[5] The aim of these breedings was to develop a dog resembling a wolf in appearance but suitable for companionship and trainable for various tasks.

[6] Genetic testing has identified a color variant linked to partial recessive red traits that at least 50% of northern Inuit and tamaskan dogs carry.

Initially detected in DNA samples from prehistoric dogs dating back 10,000 years, this variant was identified as one of the earliest mutations discovered in domestic canines.

[7][8] Overall, the Tamaskan variety is healthy; only a few notable health issues affect a small percentage of the bloodlines to date.

Breed founders Lynn Hardey and Jennie Peacock were committee members of the British and International Utonagan Society, but believed the dogs were becoming too related to each other and decided to look for genetic diversity abroad.

However, the majority of Utonagan breeders were not interested in the new additions and so the founders left to start the Tamaskan Dog Register in 2006.

In October 2007, a Tamaskan named Genghis Khan featured as a wolf in a music video for the band Lucretia Choir.

Luchta played the role of "The Wolf" in Arthur Miller's The Crucible produced by Scott Rudin and directed by Ivo van Hove.