Chinook

The Chinook breed are calm, non-aggressive, with a willing, friendly disposition. They are a Northern breed, having been bred to perform many of the same tasks as the Spitz-type breeds and with some Spitz-type ancestors in the background.

Typical Chinook characteristics include webbed feet with thick, well-furred pads and the aquiline nose. The Chinook is a dignified dog who may be shy with strangers or in unfamiliar surroundings. The breed is intelligent but matures quite slowly. Individual dogs may not reach their prime until as late as four years old.

Chinook History:

The Chinook, a rare breed of sled dog, was developed in America in the early twentieth century by Arthur Walden. He wanted a new working dog that would make a formidable sled dog and a great family pet. Walden crossed a mixed bred Northern Husky/Mastiff type dog named Chinook with Belgian Sheepdogs, German Shepherd Dogs, Canadian Eskimo dogs and other breeds. His offspring were then bred back to him to develop the Chinook breed.

In 1965, the Guinness Book of World Records recorded the Chinook as the rarest breed in the world, with only 125 dogs alive. Breeders of Chinooks were so rare that in 1981 there were only 12 breedable Chinooks, however, the breed was kept from extinction through breeding programs existing in Maine, Ohio and California. The breed was registered with the United Kennel Club in 1991. Today, the breed is still a very rare, being predominantly an American breed.