During the 1950s and 1960s the

Soviet space program The Soviet space program () was the state space program of the Soviet Union, active from 1951 until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. Contrary to its competitors (NASA in the United States, the European Space Agency in Western Euro ...

used

dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the gray wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it was selectively bred from a population of wolves during the Late Pleistocene by hunter-gatherers. ...

s for

sub-orbital A sub-orbital spaceflight is a spaceflight in which the spacecraft reaches outer space, but its trajectory intersects the surface of the gravitating body from which it was launched. Hence, it will not complete one orbital revolution, will no ...

and orbital space flights to determine whether human spaceflight was feasible. The Soviet space program typically used female dogs due to their anatomical compatibility with the spacesuit. Similarly, they used mix-breed dogs due to their apparent hardiness. In this period, the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

launched missions with passenger slots for at least 57 dogs. Some dogs flew more than once. Most survived; those that died were lost mostly through technical failures, according to the parameters of the test. Laika was an exception and was expected to die during her Earth-orbiting 3 November 1957

Sputnik 2 Sputnik 2 (, , ''Satellite 2'', or Prosteyshiy Sputnik 2 (PS-2, , ''Simplest Satellite 2'', launched on 3 November 1957, was the second spacecraft launched into Earth orbit, and the first to carry an animal into orbit, a Soviet space dog named ...

Training

Dogs were the preferred animal for the experiments because scientists felt dogs were well suited to endure long periods of inactivity. As part of their training, they were confined in small boxes for 15–20 days at a time. Stray dogs, rather than animals accustomed to living in a house, were chosen because the scientists felt they would be able to tolerate the rigorous and extreme stresses of space flight better than other dogs. Female dogs were used because of their temperament and because the suit the dogs wore in order to collect urine and feces was equipped with a special device, designed to work only with females.Canine Nation (3 November 2002)
A Few Facts about Russian Space Dogs
via dogsinthenews.com.Chris Dubbs (2003
''Space Dogs: Pioneers of Space Travel''
iUniverse, Their training included standing still for long periods of time, wearing

space suit A space suit (or spacesuit) is an environmental suit used for protection from the harsh environment of outer space, mainly from its vacuum as a highly specialized pressure suit, but also its temperature extremes, as well as radiation and ...

s, being placed in simulators that acted like a rocket during launch, riding in

centrifuge A centrifuge is a device that uses centrifugal force to subject a specimen to a specified constant force - for example, to separate various components of a fluid. This is achieved by spinning the fluid at high speed within a container, thereby ...

s that simulated the high acceleration of a rocket launch and being kept in progressively smaller cages to prepare them for the confines of the space module. Dogs that flew in orbit were fed a nutritious jelly-like protein. This was high in fiber and assisted the dogs to defecate during long periods of time while in their small space module. More than 60% of dogs to enter space were reportedly suffering from

constipation Constipation is a bowel dysfunction that makes bowel movements infrequent or hard to pass. The Human feces, stool is often hard and dry. Other symptoms may include abdominal pain, bloating, and feeling as if one has not completely passed the ...

and

gallstone A gallstone is a stone formed within the gallbladder from precipitated bile components. The term cholelithiasis may refer to the presence of gallstones or to any disease caused by gallstones, and choledocholithiasis refers to the presence of ...

s on arrival back to base.

Sub-orbital flights

Dogs were flown to an altitude of on board 15 scientific flights on R-1 rockets (itself a copy of the German V-2) from 1951 to 1956. The dogs wore pressure suits with

acrylic glass Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) is a synthetic polymer derived from methyl methacrylate. It is a transparent thermoplastic, used as an engineering plastic. PMMA is also known as acrylic, acrylic glass, as well as by the trade names and bran ...

bubble helmets. From 1957 to 1960, 11 flights with dogs were made on the R-2A series (developed from the R-1 missile) which flew to about . Three flights were made to an altitude of about on R-5A rockets in 1958. In the R-2 and R-5 rockets, the dogs were contained in a pressured cabin.

Dezik, Tsygan, and Lisa-1

Dezik (Дезик) and Tsygan (Цыган, "Gypsy") were the first dogs to make a sub-orbital flight and successfully recovered on 22 July 1951. Both dogs were recovered unharmed after travelling to a maximum altitude of . Dezik made another sub-orbital flight in 1951 with the first dog named Lisa (Лиса, "Fox"), although neither survived because the parachute failed to deploy. After the death of Dezik, Tsygan was adopted as a pet by Soviet physicist

Anatoli Blagonravov Anatoly Arkadevich Blagonravov (; – 4 February 1975) was a Soviet engineer in the Soviet space program and later a diplomat. He represented the Soviet Union on the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS). He work ...

Lisa-2 and Ryzhik

Lisa-2 (Лиса, "Fox" or "Vixen") and Ryzhik (Рыжик, "Ginger" (red-haired)) flew to an altitude of on 2 June 1954.

Smelaya and Malyshka

Smelaya (Смелая, "Brave" or "Courageous", ''fem.'') was due to make a flight in September but ran away the day before the launch. She was found the next day and went on to make a successful flight with a dog named Malyshka (Малышка, "Baby"). They both crashed after the rocket failed to deploy a parachute, and were found the next day by the recovery team.

Bobik and ZIB

Bobik (Бобик, common Russian name for a small dog) ran away just days before his flight was scheduled to take place on 15 September 1961. A replacement named ZIB (ЗИБ, a Russian acronym for ''"Substitute for Missing Bobik"'', "Замена Исчезнувшему Бобику" ''Zamena Ischeznuvshemu Bobiku''), who was an untrained street dog found running around the barracks, was quickly located and made a successful flight to 100 km and back.

Otvazhnaya and Snezhinka

Otvazhnaya (Отважная, "brave one", ''fem.'') made a flight on 2 July 1959 along with a rabbit named Marfusha (Марфуша, "little Martha") and another dog named Snezhinka (Снежинка, "Snowflake"). She went on to make 5 other flights between 1959 and 1960.

Albina and Tsyganka

Albina (Альбина) and Tsyganka (Цыганка, "Gypsy girl") made a flight on June 7, 1958, and were both ejected out of their capsule at an altitude of and landed safely. Albina was one of the dogs shortlisted for

, but never flew in orbit.

Damka and Krasavka

Damka (Дамка, "queen of checkers") and Krasavka (Красавка, "little beauty" or "Belladonna") were to make an orbital flight on 22 December 1960 as a part of the

Vostok programme The Vostok programme ( ; rus, Восток, p=vɐˈstok, a=ru-восток.ogg, t=East) was a Soviet human spaceflight project to put the first Soviet cosmonauts into low Earth orbit and return them safely. Competing with the United States P ...

which also included mice.Kate Baklitskaya (1 May 2013
The remarkable (and censored) Siberian adventure of stray dog cosmonauts Comet and Shutka
Siberiantimes.com. Retrieved on 14 May 2013. However their mission was marked by a string of equipment failures. The upper-stage rocket failed and the craft re-entered the atmosphere after reaching a sub-orbital apogee of . In the event of unscheduled return to the surface, the craft was to eject the dogs and self-destruct, but the ejection seat failed and the primary destruct mechanism shorted out. The animals were thus still in the intact capsule when it returned to the surface. The backup self-destruct mechanism was set to a 60-hour timer, so a team was quickly sent out to locate and recover the capsule. Although the capsule was reached in deep snow on the first day, there was insufficient remaining daylight to disarm the self-destruct mechanism and open the capsule. The team could only report that the window was frosted over in the degree temperatures and no signs of life were detected. On the second day, however, the dogs were heard barking as the capsule was opened. The dogs were wrapped in sheepskin coats and flown to Moscow alive, though all the mice aboard the capsule were found dead because of the cold. Damka was also known as Shutka (Шутка, "Joke") or Zhemchuzhnaya (Жемчужная, "Pearly") and Krasavka was also known as Kometka (Кометка, "Little Comet") or Zhulka (Жулька, "Cheater"). After this incident Krasavka was adopted by Oleg Gazenko, a leading Soviet scientist working with animals used in space flights. She went on to have puppies and continued living with Gazenko and his family until her death 14 years later. After the incident

Sergey Korolyov Sergei Pavlovich Korolev (14 January 1966) was the lead Soviet rocket engineer and spacecraft designer during the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union in the 1950s and 1960s. He invented the R-7 Rocket, Sputnik 1, and w ...

, who was the designer of the rocket, wanted to make the story public, but was prevented from doing so by state censorship.

Bars and Lisichka

Bars (Барс (''pron.'' "Barss"); "

snow leopard The snow leopard (''Panthera uncia'') is a species of large cat in the genus ''Panthera'' of the family Felidae. The species is native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List because ...

") and Lisichka (Лисичка, "little fox") were also on a mission to orbit as a part of the

, but died after their rocket exploded 28.5 seconds into the launch on 28 July 1960. Bars was also known as Chayka (Чайка, "

seagull Gulls, or colloquially seagulls, are seabirds of the subfamily Larinae. They are most closely related to terns and skimmers, distantly related to auks, and even more distantly related to waders. Until the 21st century, most gulls were placed ...

"). Other dogs that flew on sub-orbital flights include Dymka (Дымка, "smoky"), Modnitsa (Модница, "fashionista") and Kozyavka (Козявка, "booger"). At least four other dogs flew in September 1961, and two or more were lost.

Orbital flights

Laika

On 3 November 1957 Laika (Лайка, "barker") flew to space on

to become the first Earth-born creature (other than microbes) to orbit the planet. Many sub-orbital flights with animal passengers had already been to space, such as the 1949 mission of the rhesus macaque Albert II. Laika was also known as Zhuchka (Жучка, "Little Bug") and Limonchik (Лимончик, "Little Lemon"). The American media dubbed her "Muttnik", making a

play on words Word play or wordplay (also: play-on-words) is a literary technique and a form of wit in which words used become the main subject of the work, primarily for the purpose of intended effect or amusement. Examples of word play include puns, phone ...

for the canine follow-on to the first orbital mission,

Sputnik Sputnik 1 (, , ''Satellite 1''), sometimes referred to as simply Sputnik, was the first artificial Earth satellite. It was launched into an elliptical low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957 as part of the Soviet space progra ...

. She died between five and seven hours into the flight from stress and overheating. Laika's true cause of death was not made public until October 2002; officials previously gave reports that she died when the oxygen supply ran out. At a Moscow press conference in 1998 Oleg Gazenko, a senior Soviet scientist involved in the project, stated "The more time passes, the more I'm sorry about it. We did not learn enough from the mission to justify the death of the dog...".

Belka and Strelka

Belka (Белка, literally, "

squirrel Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae (), a family that includes small or medium-sized rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrel ...

", or alternatively "Whitey") and Strelka (Стрелка, "little arrow") spent a day in space aboard

Korabl-Sputnik 2 Korabl-Sputnik 2 (), also known as Sputnik 5 in the West, was a Soviet artificial satellite, and the third test flight of the Vostok spacecraft. It was the first spaceflight to send animals into orbit and return them safely back to Earth, inc ...

(Sputnik 5) on 19 August 1960 before safely returning to Earth. They are the first higher living organisms to survive orbit in outer space. They were accompanied by a grey rabbit, 42 mice, two rats, flies and several plants and fungi. All passengers survived. They were the first Earth-born creatures to go into orbit and return alive, and gave birth to many descendants.

Pchyolka and Mushka

Pchyolka (Пчёлка, "little bee") and Mushka (Мушка, "little fly") spent a day in orbit on 1 December 1960 on board Korabl-Sputnik-3 (Sputnik 6) with "other animals", plants and insects. Due to a reentry error when the

retrorocket A retrorocket (short for ''retrograde rocket'') is a rocket engine providing thrust opposing the motion of a vehicle, thereby causing it to decelerate. They have mostly been used in spacecraft, with more limited use in short-runway aircraft land ...

s failed to shut off when planned, their spacecraft was intentionally destroyed by remote self-destruct to prevent foreign powers from inspecting the capsule. Mushka was one of the three dogs trained for

and was used during ground tests. She did not fly on Sputnik 2 because she refused to eat properly.

Chernushka

Chernushka (Чернушка, "Blackie") made one orbit on board Korabl-Sputnik-4 (Sputnik 9) on 9 March 1961 with a cosmonaut dummy (whom Soviet officials nicknamed Ivan Ivanovich),

mice A mouse (: mice) is a small rodent. Characteristically, mice are known to have a pointed snout, small rounded ears, a body-length scaly tail, and a high breeding rate. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse (''Mus musculus' ...

and a

guinea pig The guinea pig or domestic guinea pig (''Cavia porcellus''), also known as the cavy or domestic cavy ( ), is a species of rodent belonging to the genus ''Cavia'', family Caviidae. Animal fancy, Breeders tend to use the name "cavy" for the ani ...

. The dummy was ejected out of the capsule during re-entry and made a soft landing using a parachute. Chernushka was recovered unharmed inside the capsule.

Zvyozdochka

Zvyozdochka (Zvezdochka, Звёздочка, "starlet" SP-2000-4408
Part 1 (page 1-500)Part 2 (page 501-1011)
), who was named by

Yuri Gagarin Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin; Gagarin's first name is sometimes transliterated as ''Yuriy'', ''Youri'', or ''Yury''. (9 March 1934 – 27 March 1968) was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut who, aboard the first successful Human spaceflight, crewed sp ...

, made one orbit on board Korabl-Sputnik 5 on 25 March 1961 with a wooden cosmonaut dummy, and other animals in the final practice flight before Gagarin's historic flight on 12 April. Again, the dummy was ejected out of the capsule while Zvezdochka remained inside. Both were recovered successfully.

Veterok and Ugolyok

Veterok (Ветерок, "light breeze") and Ugolyok (Уголёк, "ember") were launched on 22 February 1966 on board Cosmos 110, and spent 21 days in orbit before landing on 16 March. This spaceflight of record-breaking duration was not surpassed by humans until Soyuz 11 in June 1971 and still stands as the longest space flight by dogs. The two dogs showed signs of "cardiovascular deconditioning" with dehydration, weight loss, loss of muscle and coordination and took several weeks to fully recover, though they showed no long-term issues.

References

External links

A book chapter about biological experiments in geophysical rockets

''One Small Step: The Story of the Space Chimps'', Official Documentary Site
Documentary features rare footage of Laika and others. {{Domestic dog Soviet dogs Individual dogs Sputnik Crewed space program of the Soviet Union Space dogs Space dogs Animal testing in the Soviet Union Dogs in human culture Dogs in the Soviet Union