page_title: Canadian Eskimo Dog
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Canadian Eskimo Dog / History
caption_attribution_description: English: An illustration of a Canadian Eskimo Dog from The Quadrupeds of North America by John James Audubon and John Bachman, originally published in three volumes (1845-1848)
context_page_description: The Canadian Eskimo Dog or Canadian Inuit Dog is an Arctic breed of working dog. Other names include qimmiq or qimmit. The Greenland Dog is genetically identical.
  The breed is currently threatened with extinction, with a 2008 estimate of only 300 purebred dogs. Although once used as the preferred method of transportation by Inuit in the Canadian Arctic, by the 1960s traditional working dog teams became increasingly rare in the North. Contributing factors to the breed's decline include the increasing popularity of snowmobiles for transportation and the spread of infectious canine diseases. Controversy surrounds the intentional killings of a debated number of Inuit sled dogs between 1950 and 1970 by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, as well as recent efforts to increase the breed's population.
context_section_description: The Inuit never considered the dog as part of the animal kingdom (uumajuit), but merely as a tool for human existence. It was, and still is (to a very limited extent), used by the Canadian Inuit as multi-purpose dogs, often put to work hunting seals and other Arctic game, and hauling supplies and people. Explorers noted that the dogs were capable of tracking a seal hole from a great distance, and were occasionally used to hunt polar bears. The dogs were reported to be so enthusiastic in hunting bears that, sometimes, their handlers shouted "nanuq" (Inuktitut name for the bear) to encourage them when pulling sledges.
  The dogs however would not pursue wolves, and would howl fearfully at their approach. Frozen dog urine was used by Inuit as a medicine, and their fur was more prized than that of wolves, due to its greater resistance to wear. In times of famine, the dogs would be used as an emergency food source. Though once assumed to be a tamed wolf or wolf-dog hybrid by explorers, including Charles Darwin due to similarities in appearance and vocalisations, genetic testing has shown that the Eskimo dog has no recent wolf ancestry.
  The breed is currently threatened with extinction. In the 19th century and early 20th century, this breed was still in demand for polar expeditions, and approximately 20,000 dogs lived in the Canadian Arctic in the 1920s. However, the breed had declined significantly by the 1960s. The breed had once been accepted for showing by both the American Kennel Club (AKC) and the Canadian Kennel Club (CKC); however, in 1959 the AKC dropped the breed from its registry because of extremely low numbers. The Canadian Eskimo Dog and Greenland Dog are sometimes considered the same breed by authorities, although the Greenland Dog can be criticized for lacking any proper breeding program, questioning its validity as a pure breed.
  Since the 1970s interested parties that include the Eskimo Dog Research Foundation (EDRF) have worked to increase the breed's numbers. The EDRF was founded in 1972 and largely funded by the Canadian Government and the Northwest Territories Government, with some support from the CKC. The EDRF purchased dogs from the small (about 200 dogs) population remaining in the Canadian Arctic from remote Inuit camps on Baffin Island, Boothia Peninsula, and Melville Peninsula. The EDRF then began breeding dogs in order to increase numbers. 
  Brian Ladoon also bought dogs in the 1970s from the northern communities of Canada and started breeding after being given the mission of saving them by Bishop Omer Alfred Robidoux of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Churchill-Baie d'Hudson. He switched from Malamutes and Huskies to the CEDs, and after breeding for 30 years still has the largest genetic stock colony of Canadian Eskimo Dogs in the world. The modern breed originated from a relatively high number of founders, thus ensuring sufficient genetic variability to avoid inbreeding.
  The Canadian Eskimo Dog is currently used in sled dog teams that entertain tourists and for commercial polar bear hunting.  By law, polar bear hunting in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut must be conducted by dog team or on foot. The requirement is partly for safety reasons; the working dogs can better sense when a polar bear is around, whereas the sound of a snowmobile motor masks any sign of a polar bear. On May 1, 2000, the Canadian territory of Nunavut officially adopted the "Canadian Inuit Dog" as the animal symbol of the territory, thus sealing the name of their traditional dog (qimmiq) in the Inuktitut language.
caption: An illustration of a print of "Esquimaux dogs" after John James Audubon from The Quadrupeds of North America
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