The unity I see in the club and on its board gives me great hope for the future. For example, when we held an advisory poll on the studbook—the most significant issue the club has decided on in years—34 of 35 votes were in agreement. When the board took those results and held a vote, the decision was unanimous. My own election to the office of president was the same. I am humbled to say that out of a possible 15 voting points from the board, I received 14.
I said all that to say this: there is a greater sense of unity, purpose, and momentum right now within the breed than there has been in the 25 years I have been associated with Seppalas. The club intends to harness that momentum for the good of the Seppala Siberian Sleddog.
When I petitioned the previous board members to relaunch the dormant club several years ago, I stated that my goal was to pitch as big a tent as we could without losing what the Seppala is to ambiguity. In my mind, there was no better way to ensure the future of our breed than to combine the two historic efforts of the 20th century, rather than leave the division in place. This message of unity seems to have resonated, as the club ranks have grown exponentially.
But we do not seek “unity at all costs.” There are non-negotiables. For example, it is the stated purpose of this club to preserve the Seppala Siberian Sleddog as a breed, not merely as a strain of the larger Siberian Husky pool.
I was asked recently by a breeder that has publicly stated that the Seppala is “merely a strain,” “Should I bother registering my dogs?”
I answered, “The Continental Kennel Club is the only registry that registers Seppalas as a breed. So if you are an ally of the breed, then there is no question. Yes! But if you only see the Seppala as a strain of the Siberian Husky, I don’t know why you would bother.”
We are on a mission to preserve a breed. Those who say “there are no Seppalas left” only show their ignorance (willful or otherwise) of what a breed is. A breed is pedigree, sure. But it is more than that. It is performance. It is temperament. It is morphology. And it is genetic health.
“But there have been outcrosses in the Seppala to increase genetic health!” you say? Of course, and we are thankful for the foresight and effort.
Is the Chinook a breed? Of course. Even the AKC show ring now acknowledges them as such. And yet the breed ancestry is far less storied than our own—tracing its origins back only to the beginning of the last century while the Seppala has been distinct for hundreds, perhaps thousands of years. The breed stewards of the Chinooks have needed recently to outcross for genetic health as well, and yet it does not take away from the fact that the Chinook is a breed.
Is the noble Irish Wolfhound a breed? No one would deny it, and yet the breed savior realized he had too few foundation dogs to save the breed and selectively outcrossed to bring the breed back from the brink of extinction. Horse and other livestock breeders have understood this healthier approach to purebred husbandry for centuries: outcrossing for genetic health and then breeding back into the primary stock to keep breed vitality.
Why would some suggest the Seppala not be given the same fighting chance? Why should the Seppalas in our kennels—all with 93% or higher Seppala pedigree—not be given the same breed recognition as those other breeds with far more admixture in their pedigrees? Unlike others, our breed stewards have kept meticulous records of what has been bred and why for the past century. In fact, current genetic research is consistently showing that our breed is generally far “purer” than many of the working Siberian Huskies registered in the American Kennel Club.
Finally, let me say that—while offices and titles have been assigned—our mission remains the same. Not only does the board have new blood like Dimitrios Kapoukrandis to invigorate it, but it has members with as much or more experience than I do. I have always sought and given heavy weight to the counsel of board members like Tabetha Berge, Zena Thomas, and RJ Williamson.
I want to specifically acknowledge the anchor that Tabetha continues to be to this club; she provides the continuity from the founding board to the present. And to my dear friend Zena Thomas, who serves as my “walking, talking breed pedigree database.”
In conclusion, I encourage Seppala enthusiasts who have been watching from the outside: join us—we are just getting started! To our members, let us know what your giftings are and let us put you to work. We have so much to do!
Semper Fidelis,
Jonathan Nathaniel Hayes
President, ISSSC
