Wild Mushing Mutts

These are not your average Iditarod or Yukon Quest sled dogs. These are Greenlandic hunting dogs and they can howl like a wolf and growl like a bear when hunting seal and walrus in the wintertime. They undoubtedly come from a long lineage of wolf ancestry domesticated into the present-day dog. But it's August and that means all 5000 of them, (more than the population of Ilussiat) are chained to a leash no longer than a kid's jump rope. It's disheartening to see technologies like snowmobiles and ATV's replace the loyalty of this hard-working breed and I wonder why so many are chained if they aren't needed...

The extent that these dogs can endure harsh winds and long exposure in the dead of Greenland is proof they are a unique canine. The owner of the Artic Hotel in Ilussiat tells us that they have a very keen sense of hearing and smell.

"They are trained to return to their master when he or she whistles" said Eric, "that way, if the driver falls off the sled the dogs don't continue to run."

But dog-sledding is mostly recreational and so owners will keep, on average, 9-15 dogs chained behind their house. It looks inhuman to see them stuck to heavy medal chains living on barren rock with no grass, food or shade...but then again, I'm in a foreign land with foreign customs and traditions and the last thing you do when your a visitor is 'judge'.