Life with Siberian Huskies
The Journey is more important than the destination
The Seppalas
This post is only about my opinions based on what I’ve seen. You can believe it or not, but the point of my blog is to show my own journey and what I’ve gleaned from this adventure with these dogs.
I truly believe that the Seppalas of high percentage realize that they are a cut above their Siberian cousins. Yes, they are all purebred Siberians. The difference between the Sepps and the generic is line traits is easy to see once you have both to compare.
So what separate’s them? First, you have to have some of the histories to understand that. The Seppala line dogs are the direct descendants of those very same dogs that Leonhard Seppala ran in the great serum run to Nome in 1925. They don’t look quite the same as 100 years ago. These dogs have evolved over time, but for those of us that want to preserve the line that’s okay. They evolve and with work also improve. If you’ve read my post on how performance is also a genetic trait according to me. Then you get my drift.
All Siberians for the most part come from the first 20-30 dogs Leonhard bred and sent to Elizabeth Ricker in Poland Spring Maine. They are in fact great dogs, and you can trace everyone of them back to these original dogs. The true high percentage Sepps have a certain look. They have certain attitude, and they have a work ethic not matched by their watered down brethren.
To me the telling factor is in the eyes. You can see a distinct difference when you lock eyes with a true Sepp and a generic Siberian. The intelligence in the gaze says it all. These dogs can see into your soul. They judge if you are worthy. And they recognize each other without a doubt in my mind. If you put 20 dogs together the Sepps seem to know who the other Sepps are. They seem to know they are different, and yes they think they are special. I can’t argue with that, they are a cut above if you care about performance.
I live with 3 other non-sepps and they are fantastic dogs. I would never say any Siberian is sub-par. They are great companions and workers. But the next level is true Seppalas. They are the real deal, they are a cut above in temperament, work, and companionship. They have a down side and that is the never ending need to work. They are so driven to work that its more than most people can deal with. If you can’t build your life around their needs, you should not apply.
This line has been fading for years now. The gene pool is shrinking and its difficult to breed and keep the COI under control. We do the best we can with what we have. It would be a real shame to lose these dogs in their pure form. It may be inevitable but we will keep on trying as long as we can. To do less would be a sin to these magnificent dogs. The dogs that all Siberians came from, the originals. The dogs that started it all.
My partner Hannah Lucas in Caribou Main does the real work. She races and breeds the dogs. I just do what I can to help. Together we work to continue this amazing line of dogs.
Life with Siberian Huskies 
They definitely are a breed above others. It’s the facial features and in the eyes. Oh those eyes and the ears which set them apart from their sib relatives. It will be my great joy to follow the life and exploits of Ivan the magnificent.
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