Hiroshima Dog Names

Taro and Jiro, two of the 15 sled dogs on the first Japanese expedition to Antarctica in 1957, were, unfortunately, the only two that survived this mission. These brave poochies were Sakhalin Huskies, also known as Karafuto-Ken in Japan and they are the real life survivors from the 2006 Disney film, “Eight Below.". The Sakhalin Husky is now considered to be nearly extinct as there are not enough of this breed left to continue the breeding process. The breed was named after the island where they originated, which was Sakhalin, an island owned by Japan and Russia. 

Their heartbreaking but heroic story started in February 1958, when the team of researchers who had been stationed in Antarctica with the dog team, were airlifted out with another team due to replace them the following day. However, a large storm broke out and the second team was not sent in, and the 15 dogs were left on their own in Antarctica chained up and only had enough food to last a few days. Although the researchers who left the dogs begged to go back and get the pups, nobody would take them due to the ever-worsening weather conditions. So, the 15 dogs were left on their own for almost a year until the next summer when the weather got better. 

When the researchers returned, they expected to find all 15 of the dogs dead, but there were only seven of them still chained up. Eight of the dogs had gotten loose and although six of them were never found, the other two, Taro and Jiro, were found alive nearby. They were badly dehydrated and thin from not eating enough, but they both lived, and the researchers were shocked that the pups did not eat the other dogs after they died. In fact, they did not even get into the food stores at the research base. The experts believe that the two heroic canines survived by eating fish that were trapped in the ice, seabirds, and penguins. 

Both Taro and Jiro stayed with the team and pulled sleds for the researchers as usual. However, in 1960, Jiro died of some type of disease and Taro returned to his hometown, which was Sapporo, to live at Hokkaido University. He was almost 15 years old in 1970 when he died of old age. Both dogs were embalmed, and Taro is displayed at the Museum of National Treasures in Hokkaido University while Jiro is displayed at the National Museum of Nature and Science in the Ueno District in Tokyo. Monuments of the entire 15-dog team were erected in several areas of Japan.