The History of Obersten
It was a very special dog that once strutted around the town of Horten in the early 1900s. Most people in town knew who this dog was, and local butchers used to provide him with large pieces of meat just like that. But when the children wanted to use him as a sledge dog, they received strict orders from Oscar Wisting: "This dog has pulled too much, too far in his life, and should never have to pull an ounce ever again!" The dog; Obersten, was in fact the only surviving dog returning to Norway after Roald Amundsen's expedition to the South Pole in 1911.Amundsen's success in reaching the South Pole was in large part due to the Greenland dogs, who pulled large sledges piled high with equipment and food. The expedition took over 100 dogs, but only 11 were left when they returned to Framheim after reaching the Pole. “Obersten” was the finest and strongest of them all, and the lead dog on the expedition. He pulled first on the sledge of Oscar Wisting, Amundsen’s closest man. “Obersten” was therefore brought back to Norway, where everyone knew that this was no ordinary dog - this dog had been all the way to the South Pole and back! Obersten led a good life in Norway with the Wisting family, where he fathered a litter of pups with his girlfriend, Lucy, and lived until he was 13 years old
