Beasts of Burden: Packing Animals of the Klondike

Letter 5

When people think of the Klondike Gold Rush, they imagine determined prospectors trudging through snowdrifts or sled dogs pulling freight across frozen rivers. But much of the heavy lifting, sometimes quite literally, fell to animals not often remembered today. Horses, mules, oxen, goats, and even stranger creatures were central to the movement of people and supplies over the harsh, unforgiving trails into the Yukon.

Horses: The First but Not the Wisest Choice

Klondikers with pack horses

At the start of the rush, horses were the obvious first choice for most stampeders. Every town in the Pacific Northwest had horses for sale, and many prospectors were familiar with them from farm or freight work back home. Strong, relatively fast, and capable of carrying a decent load, horses seemed ideal for hauling outfits over the coastal passes and into the interior. On clear trails, their speed and power made them hard to beat.

However, the mountains quickly proved that horses weren’t always suited to the task. Their hooves slipped dangerously on icy, uneven paths. Their feed requirements (oats or grain) were difficult to meet along the trail. Many horses weakened or collapsed after days of laboring up steep gradients in snow and mud. It’s little wonder that the infamous White Pass trail came to be known as “Dead Horse Trail,” with thousands of horse carcasses lining the route. The simple truth was, for all their initial appeal, horses were not the best animal for the job in such extreme terrain.

In terms of breed, the horses used in the Klondike were rarely specialized. Many were small workhorses or pack ponies, including tough little Cayuse ponies originally bred by Native peoples of the Northwest. Canadian horses, known for their hardiness and thick winter coats, were occasionally used, particularly in later stages of the gold rush. Draft crossbreeds (mixes of Percheron, Belgian, and lighter stock) also found their way north, valued more for strength than for pedigree.

Despite their drawbacks, horses remained the mainstay of early freighting efforts. Their familiarity, availability, and pulling power ensured they were always in demand.

Mules: The Packmaster’s Secret Weapon

For those with more experience or wisdom, mules quickly became the preferred choice. A mule, born from a male donkey and a female horse, combines the best traits of both: the intelligence and endurance of the donkey, with the size and strength of the horse. Though slower than horses in a sprint, mules excelled over long distances, especially when the path turned rough and treacherous.

Mules earned their reputation as steady, reliable workers who rarely panicked and rarely injured themselves. Unlike horses, which might bolt or overexert to the point of collapse, mules knew their limits and stubbornly refused to exceed them. Prospectors soon realized that a mule’s supposed stubbornness was actually caution and self-preservation, making them ideal companions for the dangerous passes.

In the Klondike, most mules were practical work stock imported from Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. They came in various sizes, with the larger freight mules valued most. Many prospectors discovered that a well-trained mule was worth its weight in gold, capable of carrying up to 200 pounds over icy passes where a horse might falter.

It’s said that mules carried heavier loads more consistently and survived longer than horses, their intelligent, steady nature seeing them through conditions that would break other animals. Though less glamorous than horses, they earned the deep respect of seasoned packers.

Dogs: The True Haulers of the North

While horses and mules handled much of the early packing along the coastal passes, it was sled dogs that truly dominated transportation in the Yukon’s deep winter. Once snow fell and rivers froze solid, dogs took over, becoming the backbone of freight hauling, mail delivery, and supply runs in the far north.

Sled dogs weren’t just a helpful alternative; they were a necessity. In conditions where horses would slip, break legs, or freeze, dogs thrived. Teams of hardy, thick-coated dogs pulled sleds loaded with mail, lumber, mining equipment, and even people. Their endurance was legendary: where a horse might collapse after a few miles in deep snow, a well-managed dog team could travel day after day, covering dozens of miles across ice and wilderness.

To meet the enormous demand for freight hauling during the gold rush, nearly 5,000 sled dogs were brought into Dawson City between 1896 and 1898. Without these animals, much of the mining effort would have stalled. They required less feed than horses, thrived on fish scraps or dried meat, and were less prone to injury. When a single dog was lost, it didn’t cripple an entire freight operation, making them more adaptable to the brutal realities of northern work.

The dogs of the Klondike weren’t pampered show breeds; they were working animals, tough and no-nonsense. Teams often mixed breeds for strength and endurance. The Alaskan Malamute was especially popular, known for its power and steady pulling. Canadian Inuit Dogs and Greenland Dogs provided endurance and toughness. 

Sled dogs weren’t just laborers—they were lifelines. As one miner observed, dogs “do nearly all the packing in the summer… and in winter, do all the freighting, haul all the wood, and carry all the mails.” In the coldest months, a good dog team was worth more than its weight in gold.

Their legacy stretches far beyond the Gold Rush itself. The trails those dogs carved through the Yukon later inspired legendary endurance races like the Yukon Quest and the Iditarod, both of which honor not only the history of the Klondike but also the ongoing partnership between humans and their sled dogs.

In the end, while many stampeders arrived with horses or mules, it was the humble sled dog that hauled them through to the other side.

Oxen and Goats: The Steady Workers of the Trail

Goats hauling a sled

When horses and mules failed or simply weren’t affordable, prospectors turned to more unconventional helpers: oxen and goats. Though neither animal had the speed or grace of a horse, both had their own distinct advantages.

Oxen, for instance, were the heavy-haulers of the animal world. Slow, plodding, and immensely strong, oxen could pull loads over terrain where horses would slip and stumble. They could graze along the trail, needing little in the way of specialized feed, and were more tolerant of hunger and cold. Perhaps the most famous ox of the Gold Rush was “Marc Hanna,” an Oregon-born ox who hauled massive loads up to 5,400 pounds and survived being buried in an avalanche for two days by chewing cud and sheltering in a snow cave.

Goats, while far smaller, proved surprisingly useful in their own way. On narrow, icy trails, their sure-footedness and agility allowed them to carry light loads where larger animals could not safely travel. Goats also required minimal feed, browsing on tough vegetation along the way. Photographs from Dyea show teams of goats pulling small sleds; at once a practical transport method and something of a spectacle for passersby.

Both oxen and goats remind us that sometimes the best solution isn’t the most obvious. In the unforgiving conditions of the Klondike, toughness and adaptability mattered more than speed or size.

The Strangest Haulers: Exotic Pack Animals of the Klondike

Resourcefulness (or perhaps desperation) led some stampeders to experiment with even more unusual pack animals. Some prospectors tried leading elk over the Chilkoot Pass, hoping their long legs and cold-weather adaptations would serve them well. Unfortunately, elk proved difficult to handle and not well-suited to packing loads.

In Skagway and Dyea, baby bears were occasionally harnessed to tiny sleds for entertainment. While charming, they served little practical purpose. 

Perhaps the most unusual and practical of the exotic animals were reindeer. Imported from Siberia and Scandinavia as part of U.S. relief efforts, reindeer were introduced to Alaska with the hope they could provide both transport and food supplies for stranded miners. Some reindeer were indeed pressed into service as pack animals or sled pullers along the trails to Dawson. Though not widespread, these hardy animals proved capable in the harsh northern conditions, much as they had in their native Arctic lands.

These unusual beasts—elk, bears, and reindeer—reflect the extremes to which prospectors went in their quest to conquer the Yukon’s brutal landscape. When horses and mules failed, some men turned to whatever living creature seemed able to pull a sled.

The Forgotten Workforce of the Gold Rush

The history of the Klondike Gold Rush is not just a story of rugged miners and icy rivers. It’s also a story of beasts of burden: the horses, mules, oxen, goats, and even stranger animals that carried the weight of human ambition over mountain passes and through frozen forests.

Each animal, from the noble but overworked horse to the practical mule, from the heavy-pulling ox to the sure-footed goat, played its role in one of history’s most grueling migrations. Though many of them died on the trail, their labor made possible the dreams of thousands who sought their fortunes in the far north.

Next time you hear a tale of the Klondike, remember the four-legged workers who braved the cold and carried the gold rush on their backs.