Feeding The Dogs

On the morning of March 1st, Pascale & I headed to the high school for a professional development day for teachers. The school board had bought a new software program for tracking student attendance and was planning on having it up and running in September. Until then, the teachers needed to be trained on how to use the program. We realized that we were early when we noticed no vehicles in the school's parking lot. Rather than waste the free time, Pascale decided to feed the dogs, referring to the dog team she & her husband owned. I happily agreed, wanting to snap several more photos of the event. I had previously accompanied Pascale several days before, taking a few pictures in the evening.

Even though snowmobiles (aka Skidoos, qamutaujaq) have become the norm for Inuit hunters, dog teams (qimussit) are still in use to this day, mostly for tourists and research expeditions. In fact, several of Pascale's dogs have taken part in expeditions to the North Pole. Those trips happen in the spring and total costs can surpass $30,000.

All dog teams reside on an open area just to the south of the Iqaluit airport, near the town's fuel storage tanks. The main road to get there also takes you to the town's landfill. People are allowed to look through the landfill and take whatever they can use. Unfortunately, there is no recycling in Iqaluit. The town has tried recycling in the past but the cost of shipping it south to be processed proved to be too expensive.

One qimussit comprises of 10-12 dogs, the amount required to pull a packed sled (qamutiik). 'The dogs have a hierarchy,' explained Pascale. 'Of course, the lead dog [isuraqtujuq] is the one at the top and the one who sets the rules. And no one holds onto dogs who bite.'

'Not even if they can protect you from dangerous animals?' I asked.

'Dogs who bite, bite anyone. If the other dogs see that the human master tolerates biting, then they will do the same. Then that person will have a very tough time maintaining order.'

'What happens if a dog starts biting?'

'Either sold or euthanized. People up here don't understand why people down south keep animals that bite. They are putting themselves and their family at risk. With little children, it's even more dangerous. If you're thinking of getting a dog, never get one that bites.' Her advice reminded me of all the pit bull attack stories I read about in the media.

Upon our arrival at the open kennel, Pascale's dogs began barking excitedly. They knew what was coming. With every jump, the long chains they were attached to clanged in the morning cold. The dogs from the other six teams looked on in jealous silence, probably wondering when they would get their meal. The dogs are attached to safety chains so that they don't run off or in the worst case, attack the other dog teams. Each dog has a small wooden box they can crawl into should the cold become too much. Most of the time, it's just the ground that becomes too cold for their paws. When it comes to sleep, the dogs can either sleep outside, inside their box, on top of their box. The image of them sleeping on their boxes reminded me of Snoopy, the cartoon dog from the comic strip Peanuts by Charles Schultz.

'The dogs don't mind sleeping outside?' I asked.

'They're used to it. Since they've spent so much time outside, their bodies have developed very thick coats to keep them warm.'

The dogs' morning breakfast consisted of large clumps of seal meat. The meat came packaged in a large cube and Pascale had to use a large hook to rip smaller pieces off. With every piece she placed in front of a dog, their sounds got quieter and quieter. In a matter of minutes, the dogs were not barking at all, just eating in silence. There was one female dog who ate her piece behind a large safety cage. She was put in there because she was in heat and Pascale did not want to have any newborn pups. As they ate in silence, I walked around and quickly snapped several photos of the dogs and the surrounding area. It was a bright but overcast morning.

As we headed back to the high school, I thought about partaking in an expedition to the North Pole and/or another part of the north. I'm still young so I have plenty of time to explore the world. One place I really want to visit is Canadian Forces Station Alert, Canada's most northern outpost & supposed residence of Santa Claus. These thoughts also got me thinking about doing an expedition to the South Pole. One step at a time, I reminded myself.