Dog Names Ending in to

Balto was a Siberian Husky and was one of the most important sled dogs in the world. In fact, if it wasn’t for Balto, many more people would have died from diphtheria in the 1920s. This is a serious disease that can be fatal in young children. Balto was named after Samuel Balto who was a Norwegian adventurer and explorer in the late 1800s and early 1900s. But Balto’s adventures were more than just exploration; they were life-saving. 

He was born in 1919 in Nome, Alaska and became a sled dog when he was just a year old. But on February 2, 1925, Balto and his owner, Gunnar Kaasen from Norway, made the most important ride of their lives. They met another Norwegian sled team driven by Leonhard Seppala and his dog Togo and set out to pick up and deliver the serum that would save thousands who were sick with diphtheria. 

Facing a blizzard in -23 degree Fahrenheit weather, the dog teams had to make the trip because the only airplane they had was frozen and would not start. The closest place to get the serum was in Anchorage, which was over 600 miles away. More than 20 dog teams were involved, but the main two that prevailed were Kaasen’s and Seppala’s. Although Balto was not a guide dog, he ended up leading the team anyway due to an injury or illness of the lead dog. 

Balto let the dog team and Kaasen the final 53 miles over about 20 hours in blizzards so bad that Kaasen stated he couldn’t see his hands in front of his face. They say that Balto had an instinctive way of knowing the trail because he was part wolf. However, this has not been verified. Balto and his team became famous and were even on the front page of the newspaper the next day after delivering the serum safely. 

For the next two years, Balto and the team were used in several different stage acts and shows but a man named George Kimble of Cleveland, Ohio saw the horrible conditions that Balto and the team were kept in and raised funds to buy them. He raised the money in 10 days with help from the public after they heard about Balto and the team’s story. They were shipped to the Cleveland Zoo where Balto was the star attraction for the next six years until he died when he was 14. But Balto will never be forgotten since there was a statue of him erected in Central Park and there was even a movie made in 1995 all about him.