by Ted Land
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Gov. Sean Parnell signed a bill into law Wednesday morning that makes the malamute the official dog of Alaska.
Malamutes once helped pull sleds and hunt polar bears.
A group of students at Polaris K-12 School in Anchorage thought lawmakers should recognize the dogs' rich history.
The students spent three years trying to pass a bill through the Legislature, but not all lawmakers thought it was such a good use of the Legislature's time.
"What I really learned was politics are really messy. There are some good sides, but you can't have good in everything. They tried their best and there are some people with very big power, and it's been exciting," said fifth-grader Raleigh Pigg.
The bill to create a state dog did not get a vote until the final day of the legislative session.
Contact Ted Land at tland@ktuu.com

