Northern Inuit Dog

Quick Take

• You've likely seen this breed on screen without realizing it, and the role it played says everything about what makes it unique. See the screen roles →
• Its friendliest trait is also its biggest liability, which is not what most people would expect to be a problem. Explore the pros and cons →
• Bathing this dog too often can actually damage it, and the reason why goes against what most owners would instinctively expect. See the grooming details →
• Its wolf-like looks come with a personality clash that catches first-time owners completely off guard. Discover the temperament →

Northern Inuit dogs were bred from dogs such as Siberian Huskies, German Shepherds, and Alaskan Malamutes to resemble a wolf while still retaining the positive traits associated with domesticated dogs. Northern Inuit Dogs can make a great family pet. They are very loyal and friendly. However, they can be a challenge to train for first-time owners, so this breed will do best with an experienced owner.

Ownership: 3 Pros and Cons

Size and Weight

These dogs are a medium- to large-sized breed. Males are typically significantly larger than females. They can weigh between 79 and 110 pounds and are between 23 and 32 inches tall. Females, on the other hand, generally weigh between 55 and 84 pounds and are between 23 and 28 inches tall.

Common Health Issues

Before you bring home a Northern Inuit dog, there are a few common health concerns this breed faces that you should know about. Reading about these health concerns can help ensure that you are ready to provide the highest levels of care possible for your dog.

Hip dysplasia is one health concern you should be aware of. Hip dysplasia is an inherited condition where a dog’s hip joint forms incorrectly, resulting in a malformation of the ball-and-socket joint that causes looseness and instability. This causes the bones to rub together, which gets painful over time. Dogs with hip dysplasia may develop a limp.

These dogs may also suffer from cryptorchidism. This is a condition in which one or both of the dog’s testes fail to drop. Dogs with this problem will need to be castrated, but they can then go on to live a normal life. This breed’s lifespan is between 12 and 14 years.

Another potential health concern for this breed is degenerative myelopathy. This progressive disease affects a dog’s spinal cord beginning around the time it is 8 to 14 years old. At first, dogs will seem to be uncoordinated and may appear to drag their feet. Eventually, degenerative myelopathy will progress to the point that a dog is unable to walk at all.

Temperament and Behavior

These intelligent Northern Inuit Dogs have a very loyal and friendly personality. These traits make this breed a great option for a family, but they will form a strong bond with their main human.

However, owners will need to make sure that their dog’s higher activity needs are met, or the dogs could engage in destructive behaviors. This breed can be a bit strong-willed, so they will do best with an experienced owner who knows how to properly train them.

Care

Before planning how you’ll care for your Northern Inuit Dog, you should think about the nutritional needs, common health problems, temperament, and other unique characteristics of this breed.

Best Dog Food

Many of these dogs have a sensitive stomach, so choosing a high-quality dog food is essential. Many dogs do well with kibble from a reputable manufacturer that contains a good amount of proteins and fats. You may also choose to feed them a raw diet. Whichever option you select, be sure to stay away from foods that are too sugary, as these could be bad for their health.

Very young dogs (under the age of six months) have smaller stomachs and will need to eat between three and four times every day. After a puppy is six months old, it should be fine transitioning to eating about twice a day.

Maintenance and Grooming

Northern Inuit dogs have a double coat and are very heavy shedders, particularly during their shedding seasons in the fall and spring. During these shedding seasons, you will need to brush your dog every day to reduce the amount of hair that is left around your home. During other times in the year, brushing your dog a few times a week should be sufficient.

The dog should not be bathed too frequently. Its coat is designed to repel dirt, and bathing it too often could cause it to lose these properties.

In addition to brushing your dog, be sure to brush its teeth, clean its ears, and trim its nails regularly.

Training

These dogs can be a challenge to train. They do best with an experienced trainer who has worked with the breed before. Whether training your dog yourself or looking for obedience training classes near you, look for options that use positive reinforcement. This breed will not respond well to training methods that use negative reinforcement.

Socialization from an early age is also very important with this breed. This will help your dog learn how to interact with people and other pets. It will also help it learn how to act in different situations.

Exercise

These Northern Inuit Dogs are an active breed, but don’t need as much exercise as some other breeds. You should strive to give your dog around 45 minutes to an hour of exercise each day, ideally split across two walks. Playing with your dog inside or in the backyard can also help fulfill its exercise needs.

Puppies

There are not many breeders in North America that offer Northern Inuit puppies. For this reason, you may find long waiting lists to bring home a puppy. Also, unless a breeder lives near you, be prepared to arrange to transport a new puppy to your home.

Always choose a reputable breeder and avoid adopting a puppy from a puppy mill. Puppy mills do not provide the same level of care to their dogs and don’t take health concerns or temperament into account when breeding.

Before you bring a dog home, make sure your home is ready. Remove anything potentially dangerous to a puppy from your home. Purchase food and all the other necessary supplies that your dog will need, so you have everything ready when you bring home your new dog.

Children

When trained and socialized from an early age, these dogs can make excellent pets for a family with children. They are very friendly and loving dogs who do well with children. Even though they are tolerant of children, you should always closely supervise your children when they are around this breed or any other dog breed. This will reduce the chances of an accidental injury to either the dog or the child.

Similar Dogs

Tamaskans, Siberian Huskies, and Alaskan Malamutes are three dog breeds that have some things in common with Northern Inuit Dogs.

• Tamaskan: Both Northern Inuit Dogs and Tamaskans are crossbreeds of mixed Arctic sled dog heritage. Both breeds are affectionate, sensitive, and make good pets for families with children.
• Siberian Husky: Siberian Huskies and Northern Inuit Dogs both have a strong impulse to roam. They are also both family-friendly breeds. However, a Northern Inuit Dog is larger in size than a Siberian Husky. Male Northern Inuit Dogs typically weigh between 79 and 110 pounds, while male Siberian Huskies weigh between 45 and 60 pounds.
• Alaskan Malamute: Both breeds are also pretty heavy shedders. Alaskan Malamutes are usually a bit more playful and social than Northern Inuit Dogs.

Famous

Due to their wolf-like appearance, these dogs have been used to portray wolves in various TV shows and movies. Most famously, this breed was used to play young Direwolves in Season 1 of HBO’s Game of Thrones series. These Northern Inuit Dogs were also used to play Rollo in the Outlander series from Starz.