Description of a Seppala Siberian Sleddog.

A rare working dog breed, the Seppala Siberian Sleddog is developed for the purpose of pulling a sled in cold country. It is a moderate-sized dog averaging 40 to 50 pounds (18 to 23 kg) weight and 22 or 23 inches (56 to 58 cm) height. Colours and markings are considered of little importance; eyes may be brown, blue or any combination of the two colours. Seppalas are active and energetic but very docile and trainable.

Seppalas show a primitive canine type, never having been bred or selected for beauty or for the show ring. The breed shares its ancestral base with the Siberian Husky and for half a century shared the same registry with that breed, but was bred always exclusively as a working sleddog breed in its own right and kept apart from show bloodlines. In the late 1990s, it was recognised by Canadian agricultural authorities as a new “evolving breed” and in 2002 a similar separate breed initiative was started in the USA.