Dog Nomads: Canid Economy and Athapaskan-Pueblo Exchange

Abstract

Testimonies of early Spanish chroniclers consistently emphasize the Athapaskan practice of long-distance trade with Pueblo communities aided by hundreds of pack dogs. Despite being the subject of numerous anthropological studies that focus generally on issues of social evolutionary trajectories leading up to European contact, we actually understand very little about how these regional exchange networks operated and the multi-species interactions and gendered labor requirements that made them possible. Using data derived from Spanish accounts, ethnographic information on the management of pack dogs, and modern studies of packing energetics, I model the number of dogs that would be required to sustain interregional trade under different packing conditions. Rather than focusing on the general dynamics of human behavior, this study highlights the details and mechanics of caring for large packs, the historical relationships between Apache women and their dogs, and the role of this partnership in Athapaskan migration and long-distance trade.

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