The East Siberian Laika () is a Russian

laika Laika ( ; , ; – 3 November 1957) was a Soviet space dog who was one of the first animals in space and the first to orbit the Earth. A stray mongrel from the streets of Moscow, she flew aboard the Sputnik 2 spacecraft, launched into lo ...

spitz A spitz (; , in reference to the pointed muzzle) is a Dog type, type of domestic dog consisting of between 50 and 70 breeds depending on classification. There is no precise definition of 'spitz' but typically most spitz breeds have pricked ears ...

type, a

hunting dog A hunting dog is a Dog, canine that hunts with or for hunters. There are several different Dog type, types of hunting dog developed for various tasks and purposes. The major categories of hunting dog include hounds, terriers, cur type dogs, and ...

originating in parts of

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

east of the

Yenisei River The Yenisey or Yenisei ( ; , ) is the list of rivers by length, fifth-longest river system in the world, and the largest to drain into the Arctic Ocean. Rising in Mungaragiyn-gol in Mongolia, it follows a northerly course through Lake Baikal a ...

Description

Appearance

Males are , while females are on the smaller side at . Black and tan, with light patches (called karamis), grizzle, patched, ticked, white, grey, black, red and brown of all shades. There are two major types, the Evenki and the Irkutsk; other less important types are the Yakutia, Amur and Tofolar. These types vary in color and physique, as the East Siberian laika is still more of a diverse conglomerate breed than other recognized Russian laika. Physically the East Siberian Laika is somewhat rangy, nearly square in proportion, slightly higher at the withers than at the croup, robust in bone; head shape varies with the regional varieties. Ears are erect and triangular, the tail carried in a curve over the back. The coat is a medium long double coat with straight coarse guard hair and a soft thick undercoat.

Purpose

The East Siberian laika is a natural hunting dog used for a wide variety of small and large game, ranging from squirrels, marten, sable, and grouse to moose, bear, wild boar and mountain lions. They can also be used as

sled dogs A sled dog is a dog trained and used to pull a land vehicle in harness, most commonly a sled over snow. Sled dogs have been used in the Arctic for at least 8,000 years and, along with watercraft, were the only transportation in Arctic areas ...

Temperament

East Siberian laika are friendly to humans, have a pronounced hunting passion, as well as a strong, balanced character. For the breed, malevolence towards humans is not typical, nevertheless, in places of primordial breeding they were often used as a guard. Very well adapted for hard work in the harsh conditions of the mountainous Siberian taiga.

History

Prior to the 1940s, there were several aboriginal laika found throughout eastern Siberia used for a variety of purposes including

dog sledding A sled dog is a dog trained and used to pull a land vehicle in harness, most commonly a sled over snow. Sled dogs have been used in the Arctic for at least 8,000 years and, along with watercraft, were the only transportation in Arctic are ...

hunting Hunting is the Human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products (fur/hide (sk ...

and herding reindeer. During the Soviet era, there was a push to classify dogs by their specialization as well as merge similar local dogs into large geographic zones. Thus, many experts began to focus exclusively on laikas as pointing hunters and exclude herding and sled laika altogether. However, this proved problematic as the primitive nature of laikas resulted in less specialization than seen in other breeds and the shear scale of these regions made it difficult to produce a uniform dog within the zones. The breed designation was established at the All-Union Cynological Congress in 1947, using dogs from the

Lake Baikal Lake Baikal is a rift lake and the deepest lake in the world. It is situated in southern Siberia, Russia between the Federal subjects of Russia, federal subjects of Irkutsk Oblast, Irkutsk Oblasts of Russia, Oblast to the northwest and the Repu ...

region,

Irkutsk Oblast Irkutsk Oblast (; ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast), located in southeastern Siberia in the basins of the Angara River, Angara, Lena River, Lena, and Nizhnyaya Tunguska Rivers. The administrative center is ...

, Evenki Autonomous Okrug, as well as the

Amur River The Amur River () or Heilong River ( zh, s=黑龙江) is a perennial river in Northeast Asia, forming the natural border between the Russian Far East and Northeast China (historically the Outer and Inner Manchuria). The Amur ''proper'' is ...

basin and coastal regions. In 1949, standards for the East Siberian laika was approved, however systematic breeding would not begin until the 1970s in government kennels at

Irkutsk Irkutsk ( ; rus, Иркутск, p=ɪrˈkutsk; Buryat language, Buryat and , ''Erhüü'', ) is the largest city and administrative center of Irkutsk Oblast, Russia. With a population of 587,891 Irkutsk is the List of cities and towns in Russ ...

and in

Leningrad Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

. According to a 2011 geneticist study, East Siberian laika and non-barking Basenji dogs from Congo and Sudan belong to the Y-chromosome haplogroup HG9.

References

Additional sources

*Voilotchnikov, A.T. and Voilotchnikova, S.D. Hunting Laikas. Moscow: Forest Industry Publishing House 1982. *Voilotchnikov, A. T. and Voilotchnikova, S.D.Laikas and Hunting With Them . Moscow: Forest Industry Publishing House, 1972. *Maria Georgievna Dmitrieva-Sulim
''The Laika, and Hunting with Laika''
(''Лайка и охота с ней''). (2003, original edition 1911). Aquarium Book, . {{Authority control Dog breeds originating in Russia FCI breeds Hunting dogs Spitz breeds Dog breeds originating in the Soviet Union