It wasn’t until 1922 that the husky became the official mascot at the University of Washington. Before the huskies, they were the “sundodgers”…what? Way to go on that pessimism, early UW.
Anyways, once the new mascot was put in place, the first husky was adopted by the school. His name was Frosty I, and he was placed in the care of the fraternity Sigma Alpha Epsilon. He was an Alaskan Malamute pup (apparently the only kind of their breed UW uses, being that they are the strongest of their kind) and liked to go to football games and roam the streets of the U-district for fun. Dogs don’t live forever (even if they do “all go to heaven”), so there have been many pups after Frosty I to represent the UW. Here’s a brief history on all the lovable doggies:
- Next was Frosty II (even though it’s weird when you name your new dog your old dog’s name, plus “#2” or “II”). This little guy was the mascot from 1930-1936. He was also taken care of by Sigma Alpha Epsilon (all huskies were, actually, until Denali was taken in by an individual).
- It was 10 years until UW adopted another live mascot, named Wasky (a combination of Washington and husky). Adopted in 1946, Wasky was the mascot for 6 years.
- Next, in UW mascot tradition came Wasky II.
- In 1954, Ski swooped in and became the beloved mascot.
- Then came Denali, who didn’t look much like a husky. Unfortunately, UW was a little mean about it and didn’t show the dog at football games, as they did with all the others. Apparently, the dog looked a bit more like a fox terrier than a husky.
- King Chinook was next. He was very social and loved to make friends with the opposing teams, or anyone, really. Unfortunately, he passed away in 1968 after being hit by a truck.
- Regent Denali was the next mascot. He was adopted in 1969 and was a puppy with a temper. He was enthusiastic about treats, but also about “warning nips”…ouch!
- In 1981, Sundodger Denali was adopted. This puppy went all the way to the Tournament of Roses parade!
- King Redoubt was the eighth mascot, adopted in 1992. Redoubt was loud and crazy and loved to jump around and howl from excitement. In August 1998, he passed away from one of the terrible Seattle summer heat waves.
- Prince Redoubt became the mascot in 1998, but was only there for a short while. He was actually King Redoubt’s son and was a lot like him.
- Not long after the Prince had taken over, UW replaced him with a new mascot (many of us may remember this one), Spirit, in 1999. He was very relaxed, fun, and noisy, like most of the other pups. Spirit retired in 2008.
- Our current Alaskan malamute is Dubs I. He was adopted in February 2009 and lives with his family in Seattle. Interestingly enough, Dubs I started the tradition (well, it’s going to be a tradition) of a campus-wide vote whenever there is a new mascot. Dubs’ name was decided in an online poll.