The Dog That Saved a Town

It was the winter of 1925. The town of Nome, Alaska, was in trouble. A deadly disease was spreading through the town. The disease was called diphtheria (dif-THIHR-ee-uh), and the doctor in Nome didn’t have any medicine for it.

Several children had gotten sick and died. More were getting sick every day. But the closest medicine was hundreds of miles away.

Getting the medicine to Nome was a big problem. A heavy snowstorm called a blizzard made flying and driving too dangerous.

But Alaskans had another way to get the medicine to Nome. That way was by dogsled. Would the medicine get to Nome in time to save the sick kids?

It was the winter of 1925. The town of Nome, Alaska, was in trouble. A deadly disease was spreading through the town. The disease was called diphtheria. (dif-THIHR-ee-uh). The doctor in Nome didn’t have any medicine for it. 

Several children had gotten sick and died. More were getting sick every day. The closest medicine was hundreds of miles away. 

Getting the medicine to Nome was a big problem. A heavy snowstorm called a blizzard made flying and driving too dangerous. 

But Alaskans had another way to get the medicine to Nome. They could use a dogsled. Would the medicine get to Nome in time to save the sick kids?

It was the winter of 1925, and the town of Nome, Alaska, was in trouble. A deadly disease, called diphtheria (dif-THIHR-ee-uh), was spreading through town, and the doctor in Nome didn’t have any medicine for it. 

Several children had gotten sick and died. More were getting sick every day, but the closest medicine was hundreds of miles away. 

Getting the medicine to Nome was a big problem because a heavy snowstorm called a blizzard made flying and driving too dangerous. 

Alaskans had another way to get the medicine to Nome: They could use dogsleds. But would the medicine get to Nome in time to save the sick kids?

Dogsleds were the fastest way to get to Nome, but one dogsled team couldn’t do it alone. It was much too far for one team to run. The dogs would get too tired.

People in charge of 20 dogsled teams decided to work together. They would run a relay race to carry the medicine to Nome.

The first team picked up the medicine. They ran until they got to the next team. The teams passed the medicine along, getting closer and closer to Nome.

Finally, in the night, the last dogsled team got the medicine. But Nome was still 53 miles away.

If the dogs were going to get there in time to save the kids, they would have to run all night long.

Dogsleds were the fastest way to get to Nome. It was much too far for one dogsled team to run. The dogs would get too tired. 

People decided 20 dogsled teams would work together. They would run a relay race to carry the medicine to Nome. 

The first team picked up the medicine. They ran until they got to the next team. The teams passed the medicine along. They were getting closer to Nome. 

Finally, the last dogsled team got the medicine. It was nighttime, and Nome was still 53 miles away. If the dogs were going to get there in time to save the kids, they would have to run all night long.

Dogsleds were the fastest way to get to Nome, but one dogsled team couldn’t do it alone. The distance was much too far for one team to run. It would exhaust the dogs. 

People in charge decided 20 dogsled teams would work together and run a relay race to carry the medicine to Nome. 

The first team picked up the medicine and ran until they got to the next team. The teams passed the medicine along, getting closer and closer to Nome. 

Finally, it was nighttime when the last dogsled team got the medicine. Nome was still 53 miles away. If the dogs were going to get there in time to save the kids, they would have to run all night long.

Gunnar Kaasen (KAY-sen) was the person in charge of the last team. He picked his dogs carefully. He chose a dog named Balto to run in front.

In a dogsled team, the front dog has the most important job. He shows the other dogs what to do. He has to be a good leader.

Gunnar knew that Balto was trustworthy. Gunnar could count on him no matter what.

Balto was also brave and calm. He could handle any obstacles in his way, like slippery ice and thick snow.

Gunnar Kaasen (KAY-sen) was the person in charge of the last team. He picked his dogs carefully. He chose a dog named Balto to run in front. 

The front dog has the most important job. It shows the other dogs what to do. It has to be a good leader. 

Gunnar knew that Balto was trustworthy. Gunnar could count on him no matter what. 

Balto was also brave and calm. He could handle any obstacles in his way, like slippery ice and thick snow.

Gunnar Kaasen (KAY-sen) was in charge of the final team. He picked his dogs carefully and selected a dog named Balto to run in front. 

In a dogsled team, the front dog has the most important job. It has to be a good leader and guide the other dogs in what to do. 

Gunnar knew that Balto was trustworthy and that he could count on him no matter what. 

Balto was brave and calm, and he could handle any obstacles in his way, including slippery ice and thick snow.

The team set off for Nome. The air was so cold that it hurt to breathe. Heavy snow fell, and an ice-cold wind blew as the team ran.

Sharp pieces of ice cut the dogs’ paws until they bled. The blood froze into hard, red ice on their paws! But the dogs persevered. They kept going.

After a few miles, Gunnar had to stop. The snow was so thick, he couldn’t see the trail. They were lost! They could freeze to death.

But Balto knew what to do. He was a leader. He would make it through this obstacle.

He lowered his nose to the ground. As the icy wind blew, he sniffed the snow, trying to pick up the scent of the trail.

Suddenly, he started running again, and the other dogs followed him. He had found the trail! He had saved his team’s lives.

The team set off for Nome. The air was so cold that it hurt to breathe. Heavy snow fell. An ice-cold wind blew as the team ran. 

Sharp pieces of ice cut the dogs’ paws until they bled. The blood froze into hard, red ice on their paws! But the dogs persevered. They kept going. 

After a few miles, Gunnar had to stop. The snow was so thick. He couldn’t see the trail. They were lost! They could freeze to death. 

But Balto knew what to do. He was a leader. He would make it through this obstacle.

He lowered his nose to the ground. As the icy wind blew, he sniffed the snow. He tried to pick up the scent of the trail. 

Suddenly, he started running again, and the other dogs followed him. He had found the trail! He had saved his team’s lives.

When the team set off for Nome, the air was so cold that it hurt to breathe. Heavy snow fell, and an ice-cold wind blew as the team ran. 

Sharp pieces of ice cut the dogs’ paws until they bled. It was so cold, the blood froze into hard, red ice on their paws! But the dogs persevered and kept going. 

After a few miles, the snow was so thick Gunnar had to stop. He couldn’t see the trail, and they were lost! They could freeze to death. 

Balto knew what to do. He was a leader, and he would make it through this obstacle. 

He lowered his nose to the ground. As the icy wind blew, he sniffed the snow, trying to pick up the scent of the trail. 

Suddenly, he started running again, and the other dogs followed him. He had found the trail and had saved his team’s lives!