Balto was the lead
dog at the end of
The 1925 Serum Run to Nome. While Balto did not lead most of the run, he received most of the credit.
Owned by musher Gunnar Kaasen, Balto lead 53 miles of the serum run. Another team, lead by Togo, deserved most of the credit, for leading 93 miles of the total run. Historian Bill Hunt described balto as "a blocky hauling dog not noted for his speed."
In Anchorage, Alaska, you can find a statue of balto downtown, and a restaurant named after him. There was a second statue erected in New York's Central Park to honor
Balto.
As interest faded in the famous dogs, Kaasen sold Balto, and the rest of the team, to a vaudeville promoter.
Balto went around the United States on the vaudeville circuit, until schoolchildren in Cleveland donated money to have him rescued from a carnival in Los Angeles.
Balto lived out the last of his days in the Cleveland zoo until his death in 1933.
Togo and Balto were not a part of the same team, as the total Serum Run consisted of more than a dozen sled dog teams.
Sources:
www.alaska.com