The strain of wolf in their blood often makes them vicious, but in
general they respond to kindly treatment and may be petted like dogs
the world over, and sometimes the natives make house dogs of their
leaders.
The dogs of Newfoundland, such as Doctor Grenfell uses in his winter
journeys in going out from St. Anthony to visit patients, are still a
different type. These are usually big lop-eared kindly fellows, and
just as friendly as any dog in the world. The laws of Newfoundland
provide a heavy fine upon any one bringing upon the island a Labrador
dog that is related even remotely to the husky wolf dog.
The leader of the dog team is the best disciplined dog in the team but
not always by any means the "boss" dog, or bully, of the pack. Every
pack has its bully and generally, also, its under dog that all the
others pick upon. Eskimo dogs fight among themselves, but the packs
hold together as a gang against strange packs, and when sledges meet
each other on the trail the drivers must exert their utmost effort and
caution, and wield the whip freely, or there will be a fine mix-up,
resulting often in crippled animals.
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