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Breeds

Started by TurtleGirl on 19 Feb 2004, 20:15 UTC · 35 preserved posts

If mixing breeds is so frowned upon in the Balto world, WHY would Sylvie and Dixie be flirting with Steele.  ???  They'd have some weird looking puppies.

Does this mean that Balto is only picked on because he's part wolf?
I wouldn't say that mixing breeds with other dogs is frowned on in the Balto world. �It's the fact that Balto IS half wolf which makes him a target. �If he was half husky, half malamute/ half ect, no one would care. �He'd have an owner and probably the respect and affections of several dogs around Nome. �It appears for a variety of reasons wolves are frowned on and feared in Nome. �Having a half dog/ half wolf run around is too close for comfort.

Luckily, Steele passed over Dixie and Silvie's affections. �;)
I agree, hes only looked upon a WIERD animal because hes part wolf. If he was part another dog noone would see it as a threat, but after he saved the town, wolves might have a good chance of being liked more often. :)
I doubt anyone in Nome will start liking wolves more even though Nome was saved by a wolf hybrid. Balto was able to "prove" himself by getting the medicine to Nome and thus he gained most of everyone's trust and affection.  I'm sure the wolves feel the same animosity for the dogs of Nome, lol. I guess dogs and wolves look at each other like the USA and the USSR looked at each other during the cold war. :p
Quote (TurtleGirl @ Feb. 19 2004,3:15, pm)
If mixing breeds is so frowned upon in the Balto world, WHY would Sylvie and Dixie be flirting with Steele. �??? �They'd have some weird looking puppies.

Does this mean that Balto is only picked on because he's part wolf?

I do not know
Well, he is picked on because he's half wolf, and the other dogs just don't like his becuase he's half and half. Nikki, Kaltag, Starr, and Steele are all purebreds huskies, just like the other huskies in the movie. I really don't know what breed Dixie is, some mix...but Sylvie is a purebred Afghan(why there'd be an Afghan in Alaska in 1925, I don't know) LOL, as for me, it'd be nifty being part wolf...^_^
Actually, Steele and Nikki weren't huskies at all. �I'm certain that Steele was a malamute (he was too large to be just a husky). �I'm not sure what breed Nikki was, but it wasn't a husky. �He was just too short, too stocky, his ears were too small, ect. �He sorta reminds me of a chow, but he wasn't one of those either.  His breed was mentioned once (by Acanis perhaps?), but I've long forgotten the name.
I don't really consider Nikki, Kaltag and Star to be foes of Balto, being the only time they really trashed him was when they were with Steele in the alley; but they weren't really friends.
Quote (Silver Huskey @ June 07 2004,9:29, am)
His breed was mentioned once (by Acanis perhaps?), but I've long forgotten the name.

Yep that was me.. I always thought he was a Eurasia as were the other dogs. It is an old breed of spitz that is rare now days and the use and location of the animal was right for the time (heavy pulling and Russia).

Of course it is possible that the bulkier dogs were modled on huskies.. show dog siberians are bulkier than racing ones and actually look similar. Star and Kaltag were more likely to be modled on Alaskans huskies as they resemble the original Siberians more than modern ones do.
I had heard somewhere that Steele was an Alaskan malamute, owing to his size (of course he's been very much stylised, because malamutes don't have as well, thin a frame as Siberian huskies, and to me they don't look as fast, more big and bulky than anything else. Then again, following on from what Fluke said, racing dogs are sleeker). This makes it somewhat funny that Steele appears to be prejudiced against 'mongrels' (I mean, let's face it, the other dogs in Nome that we see or hear of all appear to be pretty purebred to me...even Dixie and Doc) if he wants Jenna, because of course then their offspring wouldn't be pedigrees!

I don't think Balto is the only one in Nome to be picked on, really. Yes...he is targeted because of his wolf heritage, that's the main thing...but what about Star? He may not exactly be bullied as much as Balto is, and somehow 'allowed' to fit in and to hang around with Kaltag and Nikki, but Kaltag still bullied him (until the end) and the other dogs don't seem to pay him much attention either.
I don't think it is about mongrels.. it was about Balto being part wolf that caused him to be bullied.

Star isn't exactly picked on much.. only Kaltag does that to him where as all the dogs were like that to Balto.
Yes, I agree that Balto's wolf heritage caused him to be bullied, but I had noticed that all of the other dogs appeared to be pedigrees, and the most popular ones (Steele, Jenna, Sylvia, Dixie, etc.) were in particular. :) Well...it was just a thought.

I thought Nikki didn't like Star much either? Or was he just siding with Kaltag as they appear to be best friends?
Quote (Absinthe @ June 09 2004,6:55, am)
I thought Nikki didn't like Star much either? Or was he just siding with Kaltag as they appear to be best friends?

Well Nikki did seem to ignor Star. Dumb question time, Was Star a Huskie? I thought He was.
Yeah, I think he was. He had a curly tail, and, well, he had other husky-like characteristics. I think he was the most stylised and 'toony' looking of the dogs though. If you had to think of him as a husky, he really doesn't seem like one. But I guess they decided to make him look like, well, a 'runt' of sorts. ^_^
I'd still say Nikki, Kaltag, and Starr, and maybe Steele were all huskies. But since it's a cartoon, then draw the huskies differently, so express character, details, etc. Nikki could be a mix, but i'd say it's just Universal wanting to make a 'fat' dog, well, to make it more funny for kids.
Thanks for clearing that up for Me You Two :) Though AlastiaWolf I think(after hearing It More than once)that Steel is a Malamute, And I always though Nikki was a Chow(But that could be wrong acording to what I've read in this thread)
Yeah, I'm pretty sure Nikki's a chow and that Kaltag and Star are huskies. Most movies make the characters look radically different so that they stand out as individuals.

I'm sure Star gets picked on because he's smaller than the others and probably younger. It still wouldn't surprise me if he was Kaltag's cousin or something. I really wish the writers had made the characters more 3-dimensional.
Heh, I always thought of Star as more of a dorky adolescent. ^_^ I mean, he doesn't have much of a deep voice, does he?
Quote (TurtleGirl @ June 11 2004,11:58, pm)
I really wish the writers had made the characters more 3-dimensional.

I thought the charactors in Balto were well done. More Info would have been nice, But to much would've made the movie drag
I am curious as to what breed Dixie is.
But as far as Malamutes and Huskies go, they are basically the same breed. One is just stockier built than the other.
I think that Dixie is a pomeranian (Tala will adopt her and love her forever lol).  But about all those sled dogs in the movie... did anyone notice that none of them looked like huskies? ???
Quote (Ania215 @ June 13 2004,3:22, pm)
about all those sled dogs in the movie... did anyone notice that none of them looked like huskies? ???

Good Point. I also heard Dixie was a (I know I'll spell This wrong) Lasa Apso is it possible
I don't know about all the dog breeds. But what surprises me is that only a few dogs were not of Husky or Malamute background. You would've thought there would've been a more diverse dog population.
Most sled dogs these days are crossbreeds of wolves and huskies, simply beause of their size and strength. Gives them greater range and less dogs can pull a sled ust as far, if not farther, than a full team of huskies.

And apparently Nikki is a Chow. Though that's just what I've heard. Dixie's breed is STILL unknown to me. =)
Quote (KhakiWolf @ June 15 2004,11:14, am)
Most sled dogs these days are crossbreeds of wolves and huskies, simply beause of their size and strength. Gives them greater range and less dogs can pull a sled ust as far, if not farther, than a full team of huskies.

And apparently Nikki is a Chow. Though that's just what I've heard. Dixie's breed is STILL unknown to me. =)

yeah... I agree with that

Dixie is a mixture of a Lahsa Apso and Pomeraian... Just trying to help out :O
Yeah I'd thought she was a Lahsa Apso, but no one really agreed with me (this was several years ago). I only figured that out because she looked a lot like Peg from Lady and the Tramp.
I didn't know Peg was a Lahsa Apso
She's a Lapso Apso too

your right Khaki!  I know so many breeds of dogs, that I can tell the difference between a coon hound and a beagle   :cool:
Dayami: Aren't coon hounds larger, and longer? And beagles are squatter and a bit shorter? Coon hounds are bred for running and hunting.

Also, to everyone who's been debating Steele's species, all the material I have on Balto supports the theory that he's an Alaskan Malemute. Most people don't know it's usually spelled with an E, instead of an A.
Well.. It depends  ... Malamutes *from my study* is larger than a husky

Khakiwulf: Yes, Beagles are bred for the same thing and smaller .. You're right

I was just setting that as an example
Yes, Malemutes are both larger than huskies, and they also have much longer, shaggier fur.
I'm not an expert on sled dogs (unlike Acanis, Ag and Coaster), but I'm pretty certain that most sled dogs aren't bred with wolves. �Not saying that it doesn't happen, but for the most part it would seem like a step backwards. �I mean wolves aren't fit for sled pulling. �Domestication, and being used to working with people and other dogs plays just as large a factor as size and strength. �Besides, most dogs are bred nowadays for preformace. �Alaskian huskies are smaller and faster than siberians, and are prefered over them for racing. �Which makes me suspect that they'd go for other breeds of dogs, and not wolves for that purpose.

As for huskies and malamutes (I've only seen malamute spelled with an A), they are different breds of dogs. �They are very similar, but NOT the same thing. �A few months ago, I found this comparsion online. �Hopefully it'll be a help to a few of you:

Artic Comparisons - Different Standards between the artic breeds
Thank You Silver Huskey, I found out some neat info :)
I knew most of that information of those dogs.....  :cool:
Quote (TurtleGirl @ Feb. 19 2004,3:15, pm)
If mixing breeds is so frowned upon in the Balto world, WHY would Sylvie and Dixie be flirting with Steele. �??? �They'd have some weird looking puppies.

Does this mean that Balto is only picked on because he's part wolf?

i dont think that mix breeding was frowned opon, but balto was frowned opon because he was half wolf