So, you can domesticate the Moose, and make some cool things like as pack and labor animal, though my question is, could be possible (in anyway) the use of the Moose as cavalry?
What are your thoughts?
What are your thoughts?
They were plenty warlike (the Haida and Wakashan groups were notorious long-distance raiders) yet had no need for moose OTL since their primary food source was fishing and gathering roots in areas near their villages.I think that if the PNW had been populated by more warlike natives, it could happen.
And I've never even been to the PNW yet I have a wealth of knowledge on its indigenous past thanks to writing a TL about it. Go figure.It is at this point I say I have practically no knowledge of the history of my corner of the US until Louis and Clark
A multitude of problems have plagued historic efforts at taming/domesticating (leans heavily to the former due to lack of selective breeding specialization) of moose for cavalry by such people as the Swedish Empire and the Soviet Union, but the three biggest ones are: temperament, diet, and physique.So, you can domesticate the Moose, and make some cool things like as pack and labor animal, though my question is, could be possible (in anyway) the use of the Moose as cavalry?
What are your thoughts?
Finally there is physique, which really boils down to a single aspect: actually controlling moose while mounting them is extremely difficult. The Soviets tested several means of getting stimulus through their thick skins, up to and including shock collars, but none had consistently good effects. You would therefore need to rely on leading moose on while they were tied/secured to something, or luring them forward with appropriate food.
The Haida were pretty damn warlikeI think that if the PNW had been populated by more warlike natives, it could happen.
Finnish tribes unite early and take the place of Russia, but with Reindeer cavalry. The Mongols will never see it coming. Perkele!Better off going with domesticated caribou.
This can be fixed with selective breeding. More vulnerable moose die, less vulnerable moose reproduce, so tickborne illness is less of a threat to tamed moose.Moose are solitary creatures and would have a hard time dealing with the pests that would arise from keeping many in close proximity with one another. The current moose population is being threatened by increased number of ticks as the winters warm
I agree it's easier and more likely, but moose have nice features reindeer do not. Number one, moose are larger. Number two, moose are naturally better in swamps and other bodies of water, which is why I think moose are a better fit for an aquacultural civilisation than anything else. Number three, an enraged (or intoxicated) moose can actually function as a cavalry animal, kind of. Reindeer are more likely to run away or refuse to charge.Better off going with domesticated caribou.
Not unless you have a POD over 10,000 years ago to stop them from going extinct.Thing is aren't there already wild horses which crossed the Bering Strait millenia ago available for domestication rather more easily than moose?
Not unless you have a POD over 10,000 years ago to stop them from going extinct.
However, reindeer has been domesticated for quite some time, so that is a huge head start. It just needs someone to have a bright idea to start selectively breed them early on.Yes, you can breed reindeer to be larger, but this is a lengthier process than an animal which has all this "off the shelf".
They were in the 18th-19th century, but in part this is because they had great access to Euroamerican weapons/trade which helped them smash the groups further south (mostly Coast Salish) who were put on the defensive. Archaeology and ethnohistory shows that warfare was on a more even footing before Euroamerican weaponry/trade advantages arrived and even after the Coast Salish could make powerful reprisals on Wakashan (i.e. Euclataws/Ligwilda'xw) or Haida raiders.The Haida were pretty damn warlike
Technically not. Reindeer is classified as "semi-domesticated" and has only been this way for a few centuries in Sami country and maybe 1,500 years in Siberia/Kamchatka (I might be off by a little bit). There's still a lot of overlap with wild reindeer, and the Sami and other reindeer herders to their east throughout Siberia haven't really felt the need to go further. While it was probably impossible given the lifestyle of the Sami compared to others, the larger Finnish forest reindeer would be a better subspecies to have been domesticated than the mountain reindeer they did OTL. Some groups in Siberia do have larger reindeer however.However, reindeer has been domesticated for quite some time, so that is a huge head start. It just needs someone to have a bright idea to start selectively breed them early on.