A glimpse into Joe's story
Joe G Henderson has explored the most remote regions of Alaska for 40 years with his Alaskan malamute team.
Joe has pioneered and perfected a method of travel that is unprecedented in modern times, being the only person in written history to have ever traveled solo with a dogteam in the Arctic for four months at a time without resupply.
His malamutes' accomplishments have proven the resilience of the ancient Alaskan malamute dog breed and highlight Joe's unconventional training methods.
Despite these accomplishments, Joe attributes his strength, the dogs' stamina, and their powerful builds to God, our creator. He thanks the Lord Jesus Christ for the opportunity to serve dog-loving communities and inspire people worldwide.
But "no man is an island" and Joe's loving support from his wife, Janice, has proved this statement to be true. Our Lord has certainly blessed both of them, and we thank Him unceasingly and pray that their efforts will inspire others.
Get to Know Us, Our Dogs, Our Story
"For we walk by faith, not by sight".
-2 Corinthians 5:7-
Hello friends, Joe here. Instead of writing a long mission statement, I want to get straight to the point: My primary mission is to inspire others. I can’t emphasize enough the importance of spending time outdoors, reconnecting with nature and God, and challenging ourselves—especially in today's tech-driven world where we tend to lead very sedentary lives.
Our younger generation is missing out on this opportunity. Nature is a precious gift from God that revitalizes our spirits. There are many ways to reconnect with nature, such as hiking, cross-country skiing, and more. The choice is ours. And for those of us who have already enjoy this special gift, let us inspire others to explore nature, where our Good Lord has blessed us with so many countless gifts. And one of the many gifts I am thankful for is the Alaskan malamute.
Many years ago, I was presented with an opportunity to travel by dogsled with Alaskan malamutes. For the past 40 years, I have been exploring Alaska's most remote wilderness, living and surviving in one of this planet's harshest Arctic environments. During this time, I have developed a deep bond with these ancient and often misunderstood dog breeds.
The history of Alaskan Malamutes traces back to a distinct breed that remained separate from other Arctic dog breeds for thousands of years. Today, these dogs have nearly disappeared from Arctic Alaska, their place of origin, largely due to the introduction of modern snowmobiles.
How do we connect an ancient dog breed with our modern-day society and maintain the dog breed's original characteristics and mental well-being? This is our second mission.
Alaskan malamutes are gaining popularity among people from all walks of life and worldwide. Why? Because they are affectionate with unconditional love, intelligent, playful, and highly loyal.
They love all people and will overwhelm you with affection. They are described as big, lovable furballs with childlike emotions, quirks, high intelligence, and an irresistible cheerful demeanor. You will love them the moment one slobbers your face with a kiss!!
Part of this affectionate behavior is due to their long history as both a working dog or draft animal and a family dog that protected the ancient peoples’ children while they were away hunting and gathering. In a sense, they were babysitters!
But they have done more than help the ancient people survive; they also assisted in the Klondike Gold Rush in 1898, hauled freight for the U.S. Postal Service, and freighted weapons and ammunition in WW11 and our Arctic expeditions by exploring and gathering climate data in the most remote regions of Arctic Alaska, where no dog team has traveled in recorded history.
Our passion is to revitalize one of the world's most ancient dog breeds, the Alaskan Malamute, and ensure its future. This breed originated 10,000 years ago in Arctic Alaska. Our mission is to continue developing a strong lineage of Alaskan Malamutes that embody the true, ancient traits valued by the indigenous peoples and all those who have cared for the lands of Alaska and the Arctic territories.
This is accomplished with 3–4-month expeditions through the Arctic, which bring out the joy and purpose in these athletic animals and challenge and condition the dogs to become more robust and resilient physically and mentally.
We want to inspire breeders and enthusiasts of Alaskan Malamutes to safeguard this breed to stay true to what our Creator intended. This is accomplished through hours spent publishing literature and creating videos, leaving a record of knowledge and experience that only 40 years of working and living with this breed can provide. It is critical to share this knowledge to ensure the Alaskan Malamute’s future.