Greenland Dog
The Greenland Dog or Grønlandshunden ("The Greenland's Dog" Danish) is a large breed of husky-type dog kept as a sled dog and for hunting polar bear and seal. This is an ancient breed, thought to be directly descended from dogs brought to Greenland by the first Inuit settlers.
History
The Greenland Dog originates from the coastal area of the Arctic regions of Northern Siberia, Alaska, Canada and Greenland. Archaeological evidence has proven the dog first reached Greenland with the Sarqaq people between 4000 and 5000 years ago. Sundry artifacts found within the Eskimo people's areas confirm that the Eskimo people, along with their sledges and dogs originated from Siberia. Remains have been found in the New Siberian Islands that have been carbon dated to around 7000 BC. This makes the Greenland Dog one of the oldest breeds in the world. The Vikings were the first Europeans to settle in Greenland and subsequently became aware of these dogs. Then others like the early European whalers, explorers and fur traders in Canada and North America trained dog-sledding skills from the natives of the Arctic region, (Eskimos),and used with great success the Greenland Dog when hunting, exploring and traveling across the Arctic regions. Greenland Dogs belong to the Spitz breeds, a group of dogs characterized by their prick ears, curly tails and thick coats and are among the oldest known dog breeds in the world today. The Greenland Dog has been a draught animal in the Arctic regions for centuries and consequently they have developed a powerful body and heavy coats, with a natural capacity for load pulling and endurance in a harsh working environment. It is thought that the first dogs were brought to Britain around 1750; an Esquimaux bitch was exhibited at one of the earliest dog shows held in Darlington on 29th of July 1875, which was reported in the Live Stock Journal and Franciers Gazette published on the 6th of August 1875. They were recognized by the Kennel Club at its foundation in 1880. Greenland Dogs have been used on many expeditions by explorers, the most famous being Fridtjof Nansen. Nansen recorded in his book "På ski over Grønland", Greenland Dogs being used as working dogs by the Greenland Native. Nansen was a successful polar explorer and used the dogs on his famous voyage across the arctic ocean in the equally famous ship "Fram". Roald Amundsen used the Greenland Dogs as well on his expedition to the Antarctic. Amundsen carefully chose 97 Greenland Dogs to accompany him and his team on his expedition to the Antarctic and the subsequent capture of the South Pole. Both men started with more dogs than they technically needed to pull as sledge, intending to feed the weakest dogs to the strong ones during the voyage.
Appearance and Size
The Greenland Dog is a powerful, heavy-built dog. It has a broad, wedge-shaped head, slightly tilted eyes and small, triangular ears covered with thick fur that prevents frostbite. It has strong, muscular, short-haired legs. The tail is usually rolled along/across its back, but it may also hang down in a wolflike manner. When it lies down and curls up to rest, the tail often covers the nose. Its coat is of medium length and consists of two layers. The inner layer consists of short wool-like fur, the outer layer of longer, coarser, water-repellent fur. A characteristic of most Greenland Dogs is the "úlo", a triangular shaped area on the shoulders. It is named after a common woman's-knife from Greenland which is of the same shape. Male are significantly larger than females at between 58 and 68 cm (23-27 in) at the withers; females are between 51 and 61 cm (20-24 in).
Personality
In Greenland this breed exists in much the same condition as it had when originally arriving there, and are kept as chiefly as a working dog valued for its strength and speed rather than a malleable temperament. As a result of living in a pack structure very much similar to their wolf forebears, the Greenland Dog takes a very firm and confident owner to make a good pet.
Wikipedia and GNU
The content of this entry is from the Wikipedia article "Greenland Dog" licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
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Videos of Greenland Dogs
Human Planet | Arctic: Greenland sled dogs | Premieres Sunday, 20 March, ABC1
www.abc.net.au | Narrated by John Hurt, and following the footsteps of Planet Earth and Life, this spectacular, epic eight-part documentary series is a breathtaking celebration of the amazing, complex, profound and sometimes challenging relationship between humankind and nature. Each episode focuses on a particular habitat, from the polar north to the planet's driest deserts, revealing how people have created astonishing solutions in the face of extreme adversity. Human Planet premieres Sunday, 20 March at
East Greenland Sledge Dogs
The Greenland sledge dogs are renowned for their resilience. Each dog can pull 25-50kg. The East Greenland sledge is designed to be flexible to cope with the mountainous terrain. Each dog driver knows his team well, commanding and admonishing as necessary. This video accompanies the YouTube video "Journey to Sermilik". Creedence Clearwater Revival remains very popular in the East Greenland villages! For travel information contact travellodge.dk
Qamutseq - East Greenland Sledge Dogs
Sledge dogs go where snowmobiles don't. Kalaallit qimmiat quimuttoq tusaamaneqarpoq ullorpassuarni nerisaqanngikkaluarluni uniarsinnaasoq. The Greenlandic sledge dogs are renowned for their endurance. Qimmip qimuttup iner-simasup 25 - 50 kiilut uniarsinnaavai. An adult sledge dog can pull between 25 -- 50 kilograms. Qimmit marlukkuutaarlutik immikkut qamutinut allunaasanik qilersorneqartarput The dogs are harnessed to the sledge in pairs, each having their own trace to the sledge. Periutsip tamatuma iluaqut
Sad dogs of Greenland
21 000 sleddogs are suffering in Greenland, no water, no food, tangled chains...
Sled Dogs Howling in Kulusuk, Greenland
I was in the little village of Kulusuk, Greenland just below the Arctic Circle walking around and the Inuit Villagers all had sled dogs chained up in their front yards. For the most part, they were super calm, but every now and then the dogs would start howling like they are in the video for no apparent reason. For more videos and travel information go to: www.flashpackerbackpacking.com & http
6 greenland dogs training.avi
9th of March, 2011 - our 6 greenland dogs at the training with 4-wheeled cart and me sitting on it (and filming) additionally. For the first time all together in one team :-) The whole winter season they were running in 2- and 4-dogs teams. [my 256mb card in aparat let me make only such a short record]
Greenlandic sled dogs
Sled dogs are still an important part of hunter's and fishermen's life in greenland. This sturdy breed of dogs well adapted to the harsh arctic climate through thousands of years, and they simply love to pull a sled.
Nordiclight kennel, Malamutes & Greenland dogs playtime, November 21th, 2011
Nordiclight Alaskan Malamutes www.nordiclightmals.com
Sled Dog Chorus, Ittoqqortoormiit, Greenland
Jennifer (in the orange parka) and her partner Gary raise sled dogs in Ittoqqortoormiit, a small and isolated village on the East Greenland coast. On a cold, windy September day, she spoke to us about the dogs and demonstrated feeding them. (That's her voice at the end.) I was recording the sounds when the dogs gradually began howling in unison, and then suddenly stopped all at once. I've accompanied the recording with photos of the dogs before and after they "sang."
Sledge dogs
If you're a fan of Nordic sledge dogs, Gryon in canton Vaud is the place to be. Throughout the ski season, visitors can enjoy being pulled along at high speeds by the fluffy canines. The tourism office also organises an annual race for sledge dog owners, to test their mettle. (swissinfo, Julie Hunt)
Greenland / "Grønsky" dogs having a roll about in the snow, Svalbard
Nuna, Taliq and Silva having a good roll about in the snow to cool off, Svalbard.
Dog Yard, Ilulissat, Greenland
While in Ilulissat, Greenland, I spent some time checking out the local dogs. Ilulissat claims to be the "dog capital of the world" by dint of having some 3500 dogs, a number which almost matches the human population. Although tourists are warned not to touch the dogs due to their unfriendly temperament, I was welcomed to handle them by the mushers/owners I spent time with and found the dogs to be just about as friendly and outgoing as any other dogs I've met in the world. As far as I can tell from conversa
Dog sledging adventure in Ittoqqortoormiit, East Greenland
The Inuit hunters of Greenland "broke the code" to the arctic thousands of years ago! You can experience this remote part of the world through the knowledge and know-how the Inuit culture has passed on through the centuries!
Dogsledding Iceland
6 Greenland Dogs pulling the sled on the Langjökull in Summer 2011! Lots of fun ;)))! Music by Mando Diao - "Down in the past" - thank you!
NunavutQuestGame.mov
A video game about traditional Inuit dogsledding. More info at: nunavutquest.com
