The "mute" part is misleading

June 8, 2017 4:38 PM

Koda La Neige is a huskamute. Kaito the husky is a friend who doesn't like to share [huskies bitching and whining]. They do agree that their humans take too long to get to the dog park [huskies complaining].
posted by Johnny Wallflower (9 comments total)

Awww. My Mom used to have a malamute. Well, two, actually. First one, Kodiak, was the smartest dog I've met. Like, he knew how each family member liked to interact with him, and he would go find the person he wanted. Want to lick human face? Go find Sister #1. Want belly scratches? Find Sister #2. Want to play tug of war with a toy? Go find me. He would sit outside on the patio on the chairs - regular dog "sit" position, but up on the chairs like he was one of us humans. Most amazingly, he could hear Mom's car - specifically hers - from at least 1/4 mile away.

The second one? Dumb as a post. Look up "derp" and there could be a picture of that dog. Huge malamute sled dog, thought he was a miniature lap dog. Tongue seemingly too big to fit in his mouth, always hanging out. Kodiak was clearly not impressed. Still kinda fun, though.
posted by dnash at 4:58 PM on June 8, 2017 [7 favorites]

So technically, as an Inuit buff,I'll be that guy who says that the names of these dogs are derived from Inuit "-miut," meaning roughly "people" in the sense of a community in a particular place. "Malamute" refers to the Iñupiaq people of the Kotzebue Sound area of Alaska, for example.
posted by spitbull at 6:26 PM on June 8, 2017 [9 favorites]

And here's an interesting true fact: Inuit sled dogs were bred to be able to feed partially on human excrement so that literally no calories were wasted on the hunt. Now you know. That is in fact a shit-eating grin.
posted by spitbull at 6:29 PM on June 8, 2017 [15 favorites]

Here's a nice thing... just a few days ago USA TODAY published a nice gallery of 17 images of Iñupiaq dogs of Alaska.
posted by spitbull at 5:15 AM on June 9, 2017 [1 favorite]

I knew a Malamute named Leolo who was the sweetest dog -- a lupine behemoth who just loved people so much. He looked so white eyed wolf but his heart beat golden retriever, albeit sans the bottomless well of need part. His was more the love of an equal, he was truly man and woman's best friend to those he chose.
posted by y2karl at 6:04 AM on June 9, 2017 [2 favorites]

[huskies bitching and whining]

It me.

(Thanks for this post, Johnny Wallflower! I enjoy listening to the music of my heart on the YouTubes.)
posted by theatro at 7:46 AM on June 9, 2017 [2 favorites]

Dignity. Dignity always.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 8:01 AM on June 9, 2017 [5 favorites]

I grew up with a Samoyed (alongside a beagle I've written about on Mefi before). She was an amazing animal, both dumb and goofy and sweet and absolutely wild and shrewd. She lived to escape, could outrun any human for either speed or distance, and often took off for days at a time ranging 30-40 miles living off the land. She'd return (or be reported found more often) covered in blood and muck and as happy as a dog can get. Her intelligence was feral. If she was around people she was gentle and affectionate. When she ran, she left a sonic boom behind her. Loved that dog. Our beagle, whom I loved even more, was so different. Human-centered and empathic and territorial. They were hilarious together. People would always fear the big toothy white dog more than the little brown one. But the latte was far more likely to bite you if she decided you were trouble. The Samoyed loved eveyone and no one equally. Love was a foreign concept to her mind. Running was her life.
posted by spitbull at 12:10 PM on June 10, 2017

Husky belly rub.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 7:09 PM on June 10, 2017