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Alaskan Malamute

loyal / playful / affectionate
Working Group >>

Average sizes and life
expectancy of the breed.

Height

25 inches (male)

23 inches (female)

Weight

85 pounds (male)

75 pounds (female)

Life Expectancy

10-14 years

Breed Traits & Characteristics

Affectionate With Family
  • Independent Lovey-Dovey
    60% 60%
How affectionate a breed is likely to be with family members, or other people he knows well. Some breeds can be aloof with everyone but their owner, while other breeds treat everyone they know like their best friend.
Good With Young Children
  • Not Recommended Good With Children
    60% 60%
A breed's level of tolerance and patience with childrens' behavior, and overall family-friendly nature. Dogs should always be supervised around young children, or children of any age who have little exposure to dogs.
GOOD WITH OTHER DOGS
  • Not Recommended Good With Other Dogs
    60% 60%
How generally friendly a breed is towards other dogs. Dogs should always be supervised for interactions and introductions with other dogs, but some breeds are innately more likely to get along with other dogs, both at home and in public.

Shedding Level

How much fur and hair you can expect the breed to leave behind. Breeds with high shedding will need to be brushed more frequently, are more likely to trigger certain types of allergies, and are more likely to require more consistent vacuuming and lint-rolling.

Coat Grooming Frequency

How frequently a breed requires bathing, brushing, trimming, or other kinds of coat maintenance. Consider how much time, patience, and budget you have for this type of care when looking at the grooming effort needed. All breeds require regular nail trimming.

Drooling Level

How drool-prone a breed tends to be. If you're a neat freak, dogs that can leave ropes of slobber on your arm or big wet spots on your clothes may not be the right choice for you.

Coat Type

Corded
Curly
Double
Hairless
Rough
Silky
Smooth
Wavy
Wiry
Canine coats come in many different types, depending on the breed's purpose. Each coat type comes with different grooming needs, allergen potential, and shedding level. You may also just prefer the look or feel of certain coat types over others when choosing a family pet.

Coat Length

Long
Medium
Short
How long the breed's coat is expected to be. Some long-haired breeds can be trimmed short, but this will require additional upkeep to maintain.

Openness To Strangers

How welcoming a breed is likely to be towards strangers. Some breeds will be reserved or cautious around all strangers, regardless of the location, while other breeds will be happy to meet a new human whenever one is around!

Playfulness Level

How enthusiastic about play a breed is likely to be, even past the age of puppyhood. Some breeds will continue wanting to play tug-of-war or fetch well into their adult years, while others will be happy to just relax on the couch with you most of the time.

Watchdog/Protective Nature

A breed's tendency to alert you that strangers are around. These breeds are more likely to react to any potential threat, whether it's the mailman or a squirrel outside the window. These breeds are likely to warm to strangers who enter the house and are accepted by their family.

Adaptability Level

How easily a breed handles change. This can include changes in living conditions, noise, weather, daily schedule, and other variations in day-to-day life.

Trainability Level

How easy it will be to train your dog, and how willing your dog will be to learn new things. Some breeds just want to make their owner proud, while others prefer to do what they want, when they want to, wherever they want!

Energy Level

The amount of exercise and mental stimulation a breed needs. High energy breeds are ready to go and eager for their next adventure. They'll spend their time running, jumping, and playing throughout the day. Low energy breeds are like couch potatoes - they're happy to simply lay around and snooze.

Barking Level

How often this breed vocalizes, whether it's with barks or howls. While some breeds will bark at every passer-by or bird in the window, others will only bark in particular situations. Some barkless breeds can still be vocal, using other sounds to express themselves.

Mental Stimulation Needs

How much mental stimulation a breed needs to stay happy and healthy. Purpose-bred dogs can have jobs that require decision-making, problem-solving, concentration, or other qualities, and without the brain exercise they need, they'll create their own projects to keep their minds busy -- and they probably won't be the kind of projects you'd like.

Affectionate With Family

  • Independent Lovey-Dovey
    60% 60%

How affectionate a breed is likely to be with family members, or other people he knows well. Some breeds can be aloof with everyone but their owner, while other breeds treat everyone they know like their best friend.

Good With Young Children

  • Not Recommended Good With Children
    60% 60%
A breed's level of tolerance and patience with childrens' behavior, and overall family-friendly nature. Dogs should always be supervised around young children, or children of any age who have little exposure to dogs.

GOOD WITH OTHER DOGS

  • Not Recommended Good With Other Dogs
    60% 60%
How generally friendly a breed is towards other dogs. Dogs should always be supervised for interactions and introductions with other dogs, but some breeds are innately more likely to get along with other dogs, both at home and in public.

Shedding Level

How much fur and hair you can expect the breed to leave behind. Breeds with high shedding will need to be brushed more frequently, are more likely to trigger certain types of allergies, and are more likely to require more consistent vacuuming and lint-rolling.

Coat Grooming Frequency

How frequently a breed requires bathing, brushing, trimming, or other kinds of coat maintenance. Consider how much time, patience, and budget you have for this type of care when looking at the grooming effort needed. All breeds require regular nail trimming.

Drooling Level

How drool-prone a breed tends to be. If you're a neat freak, dogs that can leave ropes of slobber on your arm or big wet spots on your clothes may not be the right choice for you.

Coat Type

Corded
Curly
Double
Hairless
Rough
Silky
Smooth
Wavy
Wiry
Canine coats come in many different types, depending on the breed's purpose. Each coat type comes with different grooming needs, allergen potential, and shedding level. You may also just prefer the look or feel of certain coat types over others when choosing a family pet.

Coat Length

Long
Medium
Short
How long the breed's coat is expected to be. Some long-haired breeds can be trimmed short, but this will require additional upkeep to maintain.

Openness To Strangers

How welcoming a breed is likely to be towards strangers. Some breeds will be reserved or cautious around all strangers, regardless of the location, while other breeds will be happy to meet a new human whenever one is around!

Playfulness Level

How enthusiastic about play a breed is likely to be, even past the age of puppyhood. Some breeds will continue wanting to play tug-of-war or fetch well into their adult years, while others will be happy to just relax on the couch with you most of the time.

Watchdog/Protective Nature

A breed's tendency to alert you that strangers are around. These breeds are more likely to react to any potential threat, whether it's the mailman or a squirrel outside the window. These breeds are likely to warm to strangers who enter the house and are accepted by their family.

Adaptability Level

How easily a breed handles change. This can include changes in living conditions, noise, weather, daily schedule, and other variations in day-to-day life.

Trainability Level

How easy it will be to train your dog, and how willing your dog will be to learn new things. Some breeds just want to make their owner proud, while others prefer to do what they want, when they want to, wherever they want!

Energy Level

The amount of exercise and mental stimulation a breed needs. High energy breeds are ready to go and eager for their next adventure. They'll spend their time running, jumping, and playing throughout the day. Low energy breeds are like couch potatoes - they're happy to simply lay around and snooze.

Barking Level

How often this breed vocalizes, whether it's with barks or howls. While some breeds will bark at every passer-by or bird in the window, others will only bark in particular situations. Some barkless breeds can still be vocal, using other sounds to express themselves.

Mental Stimulation Needs

How much mental stimulation a breed needs to stay happy and healthy. Purpose-bred dogs can have jobs that require decision-making, problem-solving, concentration, or other qualities, and without the brain exercise they need, they'll create their own projects to keep their minds busy -- and they probably won't be the kind of projects you'd like.

About the Breed

The Alaskan Malamute is a powerful, heavy-duty worker of the spitz breed that is friendly, devoted, playful, and dignified. He can be identified by his well-furred, plumed tail draped over the back, erect ears, and hefty bone. The Alaskan Malamute stands between 23 and 25 inches tall and weighs between 75 and 85 pounds. The massive bone, deep chest, muscular shoulders, and dense, weatherproof coat of Mals all shout, “I work hard for a living! “, indicating their ancestry as an arctic sled dog. The friendly shine in their almond-shaped brown eyes, though, suggests that Mals love cuddling with their people after a long day at work. Pack animals are mals. And you must be the leader of your family’s “pack.”A Mal will end up owning you rather than the other way around if he doesn’t appreciate you. Early on in a puppy’s life, training should start, firm yet kind. However, a well-behaved Mal is a delight to be around; he is playful, kind, and excellent around children.

What To Expect When Caring For a Alaskan Malamute

Owning a dog is not just a privilege; it’s a responsibility. They depend on us for, at minimum, food and shelter, and deserve much more. When you take a dog into your life, you need to understand the commitment that dog ownership entails.

Health

A responsible breeder will screen breeding stock for health issues such as hip dysplasia (the most common skeletal condition in dogs), elbow dysplasia, thrombopathia, chondrodysplasia ('dwarfism,' hypothyroidism, inherited polyneuropathy, von Willebrand's disease, and day blindness. As with all breeds, an Alaskan Malamute's ears should be cleaned on a regular basis to remove foreign matter and wax buildup, and his teeth should be brushed on a regular basis.

Grooming

The Alaskan Malamute's thick, waterproof double coat is perfectly adapted to harsh Arctic living, yet it requires continual maintenance. Every day, brush a Malamute with a pin brush and metal comb, looking for mats that might harbor fungus and hot places that can become infected. An undercoat rake should be added to the regimen twice a year, during shedding season. Although show Malamutes are often bathed weekly, a pet Malamute can go six to eight weeks without bathing. Conditioner can be applied sparingly if the coat feels dry. The Malamute's nails, like those of all breeds, should be cut on a regular basis.

Exercise

The Malamute was not bred to race, but rather to work. A Mal, a powerful, athletic dog with exceptional endurance and built to carry huge weights, demands daily exercise. Malamutes like hiking, running, and swimming with their owners as well as romping in a properly-fenced yard or other contained environment. Malamutes frequently participate in agility and obedience trials, weight-pulling competitions, camping (yes, you can buy a backpack for your dog), recreational or competitive sledding, and skijoring (pulling a person on skis).

Training

Socialization and obedience training are required to keep a Malamute from being pushy with children and other pets, or from becoming dominating over individuals he or she does not respect. Malamutes are extremely bright, yet they are also independent and headstrong, to the point of stubbornness. While fairness and patience can result in a beloved, trustworthy friend, certain behaviors, such as digging, may be impossible to train out of a Mal, thus any yard fencing must extend into the earth. And Malamutes are unsuitable as guard dogs since they are sociable with everyone they encounter.

Nutrition

The Alaskan Malamute should thrive on a portion of premium dog food, whether it is produced commercially or is made at home under the direction and agreement of your veterinarian. Whatever the dog's age (puppy, adult, or senior), the diet should be suitable. Watch your dog's calorie intake and weight level because certain dogs are prone to obesity. Treats can be a valuable training tool, but offering them in excess might lead to obesity. Discover which foods fit the bill for canine consumption and which don't. If you have any worries about your dog's weight or diet, consult your veterinarian. Fresh water that is clean should always be accessible.

History

One of the oldest Arctic sled dog breeds is the Alaskan Malamute. They are thought to be descended from the domesticated wolf-dogs that moved into North America with the Paleolithic hunters some 4,000 years ago over the land bridges of the Bering Strait.

The Mahlemiut Inuit people who lived in Kotzebue Sound in northwest Alaska are the source of the breed’s name. The Mahlemiut people produced a dog that was essentially a sled dog, bred to work in packs to transport large loads over great distances at slow speeds. They were also used to locate seal breathing holes in the ice, carry packs in the summer, and frighten away bears when on a hunt. Siberian Huskies and other Arctic dog breeds are faster and can pull lighter weights on sleds. Malamutes are freighters, while huskies are racers.

From the coastlines of Alaska to the coasts of Greenland, the Inuit people live. The Malamute breed underwent divergent strain development as a result of this separation. The original Kotzebue strain was approved by the AKC in 1935. Following World War II, the number of registered dogs of this breed drastically decreased. In response, the AKC opened the studbook to include the M’Loot and Hinman lines as well in the late 1940s and early 1950s. All three of these strains are currently present in the gene pool of the Malamute, with Ch. The first canine to bring them together was Toro of Bras Coupe.