huskies guard the gates of heaven. They determine who to let in and who to turn away. The criteria? Those who were cruel to dogs during their lifetime were not allowed to enter.

In the nineteenth century, the Chukchi people survived the Czar’s troops that were sent to Siberia to open fur trade by outrunning them on the Husky drawn sleds. However, in the twentieth and the Soviet era, the Chukchis were not so fortunate and they were essentially wiped out by smallpox.

Siberian Huskies survived and emigrated across the Bering Straits to Alaska to participate in the now famous sled dog races, the best known of which is the Iditarod or the “Last Great Race.” Siberian Huskies have been of great service to man: they were used in army sleds during WW II, in polar expeditions, and in the Serum Run of 1925 that saved the city of Nome, Alaska from a diphtheria epidemic.

From experience, I can attest that my Russian friends are intelligent, delightful, lovable, and friendly blue or brown eyed creatures. They do have their idiosyncrasies: a strong prey drive and a need to exercise to prevent boredom. Their need for freedom is never extinguished and I can understand perfectly why Siberian Huskies were born to run: it’s in their blood!