With only 800 registered worldwide in 2013 , Chinooks are a rare breed of sled dog known for their intelligence and gentle disposition. Perry Greene of Waldoboro, Maine opened a kennel in 1940 where he bred the animals, and for a couple decades was the only Chinook breeder in the world. Ruohomaa got approval from Black Star to do a shoot of the man and his dogs in 1949. Selections were variously published in Stag, the July 1949 edition of The American Legion Magazine, and also posthumously in Down East Magazine in January, 1963.

Greene was a Maine guide and rugged adventurer. Soon after starting his breeding operation, he drove a seven-dog Chinook team from Fort Kent to Kittery, Maine with his stepson; the pair finished the trek of just over 500 miles in 90 hours, which at the time was the longest ever made within the US.