The feeding of sledge dogs on Antarctic expeditions

Abstract

I. The diets of sledge dogs at a British Antarctic sledging base were studied both at base and during sledge journeys, and samples of the diets and the relevant faeces were analysed. Changes in weight were related to calorie intakes. 2. The calorific requirements of sledge dogs were found to vary considerably from dog to dog and depended on the activity in which the dogs were involved. Whereas 2500 kcal/dog daily were just sufficient to maintain the bodyweight of a completely idle dog, 5000 kcal/dog were insufficient to maintain the body-weight of a dog pulling a heavy sledge over long distances. 3. Seal meat was found to be the most beneficial and most satisfactorily absorbed diet. The artificial diets, pemmican and Nutrican, were adequate to maintain body-weight if sufficient supplies were available to give dogs as much as twice the routine ration, but were uneconomical in that large quantities of nutrients were passed in the faeces.Much can be expected of a sledge dog if it is adequately fed and properly trained. Dog transport has been used successfully by trappers and explorers in the Arctic for centuries. In the Antarctic where local game is not so readily available the problems of maintaining dogs on expeditions have been more serious and the production of an artificial sledging diet that is both nutritious and economical has been a matter of some importance.The diet of sledge dogs in Antarctica has been studied by Taylor, Worden & Waterhouse (1959) and Wyatt (1963). It was shown that pemmican, a concentrated diet consisting of beef meal and fat made by Bovril Limited, was inadequate to maintain body-weight during sledging journeys when used in the standard ration of I lb (0.45 kg)/dog daily. The pemmican also provoked severe diarrhoea and considerable amounts of nutrients were lost in the stools. A modified form of pemmican (Nutrican) was made by Bob Martin Limited and contained larger quantities of carbohydrate than the original pemmican. Nutrican caused less diarrhoea and diminished the loss of nutrients in the stools, but body-weights were not maintained on a ration of I Ib/day. Taylor et al. (1959) showed that the energy expenditure of sledge dogs is high, and Wyatt (1963) estimated that a dog resting at base expended 2500-3000 kcallday, which during sledge journeys rose to 3800-4600 kcallday.The experiments now described were designed to compare a modified form of Nutrican with the original Nutrican, with pemmican and with seal meat, and by comparing weight changes and performances of dogs on various quantities of the diet to make some estimate of their energy expenditure and nutritional requirements.

Muscle plasticity of Inuit sled dogs in Greenland

“…During winter, the daily energy budget of the dogs in Qaanaaq (11,800 kJ; N.G. and J.M.S., unpublished data) was balanced, but, it was at the lower margins of the range of values given by Orr (Orr, 1966), i.e. between 10,500 kJ day -1 for a non-working dog and 21,000 kJ day -1 for working sled dogs.…”

Why marathon migrants get away with high metabolic ceilings: towards an ecology of physiological restraint

“…The energy expenditure of the sled dogs that in 1911/12 successfully pulled the team of Roald Amundsen from the Antarctic rim to the South Pole and back over a period of 97 days was reconstructed to be approximately 21MJday -1 (Orr, 1966;Pugh, 1972;Campbell and Donaldson, 1981). Although this is a high level, Alaskan sled dogs racing for 70h in bitter cold conditions expended twice that much [47MJday -1 (Hinchcliff et al, 1997)].…”

Maintenance energy requirements of odor detection, explosive detection and human detection working dogs

“…In comparison, sled dogs who were more active and exposed to low environmental temperatures had a much higher requirement with MER ranging from to per day (Orr, 1966; Hinchcliff et al, 1997). …”