Husky is a general name for a type of dog today used to pull sleds in northern regions, differentiated from other sled dog types by their fast pulling style. They are “an ever-changing cross-breed of the…fastest dogs”. The Alaskan Malamute, by contrast, is “the largest and most powerful” sled dog, and was used for heavier loads. Huskies are used in sled dog racing. In recent years companies have been marketing tourist treks with dog sleds for adventure travelers in snow regions as well. Huskies are also today kept as pets, and groups work to find new pet homes for retired racing and adventure trekking dogs.
The word Husky originated from the word referring to Arctic people in general, Eskimos, “…known as Huskies, a contraction of Huskimos, the pronunciation given to the word Eskimos by the English sailors of trading vessels.” Use of Husky is recorded from 1852 for dogs kept by Eskimo people.
Husky type dogs are energetic and athletic. They usually have a thick double coat. Huskies are known for pale blue eyes, although they may also have brown eyes. Huskies commonly have different colored eyes, called heterochromia of the eye. Huskies are more commonly affected with some degree of uveitis than other types of dogs.
Husky-type dogs were originally used to pull sleds, hunt large game, and guard villages in northern regions. A Canadian tour operation was in the news in February 2011 for slaughtering 100 Huskies because the sled tour business had dropped off after the winter Olympics.
“Many different types of dogs are commonly called huskies…the term husky is popularly used to refer to all manner of snow dogs or northern breeds as they are also known.”
Husky type dogs originally were landrace breeds kept by Arctic indigenous peoples. DNA analysis has found that that Huskies are one of the oldest types of dog, although one researcher “questioned the assignment of dogs to the ancient breed group, saying that any recent crossbreeding with wolves, as has happened with malamutes and Siberian huskies, could make a breed look primitive.”
Examples of these landraces in modern times have been selectively bred and registered with various kennel clubs as modern purebred breeds, including the Siberian Husky and Greenland Husky. The Sakhalin Husky is a Japanese sled dog related to the Japanese Spitz and Akita Inu. The Alaskan Husky is a type of sled dog found in Alaska (rather than Siberia or other Arctic areas) and the Mackenzie River Husky is a subtype referring to different dog populations in the Arctic and subarctic regions of Alaska and Canada.