Soviet Union Space Dogs

Why and what dogs were used for the experiment?

Dogs were preferred by the Soviet Union over other animals for the experiments because it was believed that dogs were more well suited to endure long periods of inactivity.

Their crazy training consists of the dogs being confined in small boxes for 15-20 days at a time. They would be standing for long periods of time, wearing space suits to get them accustomed to them and were placed in simulators that simulated the situation during rocket launching.

They are also progressively kept in smaller cages to prepare them for the small space modules.

Stray dogs were the most preferred ones because they are more tolerable with extreme stress of space flights compared to house dogs that are usually pampered.

The dogs for the experiments had to be female as well. This is because of how the dog space suits were designed. It is also because of their better temperament compared to male dogs. The suits were designed and equipped with a special device to collect urine and feces that only works with female dogs.

Dogs in Space

During the whole program, they found out that around 60% of the dogs that entered space were suffering from constipation and gallstones upon arrival back to base.

This was probably caused by stress or space itself. Thus they improved their diet which consisted of nutritious jelly-like protein and high in fiber food. It was to ensure the dogs have healthy body during the long periods of time they were in their small space module.

Apparently, during the 1950s and 1960s, the Soviet Union had slots for at least 57 dogs, but some of the dogs
actually flew more than once, that means less than 57 dogs actually participated in the program.

So, as most experiments with animals, some lived to have families while some died during the experiment. This could also be applied to the earlier human astronauts during those experimental years. May they all rest in peace.

Next are stories of some of the popular Soviet Union dogs.