Sirius Sledge Patrol, Denmark Navy Dogsled Team, Patrols Greenland Wilderness (PHOTOS)

From the January 2012 issue of National Geographic:

For more than 60 years, Sirius has been entrusted with patrolling northeast Greenland's 8,699-mile coast. The 12-man team visits each inch of the cracked and ragged coastline at least once every five years, formally supporting Danish sovereignty under international conventions. Sirius is the world's only military dogsled patrol. The job -- low pay, no holidays -- entails journeying with a partner and a dog team for 26 months and more than 5,000 miles. Injuries are virtually inevitable, as are hunger and exhaustion and frostbite. Team members are stalked by polar bears. There's no chance to visit family or friends, no opportunity to go on a date. They never even get to see a tree.

Images courtesy of Fritz Hoffman and National Geographic. Captions courtesy of National Geographic. Images can be seen in the January 2012 issue of National Geographic magazine, on newsstands now.

Comments

[smarty2613]

03:49 PM on 05/01/2012

Are they sure the dogs are not adoptable? So for all of their hard work, the dogs get shot when they can no longer work? Is there not anything more humane to be done for them?

[lora fielder]

08:09 AM on 03/21/2012

Ok, this has to stop right now. People let's not let this happen. Can you believe in this day and age. Sirius has served our country. And this is the thank you they get. I'm so dumbfounded. My god stop this right now. Miss Lora

[lora fielder]

07:58 AM on 03/21/2012

Please get this message to the right people. I can't believe what I just read regarding are military dogsled team Sirius. I'm talking about killing the dogs. Why would you put down dogs that you've trained and loved. There has got to be another way. If they can't be adopted then find a place where you can let them live out the rest of there lives in peace and safety. Please reconsider, and stop killing great gifted dogs. Sincerely, Miss Lora A Fielder

[Ems9]

04:18 PM on 01/09/2012

Documentary and movie, please. Beautiful men and mwds.

[fetchmasters]

03:11 PM on 01/09/2012

"The job -- low pay, no holidays -- entails journeying with a partner and a dog team for 26 months and more than 5,000 miles. Injuries are virtually inevitable, as are hunger and exhaustion and frostbite. Team members are stalked by polar bears."

And who accompanies man into these conditions? DOGS, THAT'S WHO! Can I get an "Amen"? http://www.fetchmasters.com

[Chad Wheeler]

05:12 PM on 01/09/2012

I dunno if the dogs themselves would give you an "Amen."

From the article:

"Rasmus knew that Armstrong was nearing the end of his career. There's no room at the Sirius base for retired dogs. And the dogs—as much wolf as pet—cannot be adopted. They must be euthanized, an act the patrollers do themselves with a pistol. Both Rasmus and Jesper say it's the most difficult part of the job."

[lora fielder]

08:02 AM on 03/21/2012

I agree, can you believe this. It took my breath away

[Moti]

10:44 PM on 01/08/2012

What this story doesn't mention is the sterling work done on the cutting edge of photographic technology displayed in the lead photo for this article. I am, obviously, talking about Nat Geo's Dog-Buttcam.

[karen lyons kalmenson]

01:29 PM on 01/09/2012

cheeky;-D

[First Blast]

09:16 PM on 01/08/2012

Denmark has a military? They may as well be using guns that have a flag with the word bang on it when the trigger is pulled because they aren't going to beat anybody.

[stemloop]

12:34 AM on 01/09/2012

Just goes to show that militaries are only one aspect of foreign policy, contingent on others for their usefulness. But, they do things other foreign policy instruments cannot, like maintain security and rule of law where civil society ends, meet treaty obligations, and so on.

[Silverfern]

01:01 AM on 01/09/2012

America is responsible for 50% of all global military spending. It does not really matter what the rest of us nations spend on military. And Romney thinks you should spend more. Meanwhile the infrastructure is falling apart, only a few cities have decent public transport. Then there is education and health. What you guys spend on your national security is a threat to your national security. Enjoy having your superpower.

[First Blast]

01:43 AM on 01/09/2012

Well, if military spending creates jobs for Americans then it isn't all bad. It does need to be balanced out with other spending and economic trends though.

[frank day]

09:05 PM on 01/08/2012

"Watch out where the Huskies go, don't you eat that yellow snow" Zappa

[karen lyons kalmenson]

01:29 PM on 01/09/2012

phi zappa krappa;-D

[frank day]

09:00 PM on 01/08/2012

This was my dream when I was 17.

[Meggie]

08:59 PM on 01/08/2012

Cool Greenland! I guessed Finland.

[Doobie Snacks]

07:04 PM on 01/08/2012

These kinds of dogs are naturally at home in these extreme weather conditions so I don't think them being left outside is a big deal at all. However, I have a problem with a lot of the other aspects of dog sleds.
Here is a great little site with quite a lot of information on abuse from mushers.
http://www.helpsleddogs.org/

[Paul Stacey]

02:02 PM on 01/09/2012

Lived in the North for a couple of years in the early seventies, a couple of places along the McKenzie river. At that time, just about every house was home to a couple of dog teams. The overwhelming majority of dogs were treated very well indeed, and they obviously loved their work. This may have changed now that working dogs have been mostly replaced by skidoos, and competition now their main raison d'etre, but it just doesn't make sense to mistreat one's team. Good sled dogs are the closest domesticated dog to wolves (in fact, are often deliberately bred with wolves) and are big, strong and independent minded (you don't WANT blindly loyal dogs on a sled team, you'll wind up going through the ice). Treated right, they are shy (to strangers), relatively gentle beings, lovely, lovely dogs. Treat 'em wrong, and you've an angry wolf-pack on your hands, something that is a mite inconvenient at 40 below in the middle of nowhere.

[Liberal Rampage]

06:57 PM on 01/08/2012

You are too American about it. Dogs are not humans, that means they are not so weak and pathetic either.

[riverdivine]

11:25 PM on 01/08/2012

You got that right. Humans are likely the most pathetic and weak of all the animals. Look at how they treat their dogs.

[stemloop]

07:01 PM on 01/08/2012

the dogs love it, that's what artificial selection has bred them for. they have been doing this in the arctic for thousands of years.

[riverdivine]

11:15 PM on 01/08/2012

They are one step down from wolves, and wolves naturally huddle close together in dens, in packs, and stay warm this way. They don't sleep out in the middle of blizzard conditions, isolated, and at the end of a chain. To say that dogs, or ANY animals, "love" enduring freezing weather makes no sense.

[Retromancer]

06:24 PM on 01/08/2012

Ten bucks says they're the BEST military dog sled team in the world.

[PowerPridePinstripes]

06:20 PM on 01/08/2012

ONLY 5 pics of beautiful dogs then the twin cover???! --- boooo!

[TheRubberRoomHotel]

06:18 PM on 01/08/2012

May be the only one now but Joee Redington the son of Iditarod Sled Dog Race Joe Redington drove dogs for the army years ago, he even appeared as a guest on the TV game show "What's My Line" in the late 60's.