Editing Sled dog (section)

==History==
Sled dogs are used in countries and regions such as Canada, [[Greenland]], [[Siberia]], [[Russia]], Norway, Sweden, and [[Alaska]].<ref name="BornToPull">{{cite book | title=Born to Pull: The Glory of Sled Dogs | publisher=U of Minnesota Press | author=Cary, Bob | year=2009 | location=Minneapolis, Minnesota | pages=[https://archive.org/details/borntopullgloryo0000cary/page/7 7]–11 | isbn=978-0816667734 | url=https://archive.org/details/borntopullgloryo0000cary | url-access=registration | quote=sled dogs. | others=Illustrated by Gail De Marcken}}</ref>

===Russia===
[[File:Sled dog wearing harness Siberia 1901.jpg|thumb|Sled dog wearing harness during the [[Jesup North Pacific Expedition|Jesup Expedition]] in Siberia]]

A 2017 study showed that 9,000 years ago, the domestic dog was present at what is now [[Zhokhov Island]], northeastern Siberia, which at that time was connected to the mainland.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Bogoslovskaya|first=L. S.|title=Journal of the Inuit Sled Dog International|url=https://thefanhitch.org/V12N2/V12,N2Russia.html |access-date=4 September 2021|website=thefanhitch.org}}</ref> The dogs were selectively bred as either sled dogs or hunting dogs, implying that a sled dog standard and a hunting dog standard co-existed. The optimal maximum size for a sled dog is {{cvt|20|–|25|kg}} based on thermo-regulation, and the ancient sled dogs were between {{cvt|16|and|25|kg}}. The same standard has been found in the remains of sled dogs from this region 2,000 years ago and in the modern [[Siberian Husky]] breed standard. Other dogs were more massive at {{cvt|30|kg}} and appear to be dogs that had been crossed with wolves and used for polar bear hunting. At death, the heads of the dogs had been carefully separated from their bodies by humans. Anthropologists speculated that this might have been for ceremonial reasons.<ref name="autogenerated1">{{cite journal|doi=10.1016/j.jasrep.2017.04.003|title=Archaeological dogs from the Early Holocene Zhokhov site in the Eastern Siberian Arctic|journal=Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports|volume=13|pages=491–515|year=2017|last1=Pitulko|first1=Vladimir V.|last2=Kasparov|first2=Aleksey K.|bibcode=2017JArSR..13..491P }}</ref><ref>Pitul'ko, Vladimir V., and Aleksey K. Kasparov. “Ancient Arctic Hunters: Material Culture and Survival Strategy.” Arctic Anthropology, vol. 33, no. 1, 1996, pp. 1–36. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/40316394. Accessed 11 July 2021.</ref>

The [[Kungur Letopis|Kungur Chronicle]] and the [[Remezov Letopis|Remezov Chronicle]], created at the end of the 16th century and 1703 respectively, tells about the people living along Siberian rivers, whose primary means of transport was riding on reindeer or dogs. In these documents, the rivers Olenyok, Yana, Indigirka and Kolyma were called "dog rivers", as they were rich in fish for the dogs to eat. Rivers with no fish or not enough to feed the dogs were called "deer rivers," as reindeer were then used for transportation.

From the 1940s to the 1990s, Russian dog sled numbers were in decline. The breed population reached an all-time low of 3,000 in 1998 before revival efforts took off.  Reasons for their decline include
* introduction of mechanization in the Arctic
* reduced capacity to keep dogs, especially with reduced fish catches and collectivization of farming and reindeer herding.
*decline of fur hunting.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://rkf.org.ru/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/yakutian_laika.pdf |title=ЯКУТСКАЯ ЛАЙКА|trans-title=Yakutian Laika}}</ref><ref name=":0" />

=== Scandinavia ===
[[File:Get ready to start (16716084578).jpg|thumb|Huskies ready to ride at the husky farm in [[Kuusamo]], Finland]]
After World War II, [[Skijoring|skijor]] and [[pulk]]a style [[Sled dog racing|dog sled racing]] gained rapidly in popularity in Norway and neighboring Scandinavian countries.<ref name="Waaler20192">{{cite book |author=Rune Waaler |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=W9OMDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA33 |title=Dog Sledding in Norway: Multidisciplinary Research Perspectives |date=April 2019 |publisher=LIT Verlag Münster |isbn=978-3-643-91097-4 |pages=33–}}</ref> These styles of racing required small, fast teams of 1–4 dogs who competed over short, hilly distances of {{cvt|15|–|30|km|-1}}. Required to use purebred dogs by the Norwegian Sled Dog Racing Association, the German Shorthair Pointer quickly emerged as the dog breed of choice.<ref name="Waaler20192" /> At the beginning of the 1970s, the "sled pointer" had emerged, a pointing dog who was bred exclusively for sledding and not hunting.<ref name="Waaler20192" /> During the 1970s, "Nome-style" sled racing, which mimicked the big sled dog teams running long distances and overnighting in subzero temperatures seen in North American-style races, started to attract interest in Scandinavia. In 1974, the first Nome-style sled race, the Skjelbreia Sweepstakes, was hosted near [[Oslo]]. For this style of racing, Norwegian mushers began to import [[Alaskan husky|Alaskan huskies]]; popularized by mushers like Stein Havard Fjelstad and Roger Leegaard who traveled to Alaska to race in the [[Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race|Iditarod]]. However, as a performance crossbreed, the Alaskan husky could not be legally raced in Norway until 1985, when the Norwegian Sled Dog Racing Association removed the requirement that sled dogs be purebred.<ref name="Waaler20192" />

This new ruling also paved the way for Nordic-style mushers to breed their best performing dogs regardless of breed, with mushers mixing Alaskan husky and German Shorthair Pointer to produce the [[Eurohound]] as well as Greyhound with German Shorthair Pointer to produce the [[Greyster]].<ref name=":12">{{Cite journal |last1=Benito |first1=Mila |last2=Boutigny |first2=Laure |date=11 September 2020|title=Cardiovascular Clinical Assessment in Greyster Dogs in Bikejöring Training |journal=Animals  |volume=10 |issue=9 |pages=1635 |doi=10.3390/ani10091635 |issn=2076-2615 |pmc=7552292 |pmid=32932929 |doi-access=free}}</ref>  These Nordic-style crossbreeds gained in popularity across Europe and later North America, especially with the rise in popularity of dryland mushing, such as bikejoring and canicross.<ref name="Waaler2019">{{cite book |author=Waaler |first=Rune |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=W9OMDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA33 |title=Dog Sledding in Norway: Multidisciplinary Research Perspectives |date=January 2019 |publisher=LIT Verlag Münster |isbn=978-3-643-91097-4 |pages=28–40 }}</ref>

Sled dogs and husky safaris are not native to [[Sápmi]] (Lapland) and Finland and are considered a major nuisance by reindeer herders as they directly impact their livelihoods.<ref>Näkkäläjärvi, Klemetti, Juntunen, Suvi, and Jaakkola, Jouni J.K. [https://web.archive.org/web/20210206072302/https://julkaisut.valtioneuvosto.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/162205/VNTEAS_2020_25.pdf SAAMI – Saamelaisten sopeutuminen ilmastonmuutokseen hankkeen tieteellinen loppuraportti] ("Final scientific report of the project SAAMI – Adaptation of Saami people to the climate change"). ''Valtioneuvoston selvitys ja tutkimustoiminnan julkaisusarja 2020:25''. Prime Minister's Office. ISBN 978-952-287-930-1 (PDF) {{in lang|fi}}</ref> These and glass-domed "iglus" have been appropriated from other cultures by the tourist industry in the 1980s and falsely portrayed as being part of the Sámi and Finnish cultures.<ref>[https://www.samediggi.fi/ethical-guidelines-for-sami-tourism/?lang=en#toggle-id-9 Ethical Guidelines for Sámi Tourism]. The Sámi Parliament (Finland).</ref><ref>[https://dokumentit.solinum.fi/samediggi/download/?d=dokumenttipankki/kertomukset_ohjelmat_ja_suunnitelmat/ohjelmat/muut_ohjelmat_ja_ohjeet/principles_for_responsible_and_ethically_sustainable_s%C3%A1mi_tourism_s%C3%A1miparliament.pdf Principles for Responsible and Ethically Sustainable Sámi Tourism]. (PDF). The Sámi Parliament (Finland).</ref>

===Greenland===
[[File:Passionate runners (34697070156).jpg|thumb|Dog sledding is still commonly used for transportation in parts of Greenland]]

The [[Greenlandic Inuit]] have a very long history of using sled dogs and they are still widely used today. As of 2010, some 18,000 [[Greenland dog]]s were kept in western [[Greenland]] north of the [[Arctic Circle]] and in eastern Greenland (because of the effort of maintaining the purity of this culturally important breed, they are the only dogs allowed in these regions) and about half of these were in active use as sled dogs by hunters and fishers.<ref name=sullissivik>{{cite web | url=https://www.sullissivik.gl/Emner/Teknik_og_miljoe/Slaedehunde/Hold_af_slaedehunde?sc_lang=da-DK | title=Hold af slædehunde | publisher=Sullissivik | access-date=22 December 2019 | archive-date=10 June 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230610173840/https://www.sullissivik.gl/Emner/Teknik_og_miljoe/Slaedehunde/Hold_af_slaedehunde?sc_lang=da-DK | url-status=dead }}</ref> As a result of reduced [[sea ice]] (limiting their area of use), increasing use of snowmobiles, increasing dog food prices and disease among some local dog populations, the number has been gradually falling in decades and by 2016 there were 15,000 Greenland dogs. A number of projects have been initiated in an attempt of ensuring that Greenland's dog sledding culture, knowledge and use are not lost.<ref name=Videnskab2017>{{cite web | url=https://videnskab.dk/kultur-samfund/antallet-af-groenlandske-slaedehunde-er-halveret-her-er-redningsplanen | title=Antallet af grønlandske slædehunde er halveret: Her er redningsplanen | date=25 July 2017 | publisher=Videnskab.dk | access-date=22 December 2019 }}</ref>

The [[Sirius Patrol]], a special forces unit in the Danish military, enforces the sovereignty of the remote unpopulated northeast (essentially equalling the [[Northeast Greenland National Park]]) and conduct long-range dog sled patrolling, which also record all sighted wildlife. The patrols averaged {{cvt|14876|km}} per year during 1978–1998. By 2011, the [[Greenland wolf]] had re-populated eastern Greenland from the National Park in the northeast through following these dog-sled patrols over distances of up to {{cvt|560|km}}.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.2981/11-032|title=Invasion of eastern Greenland by the high arctic wolf ''Canis'' lupus arctos|journal=Wildlife Biology|volume=17|issue=4|pages=383–388|year=2011|last1=Marquard-Petersen|first1=Ulf|s2cid=84355723|doi-access=free}} Note: These figures are in the past because this was the time period of interest for the wolf research conducted.</ref>

===North America===
[[File:Three inuit men feeding Labrador huskies in Nain, Canada.jpg|thumb|upright|Labrador huskies being fed by [[Inuit]]]]

In 2019, a study found that those dogs brought initially into the North American Arctic from northeastern Siberia were later replaced by dogs accompanying the [[Inuit]] during their expansion beginning 2,000 years ago. These Inuit dogs were more genetically diverse and more morphologically divergent when compared with the earlier dogs. Today, Arctic sledge dogs are the last descendants in the Americas of this pre-European dog lineage.<ref name=Ameen2019>{{cite journal|doi=10.1098/rspb.2019.1929|pmid=31771471|title=Specialized sledge dogs accompanied Inuit dispersal across the North American Arctic|journal=Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences|volume=286|issue=1916|pages=20191929|year=2019|last1=Ameen|first1=Carly|last2=Feuerborn|first2=Tatiana R.|last3=Brown|first3=Sarah K.|last4=Linderholm|first4=Anna|last5=Hulme-Beaman|first5=Ardern|last6=Lebrasseur|first6=Ophélie|last7=Sinding|first7=Mikkel-Holger S.|last8=Lounsberry|first8=Zachary T.|last9=Lin|first9=Audrey T.|last10=Appelt|first10=Martin|last11=Bachmann|first11=Lutz|last12=Betts|first12=Matthew|last13=Britton|first13=Kate|last14=Darwent|first14=John|last15=Dietz|first15=Rune|last16=Fredholm|first16=Merete|last17=Gopalakrishnan|first17=Shyam|last18=Goriunova|first18=Olga I.|last19=Grønnow|first19=Bjarne|last20=Haile|first20=James|last21=Hallsson|first21=Jón Hallsteinn|last22=Harrison|first22=Ramona|last23=Heide-Jørgensen|first23=Mads Peter|last24=Knecht|first24=Rick|last25=Losey|first25=Robert J.|last26=Masson-Maclean|first26=Edouard|last27=McGovern|first27=Thomas H.|last28=McManus-Fry|first28=Ellen|last29=Meldgaard|first29=Morten|last30=Midtdal|first30=Åslaug|pmc=6939252|display-authors=29|doi-access=free}}</ref>
[[File:Engagé mit einem indianischen Hundeschlitten by Maximilian zu Wied-Neuwied.jpg|thumb|A Native American sled dog team of three near [[Fort Clark, North Dakota]], sketched in 1833]]

Historical references of the dogs and [[dog harness]]es that were used by [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Native American]] cultures date back to before European contact. The use of dogs as [[draft animal]]s was widespread in North America. There were two main kinds of sled dogs; [[Canadian Eskimo Dog|one kind]] was kept by coastal cultures, and the other kind was kept by interior cultures such as the [[Athabascan Indian]]s. These interior dogs formed the basis of the Alaskan husky. Russian traders following the [[Yukon River]] inland in the mid-1800s acquired sled dogs from the interior villages along the river. The dogs of this area were reputed to be stronger and better at hauling heavy loads than the native Russian sled dogs.<ref name="YQ1">{{cite web | url=http://www.yukonquest.com/news/sled-dogs-north | title=Sled Dogs in the North | publisher=[[Yukon Quest]] | work=Yukon Quest Sled Dogs | access-date=15 February 2013 | archive-date=9 April 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140409111208/http://yukonquest.com/news/sled-dogs-north | url-status=dead }}</ref>
[[File:US mail carrier and dog sled team arriving at Seward, ca 1912 (THWAITES 238).jpeg|thumb|US mail carrier and dog sled team arriving at Seward, {{circa|1912|lk=yes}}]]

The Alaskan [[Gold Rush]] brought renewed interest in the use of sled dogs as transportation.<ref name="YQ1" /> Most gold camps were accessible only by dogsled in the winter.<ref name="Martin">{{cite book | title=Yukon Quest Sled Dog Race | publisher=Arcadia Publishing | author=Martin, Elizabeth Libbie | year=2012 | location=Mount Pleasant, South Carolina | isbn=978-0738596273 | page=11 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=scRaxgw1QiYC&q=sled+dogs}}</ref> "Everything that moved during the frozen season moved by dog team; [[prospecting|prospectors]], [[Animal trapping|trappers]], doctors, mail, commerce, trade, freighting of supplies … if it needed to move in winter, it was moved by sled dogs."<ref name="YQ1" /> This, along with the dogs' use in the exploration of the poles, led to the late 1800s and early 1900s being nicknamed the "Era of the Sled Dog".<ref name="Performance">{{cite journal | url= | title=A genetic dissection of breed composition and performance enhancement in the Alaskan sled dog | author=Huson, Heather J | journal=BMC Genetics |date=July 2010 | doi=10.1186/1471-2156-11-71 | author2=Parker, Heidi G | author3=Runstadler, Jonathan | author4=Ostrander, Elaine A | volume=11 | page=71 | pmid=20649949 | pmc=2920855 | doi-access=free }}</ref>
[[File:Dog sled team and driver, with cargo, Seward, ca 1914 (THWAITES 240).jpeg|thumb|Caption reads "Ready for The Long Mush, Seward, Alaska"  (click photo for further information) {{circa|1914|lk=yes}}]]

Sled dogs were used to deliver the mail in Alaska during the late 1800s and early 1900s.<ref name="Dispatch">{{cite web | url=http://www.alaskadispatch.com/article/dogsled-mail-alaska | title=Dogsled mail in Alaska | publisher=Alaska Dispatch | date=2 June 2011 | access-date=18 February 2013 | author=Hegener, Helen | archive-date=5 October 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131005013505/http://www.alaskadispatch.com/article/dogsled-mail-alaska  }}</ref> [[Alaskan Malamute]]s were the favored breed, with teams averaging eight to ten dogs.<ref name="Dispatch" /> Dogs were capable of delivering mail in conditions that would stop boats, trains, and horses.<ref name="Dispatch" /> Each team hauled between {{cvt|500|and|700|lb|order=flip}} of mail.<ref name="Dispatch" /> The mail was stored in waterproofed bags to protect it from the snow.<ref name="Dispatch" /> By 1901, dog trails had been established along the entirety of the Yukon River.<ref name="Dispatch" /> Mail delivery by dog sled came to an end in 1963 when the last mail carrier to use a dog sled, Chester Noongwook of [[Savoonga]], retired.<ref name="Dispatch" /> He was honored by the [[US Postal Service]] in a ceremony on [[St. Lawrence Island]] in the [[Bering Sea]].<ref name="Dispatch" />

Airplanes took over Alaskan mail delivery in the 1920s and 1930s.<ref name="YQ1" /> In 1924, [[Carl Ben Eielson]] flew the first Alaskan [[airmail]] delivery.<ref name="IanYoung">{{cite book | title=The Iditarod: Story of the Last Great Race | publisher=Capstone Classroom | author=Young, Ian | year=2002 | pages=5–13 | isbn=073689523X | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FLfNdyiDs-EC | others=Illustrated by Timothy V. Rasinski}}</ref> Dog sleds were used to patrol western Alaska during [[World War II]].<ref name="IanYoung" /> [[Highway]]s and [[trucking]] in the 40s and 50s, and the [[snowmobile]] in the 50s and 60s, contributed to the decline of the working sled dog.<ref name="YQ1" />
[[File:White huskies dog sledding.jpg|thumb|A sled dog team of six white huskies hiking in [[Inuvik]], Canada]]

Recreational [[mushing]] came into place to maintain the tradition of dog mushing.<ref name="YQ1" /> The desire for larger, stronger, load-pulling dogs changed to one for faster dogs with high endurance used in racing, which caused the dogs to become lighter than they were historically.<ref name="YQ1" /><ref name="YQ2">{{cite web | url=http://www.yukonquest.com/site/modern-sled-dog/ | title=The Modern Sled Dog | publisher=[[Yukon Quest]] | work=Yukon Quest Sled Dogs | access-date=15 February 2013  | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131226050558/http://www.yukonquest.com/site/modern-sled-dog/ | archive-date=26 December 2013 }}</ref> Americans and others living in Alaska then began to import sled dogs from the native tribes of Siberia (which would later evolve and become the [[Siberian Husky]] breed) to increase the speed of their own dogs, presenting "a direct contrast to the idea that Russian traders sought heavier draft-type sled dogs from the Interior regions of Alaska and the Yukon less than a century earlier to increase the hauling capacity of their lighter sled dogs."<ref name="YQ1" />

Outside of Alaska, [[drafting (dog)|dog-drawn carts]] were used to haul peddler's wares in cities like [[New York City|New York]].<ref name="Outing: Sport, Adventure, Travel, Fiction">{{cite book|title=Outing: Sport, Adventure, Travel, Fiction|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fhygAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA134 |access-date=4 March 2013|year=1901|publisher=W. B. Holland|pages=130–137|chapter=The Sledge Dogs of the North}}</ref>

====Alaska and the Iditarod====
{{Main|1925 serum run to Nome|Iditarod}}
[[File:Col. Ramsay's entry, winning dog sled team of the 3rd All Alaska Sweepstakes, John Johnson, driver (LOC) (4484590704).jpg|thumb|Col. Ramsay's entry, winning dog sled team of the 3rd All Alaska Sweepstakes, John Johnson, driver ~ c. 1910]]
In 1925, a massive [[diphtheria]] outbreak crippled [[Nome, Alaska]]. There was no [[Antiserum|serum]] in Nome to treat the people infected by the disease.<ref name="IanYoung" /> There was serum in [[Nenana, Alaska|Nenana]], but the town was more than {{cvt|600|mi|order=flip|sigfig=1}} away, and inaccessible except by dog sled.<ref name="IanYoung" /> A dog sled relay was set up by the villages between Nenana and Nome, and 20 teams worked together to relay the serum to Nome.<ref name="IanYoung" /> The serum reached Nome in six days.<ref name="IanYoung" />

The [[Iditarod Trail]] was established on the path between these two towns.<ref name="IanYoung" /> It was known as the Iditarod Trail because, at the time, Iditarod was the largest town on the trail.<ref name="IanYoung" /> During the 1940s, the trail fell into disuse.<ref name="IanYoung" /> However, in 1967, Dorothy Page, who was conducting Alaska's centennial celebration, ordered {{cvt|9|mi|order=flip}} of the trail to be cleared for a dog sled race.<ref name="IanYoung" /> In 1972, the US Army performed a survey of the trail, and in 1973 the Iditarod was established by Joe Redington Sr.<ref name="IanYoung" /><ref name="FreedmanJonrowe1995Intro" /> The race was won by [[Dick Wilmarth]], who took three weeks to complete the race.<ref name="IanYoung" />

[[File:Wattie MacDonald enters Iditarod finish chute (4458490799).jpg|thumb|Musher and dogs enter Iditarod finish chute]]
The modern Iditarod is a {{cvt|1100|mi|order=flip}} endurance sled dog race.<ref name="FreedmanJonrowe1995Intro">{{cite book|author1=Lew Freedman|author-link=Lew Freedman|author2=DeeDee Jonrowe|title=Iditarod Dreams: A Year in the Life of Alaskan Sled Dog Racer DeeDee Jonrowe|url=https://archive.org/details/iditaroddreamsye00free|url-access=registration |access-date=27 February 2013|year=1995|publisher=Epicenter Press|isbn=978-0-945397-29-8|pages=[https://archive.org/details/iditaroddreamsye00free/page/n104 11]–15|chapter=Introduction}}</ref> It usually lasts for ten to eleven days, weather permitting.<ref name="FreedmanJonrowe1995Intro" /> It begins with a ceremonial start in [[Anchorage, Alaska]] on the morning of the first Saturday in March, with mushers running {{cvt|20|mi|order=flip}} to [[Eagle River, Alaska|Eagle River]] along the Alaskan Highway, giving spectators a chance to see the dogs and the mushers.<ref name="FreedmanJonrowe1995TRIO">{{cite book|author1=Lew Freedman|author-link=Lew Freedman|author2=DeeDee Jonrowe|title=Iditarod Dreams: A Year in the Life of Alaskan Sled Dog Racer DeeDee Jonrowe|url=https://archive.org/details/iditaroddreamsye00free|url-access=registration |access-date=27 February 2013|year=1995|publisher=Epicenter Press|isbn=978-0-945397-29-8|pages=[https://archive.org/details/iditaroddreamsye00free/page/25 25–33]|chapter=The Race Is On}}</ref> The teams are then loaded onto trucks and driven {{cvt|30|mi|order=flip}} to [[Wasilla, Alaska|Wasilla]] for the official race start in the afternoon.<ref name="FreedmanJonrowe1995TRIO" /> The race ends when the last musher either drops out of the race or crosses the finish line in Nome.<ref name="FreedmanJonrowe1995Intro" /> The winner of the race receives a prize of US$50,000.<ref name="FreedmanJonrowe1995Intro" /> It has been billed as the "World Series of mushing events"<ref name="FreedmanJonrowe1995TSL">{{cite book|author1=Lew Freedman|author-link=Lew Freedman|author2=DeeDee Jonrowe|title=Iditarod Dreams: A Year in the Life of Alaskan Sled Dog Racer DeeDee Jonrowe|url=https://archive.org/details/iditaroddreamsye00free|url-access=registration |access-date=27 February 2013|year=1995|publisher=Epicenter Press|isbn=978-0-945397-29-8|pages=[https://archive.org/details/iditaroddreamsye00free/page/17 17–23]|chapter=The Starting Line}}</ref> and "The Last Great Race on Earth".<ref name="Woolum1998">{{cite book|author=Janet Woolum|title=Outstanding Women Athletes: Who They Are and How They Influenced Sports in America|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DWmCWO6SpsYC&pg=PA94 |access-date=27 February 2013|year=1998|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=978-1-57356-120-4|pages=94–96|chapter=Susan Butcher (dog-sled racer)}}</ref>

===Antarctica===
[[File:Aan de Zuidpool - p1913-164-1.jpg|thumb|Roald Amundsen's Antarctic expedition]]

The first Arctic explorers were men with sled dogs.<ref name="Mills2003">{{cite book|author=William J. Mills|title=Exploring Polar Frontiers: A Historical Encyclopedia |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PYdBH4dOOM4C&pg=PA192 |access-date=27 February 2013|year=2003|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1-57607-422-0|pages=189–192}}</ref> Due to the success of using sled dogs in the Arctic, it was thought they would be helpful in the Antarctic exploration as well, and many explorers made attempts to use them.<ref name="Mills2003" /> Sled dogs were used until 1992, when they were banned from Antarctica by the [[Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty]] as part of a larger ban on foreign species in order to protect the antarctic ecosystem.<ref name="Mills2003" />

[[Carsten Borchgrevink]] used either Sámi sled dogs or Samoyeds with Finnish handlers in Antarctica during his [[Southern Cross Expedition]] (1898–1900), but it was much colder than expected at [[Cape Adare]].<ref name="Mills2003" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Aukram |first=Val |url=https://www.thesamoyedclub.org.nz/pdfs/samoyed-supplement-new-zealand-kennel-club-gazette-may-2006-volume-46-no-4.pdf |title=The Samoyed Early Days |date=2006-05-01 |publisher=New Zealand Kennel Gazette |pages=2–3 |language=en}}</ref> The dogs were used to working on snow, not on ice, in much milder temperatures.<ref name="Mills2003" /> The dogs were also inadequately fed, and eventually all of the dogs died.<ref name="Mills2003" />

[[Erich von Drygalski]] used [[Kamchatka Sled Dog|Kamchatka sled dogs]] in his 1901–1903 expedition, and fared much better because his dogs were used to the cold and he hired an experienced dog handler.<ref name="Mills2003" /> His dogs were allowed to breed freely and many had to be shot because there was no room on the ship to take them home.<ref name="Mills2003" /> Many that were not shot were left behind on the [[Kerguelen Islands]].<ref name="Mills2003" />

[[Otto Nordenskjöld]] intended to use [[Greenland Dog|Greenland dogs]] in his 1901–1904 expedition, but all but four of his huskies died on the journey south.<ref name="Mills2003" /> He picked up a mixed breed in the [[Falkland Islands|Falklands]], but after his arrival in the Antarctic, these were all hunted down and killed by his four surviving huskies hunting as a pack because of dog handler Ole Jonassen's failure to tether the dogs.<ref name="Mills2003" /> These huskies were later able to pull {{cvt|265|kg}} over {{cvt|18|mi|order=flip}} in three and a half hours.<ref name="Mills2003" />

[[Robert Falcon Scott]] brought twenty [[Samoyed (dog)|Samoyed]]s with him during his 1902 journey.<ref name="Mills2003" /> The dogs struggled under the conditions Scott placed them in, with four dogs pulling heavily loaded sleds through {{cvt|45|cm}} of snow with bleeding feet.<ref name="Mills2003" /> Scott blamed their failure on rotten dried fish.<ref name="Mills2003" /> In 1910, Scott returned with 33 Sakhalin huskies but noted that they performed poorly in deep snow and their docked tails prevented them from curling up to keep warm.<ref name="Mills2003" />

[[Douglas Mawson]] and [[Xavier Mertz]] were part of the [[Far Eastern Party]], a three-man sledging team with [[Belgrave Edward Sutton Ninnis|Lieutenant B.E.S. Ninnis]], to survey [[King George V Land]], Antarctica. On 14 December 1912, Ninnis fell through a snow-covered crevasse along with most of the party's rations, and was never seen again. Their meagre provisions forced them to [[dog meat|eat their remaining dogs]] on their {{cvt|315|mi|order=flip}} return journey. Their meat was tough, stringy and without a vestige of fat. Each animal yielded very little, and the major part was fed to the surviving dogs, which ate the meat, skin and bones until nothing remained.{{Citation needed|date=May 2023}}

[[File:Portrett av Roald Amundsen crop.jpg|thumb|upright|Roald Amundsen, whose Antarctic expedition was planned around 97 sled dogs]]
The men also ate the dog's brains and livers. Unfortunately eating the liver of sled dogs produces the condition [[hypervitaminosis A]] because canines have a much higher tolerance for vitamin A than humans do. Mertz suffered a quick deterioration. He developed stomach pains and became incapacitated and incoherent. On 7 January 1913, Mertz died. Mawson continued alone, eventually making it back to camp alive.<ref name="Mawson">{{cite web|url=http://www.gutenberg.org/files/6137/6137-h/6137-h.htm#2HCH0013|title=The Home of the Blizzard|author=Douglas Mawson}}</ref>

[[Roald Amundsen]]'s expedition was planned around 97 Esquimaux dogs (possibly [[Canadian Eskimo Dog]]s, [[Greenland Dog]]s or both).<ref name="Mills2003" /> On his first try, two of his dogs froze to death in the {{cvt|-56|C}} temperatures.<ref name="Mills2003" /> He tried a second time and was successful.<ref name="Mills2003" /> Amundsen was covering {{cvt|17|mi|order=flip}} a day, with stops every {{cvt|3|mi|order=flip|sigfig=1}} to build a cairn to mark the trail.<ref name="Mills2003" /> He had 55 dogs with him, which he culled until he had 14 left when he returned from the pole.<ref name="Mills2003" /> On the return trip, a man skied ahead of the dogs and hid meat in the cairns to encourage them to run.<ref name="Mills2003" />