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In 1965 the Guinness Book of World Records declared that the Chinook dog is the rarest breed in the world. That contradicts what I read about the Lundehund, but then I’ve seen various insinuations of this about a couple different breeds, so I’m just collecting them all under my “rare breeds” category.
The Chinook dog has only existed since the early 20th century, so it didn’t have much time to proliferate before breed creator Arthur Treadwell Walden died in the 1960s. That made it a very rare breed (what earned it the title in ’65), but Chinook enthusiasts have dedicated enough time to keeping the dog around that now the American Kennel Club says it has hundreds of Chinooks on its register.
This dog has one of the most fun backstories I’ve heard. Walden was a polar explorer and in 1917, as he was breeding better sled dogs, a puppy from one of his litters turned out differently than its siblings or parents. That was Chinook, the original dog that would go on to give his name to his new breed. The name “Chinook” is taken from Inuit, meaning “warm winter winds.”
Chinook was a mix of many northern sled breeds and also of various shepherd dogs. He went on an exploration trip to the South Pole in 1927, as one of the many top sled dogs brought along. Nowadays the few Chinooks in existence are primarily house dogs, but some fans are focusing on breeding top Chinook sled dogs once again.
The breed has an excellent adventuring history. In addition to its sire traveling to Antarctica, other historical Chinooks have braved the elements as well. A team made up of Chinooks was the first dog team to climb the summit of Mt. Washington, New Hampshire, the highest peak on the Eastern seaboard. Chinooks have been mascots for military divisions in Vietnam, and a Chinook sled team in 1941 traveled 502 miles in 90 hours, record-breaking in the 1940s.
The question is: does a Chinook make a good pet? As with the Lundehund interested parties should know that this will be one expensive dog, as it’s so rare. If that’s not an issue, then the answer is yes.
Chinooks were bred as loving family dogs. They can even live well in apartments as they aren’t very hyper. They definitely need their daily exercise but as long as they receive that they can be calm indoors.
They must not be kept as outdoor pets. Chinooks were bred to love being with their families/packs and being separated from the family like that would be a great source of stress to them. They’re great with children, especially if the children were raised around them, and although they might be less enthusiastic with non-family members they should never be aggressive to people they don’t know.
It’s still important to socialize Chinooks with other humans because sometimes they are shy around non-family members. But they should never be potentially aggressive. They’re also meant to have no problems around other dogs.
This breed has it all: sweet and loving but also good workers and brave explorers. If you’ve the funds for and interest in a rare dog, the Chinook is perfect for you.
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*(This image by jude is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic License.)
