Naming huskies
Often bearing Nordic names which can be associated to the wolf, their distant cousin, Loki, Luna, Koda, Blu, Skye, all popular husky names. But when it comes to making working huskies an entirely different approach is taken.
Meet Insta(gram) from Svalbard. Also in the pen I met Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest. Huskies all need different names, and they often get unique names rather than the recycled names of their ancestors. This leaves limited options and an often-used method is to pick a theme for each litter and name the dogs accordingly. It may be movie stars, Disney characters, car models, or even Star Wars.
Take a look at my carefully selected husky team at Svalbard Husky. There’s quite an eclectic mix of names there. Another thing about husky teams, while we’re on the topic, is that the stronger dogs are placed at the back, followed by the next strongest at the front, with the youngest dogs in the middle. This way the dogs at the back can pull the sled (or trollkart) and take up the slack whilst the front dogs feel like they’re the ones doing the work. The middle dogs are left being egged on by the strong dogs at the back and have a pace set by the leading dogs. It’s all very interesting stuff!
These two are Martin and Jeff. They ably pulled me through the snow laden terrain of Kvalsøya in Arctic Norway, along with the rest of the team. They’re absolute power-houses, honestly. Regardless of their name, they live for the thrill of running across the tundra as a team - a pack - and wouldn’t stop if you didn’t force them to. In fact, the anchor at the back of the sled that you drive into the snow with your foot to brake is very, very hard work to operate when the dogs are pulling.
Just look at the excitement of the dogs when they know they’re going for a run. You know the excitement a domestic dog has when their human walks in through the door? It’s tantamount to that. They just can’t contain themselves. I was taught that when harnessing a husky I have to pick him up onto his two back legs. That’s tactical - it’s because it removes some of their strength to get them to the sled at my pace. If I hadn’t done that and the dog had all four paws on the ground I wouldn’t stand a chance - I’d become the sled!
Taking a husky ride, either in the snow or across the tundra, is well worth it. There are many different breeds of husky - Siberian, Greenlandic, Alaskan, Chinook, Labrador, Malamute - and each comes with its own character and strengths. As for the names, you could come up against anything!
