Alaskan Malamute vs Chinook

An Alaskan Malamute
Photo: Randi Hausken
A Chinook
Photo: jude

Side by side

Alaskan Malamute
Chinook
Adult weight
Males 35–42 kg (77–93 lb); females 31–37 kg (67–82 lb) (estimated: ±10% around the AKC/AMCA standard's desirable freighting size, 85 lb dogs and 75 lb bitches)
Males 25–41 kg (55–90 lb); females 23–29 kg (50–65 lb) (breed club figure)1
Height
No sourced figure
Males 61–66 cm; females 55.9–61 cm (breed club figure)1
Lifespan
Median 11.3 years2
No sourced figure
Fully grown
12 months, both sexes3
Group
Spitz & primitive4
Working (AKC)
Coat
Double coat4
No sourced figure
Shedding
Moults most as the seasons change
No sourced figure
Grooming
A brush once a week
No sourced figure
Exercise
Plenty
No sourced figure
Health
Mouth melanoma (much more likely); Underactive thyroid (much more likely)5,6
No sourced figure
Class
Working
Family

Which suits you

Size
The Alaskan Malamute is a little larger on average: about 36 kg (80 lb) as an adult, against 29 kg (65 lb) for the Chinook.
Temperament
They differ most on independence (Alaskan Malamute: decides for itself; Chinook: keen to work with you) and on prey drive (Alaskan Malamute: likely to chase small pets; Chinook: usually fine with small pets).
Neither is the better dog in general. Which suits you depends on your home, your days and the care you can give.
Take the breed matcher

What they're like

Alaskan Malamute
Spitz & primitive · Large

Malamutes are affectionate and playful with people, strangers included, and make poor guard dogs.

Chinook
Working · Large

In temperament the Chinook is calm, gentle and affectionate, generally patient with children and with little urge to guard.

The Alaskan Malamute page →The Chinook page →

Breed traits

Day to day
Alaskan Malamute
Chinook
Activity
Differs
Needs lots of exercise
A good daily walk and play
Intelligence
Learns readily, likes games
Learns readily, likes games
Handler demand
Differs
Needs an experienced owner
Needs steady training
With people
Alaskan Malamute
Chinook
Affection
Affectionate on its own terms
Affectionate on its own terms
Loyalty
Differs
Friendly with everyone
Bonded to its family
Independence
Differs
Decides for itself
Keen to work with you
Around the home
Alaskan Malamute
Chinook
Sensitivity
Average
Average
Voice
Differs
Very vocal
Barks to alert, then settles
Prey drive
Differs
Likely to chase small pets
Usually fine with small pets
Breed explains only about 9% of how individual dogs differ in behaviour7. Meet the dog. A good breeder breeds for temperament as well as health, and matches each puppy's personality to the right home8,9.

Puppy growth

Reference curves · both sexes
The Alaskan Malamute grows to the heavier adult, about 37 kg against the Chinook's 32 kg. The Alaskan Malamute's weight is not a published figure.
Alaskan Malamute
Chinook
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More comparisons

Compare the Alaskan Malamute with
Alaskan Malamute vs Siberian HuskyAlaskan Malamute vs SamoyedAkita vs Alaskan MalamuteAlaskan Malamute vs Chow ChowAll breed comparisons →

Sources

Parts of this page were written by AI ·