Sakhalin Husky: description and characteristics of the breed

Popular among the locals of the Amur region, Sakhalin husks, also called karafuto-ken, are one of the oldest breeds, It was formed as a working dog used for sledging.

External Description

The dog of this breed has quite large sizes, sometimes reaching a height at the withers up to 70 cm. The weight on the average is 30-40 kg. Slightly elongated physique is distinguished by strong bones and developed musculature. The ears are small, with pointed tips and tips, slightly inclined forward. The front part of the head and the front side of the limbs are covered with shorter wool. Due to the powerful paws these dogs are able to overcome any snow drifts.

The presence of a very thick undercoat allows dogs to withstand the strongest frosts. Sakhalin husky can have a variety of colors: white, black, red, gray. In Aborigines, these dogs, depending on the color, played a certain cult role. Especially prized animals with tiger color, characterized by a calm character and a rough form of the head.

Features of the breed

The breed karafuto-ken (Sakhalin husky) refers to the speedy type of sled dogs. They are lighter, and the most common gait for them is a canter. The teams of these dogs in the last century served to deliver express mail in the mouths of the Amur and Sakhalin. For this they passed a long selection for speed.

In addition to excellent driving qualities, Sakhalin husky can cope with the function of hunting dogs. Such qualities as tranquility, poise and courage, which these dogs differ, regardless of the circumstances, help them and resist the bear, and help hunters in the fishery for sea animals.

Thanks to unusual devotion, high intelligence and courage, this breed was successfully used in the Red Army in the thirties and forties of the last century and was on the list of the best war dogs.

The breed, created for serious work in harsh climatic conditions, is Sakhalin husky. Reviews of the owners, who keep these dogs in the apartment (and there are very few of them), say that this is a very troublesome business, since dogs need a lot of exercise. Therefore, they need much more time for active walks than any other breed.

A bit of history

The main habitat of these dogs has long been the island of Sakhalin. In Japanese this word sounds like Karafuto, which is why the name karafuto-ken began to be called. Derived by local people, which were called gilyaks, the breed received another name - gilyatka husky. After the Second World War, when the Japanese population was deported, most of the dogs were transported to Hokkaido Island . They still live there, only in very small numbers.

Conquerors of the Antarctic

Sakhalin husks gained wide popularity in the late fifties, after they, together with the members of the expedition in the Antarctic, fell into a snow storm. It happened in 1958. All participants had to be evacuated urgently. Fifteen sled dogs had to be left, because in the snowy haze they could not be found. Only a year later, the searches were resumed and to the great surprise they found two of the missing dogs in the Antarctic ice. They were Tarot and Giraud, who later became the national heroes of Japan. After their death, the remains of these dogs became museum exhibits at the University of Hokkaido and in Tokyo.

These events formed the basis for the film, which was shot in 1983 and won a large number of spectator sympathies. In the village of Lesnoy, located near Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, a memorial plaque in honor of the dogs, which saved the lives of Japanese researchers and found themselves abandoned to the mercy of fate.

Sakhalin Husky (karafuto-ken) is very rare today. Only a few Japanese breeders continue to develop the breed. The more known is the Husky dog, which is the closest relative and therefore has much in common with the breed of karafuto-ken.