Samoyed

History
The Samoyed was used for sledding, herding, guarding and keeping their owners warm.
However, by then, Arctic explorers (for example, Fridtjof Nansen and Roald Amundsen) had brought enough of the dogs back to Europe to keep the name and to establish the breed both there and in the US.

Fridtjof Nansen believed that the use of sled dogs was the only effective way to explore the north and used Samoyeds on his polar expeditions. Unfortunately, his plan was disastrous to the animals, as he planned to feed the weaker dogs to the stronger ones as they died during the expedition. In the end, he lost almost all of his dogs due to his plan.

Roald Amundsen used a team of sled dogs led by a Samoyed named Etah on the first expedition to reach the South Pole.

Recent DNA analysis of the breed has led to the Samoyed being included amongst the fourteen most ancient dog breeds ,along with Siberian Huskies, Alaskan Malamutes, the Chow Chow, and 10 others of a diverse geographic background. The first Samoyed was brought to United States by fur traders in 1906. The Samoyeds have been bred and trained for at least 3,000 years. Like the former two other dog breeds, the Samoyed also has a wolf-like appearance, and has also sometimes crossbred to wolves to produce a wolf-dog hybrid.

Miscellaneous
.The breed is sometimes nicknamed "The Smiley Dog" because they usually have a permanent smiling look that makes them appear pleased to see everyone. .Shed Samoyed fur is sometimes used as an alternative to wool in knitting, with hypoallergenic properties and a texture similar to angora. The fur is sometimes also used for the creation of flys for fly fishing.
.Samoyeds are rarely used for highly competitive dogsled racing because of the emergence of breeds bred specifically for the sport such as the Alaskan Husky, however they are still fully capable of racing competitively or pulling sleds recreationally if desired.
.Samoyeds are very rarely used for everyday herding work on farms, as breeds with higher herding drives such as Border Collies or Australian Shepherds are more practical to use for this job. Many Samoyeds however, do retain the herding instinct and occasionally have been used to herd sheep, goats, ducks, and small children competitively and recreationally.

Famous Samoyeds
.Kaifas and Suggen, the lead dogs for Fridtjof Nansen's North Pole expedition.
.Etah, the lead dog for Roald Amundsen's expedition to the South Pole, the first to reach the pole.
.Soichiro is the name of a Samoyed that belonged to one of the main characters in the popular Japanese anime, Maison Ikkoku. He was featured prominently throughout most of the series, and became a major character in his own right, often serving as comic relief.
.Kenny the Samoyed Comic Strips funnies in The Dogs of C Kennel
.Samoyeds serve as the sled dogs of Stone Fox in the book of the same name.
.A Samoyed puppy is featured in The Proposal (2009 film).
.Xiah Junsu, member of the South Korean dance acapella group TVXQ, owns a Samoyed named Shaki.

Similar Breeds
As the Spitz are a very ancient dog type, many smaller types of Spitz resemble each other. Medium to small sized breeds similar in appearance from various places in the world include the Wolfsspitz (Keeshond), Großspitz, Mittelspitz, Kleinspitz, Zwergspitz (Pomeranian), Samoyed (dog), Schipperke, Norwegian Elkhound, Volpino Italiano (Italian Spitz), Laika (Russian Spitz), Finnish Spitz, Indian Spitz and Japanese Spitz.

Types of German Spitz

.Pomeranian (dog)
.American Eskimo Dog
.Keeshond

Related breeds

.Samoyed (dog)
.Schipperke
.Norwegian Elkhound
.Volpino Italiano (Italian Spitz)
.Laika (Russian Spitz)
.Finnish Spitz
.Indian Spitz
.Japanese Spitz