I am a most happy Mansi,

Nobody has a Laika like mine!

Where he runs, he sniffs every bush and looks at

Every branch! What a wonderful Laika I have!

(From a song of an old Mansi hunter, recorded by cynologist, M. G. Volkov, in 1937)

What kind of northern dogs (or Laikas) are known to us, people of the vast northern country of the former USSR?  The majority would name the Laika or Siberian Laika, which would not be true in both cases.  The Laika is a whole group of breeds and such a breed like the Siberian Laika does not exist at all, which I will explain below.

Dog lovers reading books and expert cynologists confidently list four Laika breeds: the Russo-European Laika, the West Siberian Laika, the Karelo-Finnish Laika and the East Siberian Laika. Someone may add that there are sled-pulling Laikas in the north…

Sometimes things turn ridiculous. A young journalist, who knew about Reindeer Herding Spitzes of our kennel, had heard about them for a long time, but he, finally, titled his interview about them «The Siberian Laika – A Dog for Everyone». Later he explained that if he had written «The Reindeer Herding Spitz», unaccustomed readers would not understand what he was writing about.

This took place in our large northern country, which is proud about everything that is its own!  For example, in Japan there are at least seven breeds of Spitz-like (Laika) dogs with international recognition. Clubs of northern dogs, their popularity and periodicals dedicated to them are a common phenomenon in many countries, some of which are even not that far in the north, except our own country!

What happened to our northern dog breeds, how many of them exist, what is their fate and why they are so little known?

Let us define terms with a similar meaning: primitive breed, wolf-like dog, northern prick-eared dog, northern dog, Laika, Spitz, Laika-like dog, Spitz-like dog etc.  It is important, because in the literature, they do not mean exactly the same.  I should mention first that abroad such breeds of dogs are usually placed in group of Spitz-like dogs and their prototypes. We are gradually becoming accustomed to the international term «Spitz» in its broad meaning, although traditionally «Spitz» is for us a smallish Laika-like European dog.

Of course, Russian explorers of the north, Siberia and Far East could not overlook the dogs, on which the very existence of the people of those vast territories virtually depended. The first Russian travelers («pervoprokhodtsy») were not cynologists, but they left for us their first «cynological» descriptions. For example, the Cossack commander Vladimir Atlassov in his «story» about his travel to Kamchatka, 1697, wrote: «They do not have any cattle, only dogs of average size but very shaggy, with hair up to seven inches» (quoted from Ogloblin, 1891, in Russian).

«Intelligent» dog breeders began paying attention to the dogs of our north only during the last decades of the XVIIIth century, although in our country there was much more written about foreign breeds. The beginning of research on our northern dogs starts from works of known cynologists of their time Prince A. A. Shirisky-Shikhmatov (1890, 1896), who was also a passionate bear hunter, and a remarkable woman hunter M. G. Dmitrieva-Sulima (1892, 1896, 1902, 1911), who was breeding this kind of dogs for 20 years.  Due to the publications of these experts, prick-eared dogs of our north got their name «Laika».  However, M. G. Dmitrieva-Sulima considered that «Northern Dog» would be the most appropriate name to apply to this numerous group of dogs, which hunters call «Laika» or «Podlaika» (1911).  She also admits that the term «northern» would also be not quite precise, because dogs of similar type also occurred in Africa, America and everywhere in Asia.  I counted over 100 breeds of dogs, including local breeds, not recognized by leading kennel clubs, which could be added to the group of Spitzes and their prototypes.

M. G. Dmitrieva-Sulima discusses and condemns the term «Siberian Laika», which is quite justified, because  «… it is impossible to unite all the varieties of northern dog on the Asian continent of the Russian Empire under the term Siberian Laika (1911).

It would be appropriate to mention that the Americans have developed and breed sled dog named the Siberian Husky and the term Husky can be translated as Laika. However, this breed, in our understanding, does not have any relationship to Siberian dogs as I understand them. The Siberian Husky is a cultivated specialized breed, which American cynologists obtained by selective breeding our sled dogs imported from northeastern parts of Chukotka, the Kolyma River and Kamchatka.

During the Soviet era, leading Laika specialists persistently tried, and it was quite successful, to apply the term Laika only to northern dogs of the taiga zone used most often for hunting with bark pointing mammals and birds. They recommended calling dogs used most often for sledding and herding reindeer as «sled dogs», «reindeer driving dogs», «herding dogs», etc., respectively.

I think that it is incorrect in principle and artificial to divide dogs into working, hunting and companion dogs. For example, let us take a popular new breed the Labrador Retriever. What kind of a dog it is?  Is it a hunting dog flushing and retrieving game? Or is it a very well proven rescue dog, in other words is it a working breed?  Or maybe it is a kind and obedient companion dog, a family dog?

Classification of dogs by their specialization is particularly detrimental, if applied to our aboriginal northern breeds of dogs. They are primitive wild animal-like dogs. They are primitive in the best meaning of this word, closer to their wild ancestors and, subsequently, possessing many advantages, such as well balanced temperament and ability to make independent decisions. It is known that in general primitive breeds of agricultural animals are little specialized and are used for many purposes.

How about the aboriginal breeds? They no longer exist and will never come back?

One positive part of our «perestroika» is the fact that we opened the cynological foreign world with its northern dogs and that our cynologists developed opinions beyond central cynological organizations and articles about aboriginal dogs began popping up in periodicals.

In 1992, the Kamchatka Laika and the Chukotka Laika became purebreds. The Russian Federation of Working Dog Breeding became free from the oppression of DOSAAF; its former leadership of retired military personnel became replaced by cynologists. They were those people who helped the recognition of new breeds.  The breed standards of these Laikas were written by workers of the cynological-scientific and applied enterprise «Kinos» , which had been approved by the Federation and the breeds got their names «the Kamchatka Sled Dog» and «the Chukotka Sled Dog». 

These breed standards were based on the research of aboriginal dogs of the northeastern parts of the country, including cynological survey of surviving populations of these dogs. Those were very expensive expeditions. A new to us factor emerged, such as «sponsorship» and it brought understanding people into action. Research on dogs was funded by a private company «Goskomsever. There were many other voluntary assistants.

News about recognition of the Kamchatka Sled Laika and the Chukotka Sled Laika was received at the start of the sled dog races «Beringia-92».  Dog teams formed of dogs of Kamchatka and Chukotka made up to 2040 km in Kamchatka and Chukotka («Beringia» got into Guinness Book of Records as the longest in the world races of sled dogs). A considerable part of these dogs already passed cynological evaluation and they have been rated as purebreds.

And again, the new names of these breeds declare their narrow specialization by indicating that they are only sled dogs. I already discussed briefly that this is not so. Both the Kamchatka and Chukotka dogs are suitable for diverse services.  Their use for traditional methods of transportation would not help the rebirth of these breeds. Methods of pedigree work with aboriginal populations of dogs are still not worked out and the traditional breeding with free mating is no longer efficient.  Therefore, the future of these breeds is still uncertain.

In 1994, the now forgotten reindeer herding Laika became a new purebred. This is formerly the Nenets Laika, the Samoyed Laika and the Tavgian Laika. The Russian Cynological Federation approved the first official standard of this breed offered by «Kinos» under the name «the Reindeer Herding Spitz» (Olenegonka).

The future of the Olenegonka is less doubtful, because they are most interesting, used for diverse works and present in kennels outside their northern range.  The question remains how to run pedigree work with this breed in the north, where kennels are sparse and access to imported breeds is wide open? It is clear that local people would not save the breed and it is impossible, and it is also impossible to settle cynologists among them and regular visits to the northern regions are expensive.

It seems everything is done! We have four well-established purebred Laikas and three more purebreds recently designated.

Let us look in the works of contemporary specialists. A. P. Voilochnikov and S. D. Voilochnikov (1992) wrote: «…one region, where local Laikas still remain pure, is the Evenkian National District, Krasnoyarsk Territory. The hunting industry organization of this region took simple measures for preservation of local Laikas.»

I. Shurupov (1993) wrote: «…in 1989 and in 1990 I hunted in the Khanty-Mansi National District twice. Until now, industrial hunters and local people who adhere to the traditional way of life, still have pure Khanty-Mansi Laikas».

S. Uspensky,(1994) wrote: «The amazing sled dogs of Siberia are a wholesome part of the values of Russia, her gene pool of aboriginal breeds of domesticated animals. This treasure has become impoverished because of breeders’ lack of attention and unwise experimentation and its loss would be unforgivable. We urgently need action to survey the remaining representatives of this breed, primarily in northern Yakutia, in the lower parts of the Yana River, the Indigirka River, the Alazeya River and the Kolyma River, where these dogs still occur.»

I can add more and more quotations. This kind of information, wishes and recommendations are certainly beneficial. However, who would start the work and where to get the funds?! For example, we did not have enough money to continue the survey beyond Kamchatka and Chukotka and collect information about the Laikas of Koryak and the polar regions.

Therefore, at this time I would not make any recommendations, but will make a few conclusions to summarize the above.

1. Russia had several dozens of aboriginal breeds of northern dogs. Being primitive breeds, they were suitable for use for different services.
2. During the Soviet era, four remarkable Laika breeds had been created. This was done at the expense of nearly all the aboriginal breeds of northern dogs, which could be kept pure.
3. Aboriginal breeds of northern dogs, despite all odds, still exist, as well as peoples, who possess them. Examples of this are the Kamchatka Laika, the Chukotka Laika and the Olenegonka.
4. The value of aboriginal dogs as a part of the national heritage, culture and prestige of Russia is beyond doubt.  The preservation of these dogs does not require big investments, if the money is provided to honest, knowledgeable and hard working people.