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DragonWithAShotgun — Balto's Parents
#balto #baltosfather #couple #husky #mates #wolf #wolfdog #wolfquest #workingdog #baltosmother
Published: 2017-08-08 18:06:27 +0000 UTC; Views: 7547; Favourites: 89; Downloads: 13
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I came across some information regarding Balto's origin, his parents. The director had mentioned in the first movie that Balto's mother had been a husky, a sled dog, while his father was a wolf, and the white wolf was a kind of part of his conscience. So, I wanted to draw Balto's father as a wolf. I personally like this idea much better than the original. I'm still working on Balto's mother.Here was my previous design of him before I wolf-ized him: dragonwithashotgun.deviantart.…
I'm also trying to practice Balto style, specifically from the first film.
EDIT: I also tried a design for his mother. I made her so fluffy!
But the reason for her design is because of that one pup in Balto's litter that only has a whitish muzzle. Thought I'd kind of add that somehow but make it less like a copy. 
And I also kind of put a little of Aleu's traits, such as the light fur color, blue eyes, and leg markings. Balto would inherit the leg design too, but because his father doesn't have them here, I imagine that would be the reason why they were smaller for Balto. Art and character by me.
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Comments: 44
Wow! I always had the idea that the mother was the wolf cause of one scene in the first movie where the sled team dogs were making fun of balto and said "here's a message for your mother" (or something along those lines) and then they howled, but this idea that you have is very interesting!
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I sort of liked the idea that they were making fun of Balto's mother because she was a dog that had a thing for a wolf, but it's totally understandable that you would think the opposite. lmao
Also this is an older version of Balto's parents I designed.
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Well, yeah, sort of. I read this idea was intended by the director, but it was not canon, due to the second movie.
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Besides, Balto's mother is white furred...
Also, do you remember that male dog that tries to go for Jenna?
In these:
www.animationsource.org/sites_…
www.animationsource.org/sites_…
That was Balto's original design. Did you know that?
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If you are referring to Aniu, the white wolf, that is a highly debated idea amongst the Balto fan community- despite the white wolf from the second movie being revealed as his mother. I am not really in any position to say who EXACTLY was Balto’s mother, considering the article I read about the director of the orriginal film explaining that the white wolf was not intended to be Balto’s mother, and more of a part of Balto’s conscience- the wolf side of is mind, I suppose.
As for the background character, yes, I have also seen that this is the original design of Balto.
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Do you know what the scene with the White Wolf was meant to reference?
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I have heard that it was supposed to reference a part of Balto’s persona, or something like that. Like, maybe the wolf in his nature was suppressed or something, and showed when he was most desperate. I guess you could say that it was meant to encourage him to embrace his own differences, and not let negativity from others turn him into what they see. Other theories are that it was Aniu coming to encourage him, as if she was a spirit watching over him ever since an apparent death, and came forth the day he needed her most. I’m not entirely too confident on what is totally true. But, I prefer the first idea more, honestly. But there may be other theories out there that I haven’t seen as well.
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This: www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VYc-K…
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And... What about this?
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See the resemblance between the two scenes?
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Oh, I see. I did not realize that was what you were trying to refer to. Lol
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The fact they happen in snow landscapes and that the protagonist is visited by a spirit who urges them on.
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Yep, I like this idea so much better, and the design for both parents is great and fit well!
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Nice designs for Balto's parents! 
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Thanks! I love the idea and prefer it much more over other theories and despite what the people in the sequels had said.
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Me too! 
I also like how you gave his mother traits that are visible in their future grandpups, like Aleu.
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That'd be neat, I'd like to see a story like that about his parents.
And yes, I wanted to justify how a couple of Balto and Jenna's pups had certain traits that neither Balto nor Jenna had, so I figured traits could be passed by skipping a generation.
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Cool, I'm still working out some ideas and details, but I hope to get it all out soon.
One scene that comes to mind is when Steele says he has a message for Balto's mother and howls. While most would believe it's an indicator she was the wolf parent, I believe he was mocking her for choosing to love and be in a relationship with a wolf. It would make just as much sense, especially because of how Steele at one point insinuated that Jenna's taste "runs more toward wolf," a sort of relationship which most likely isn't highly regarded.
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense.
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Wow, I was thinking the same thing. Nice to see people with similar opinions. And this is a great proofs and hints. You're absolutely right. On the other hand, I sometimes thought that earlier Balto's mother had a relationship with Steele (probably as Lorraine and Biff from "Back to the future"), and then she fell in love with a wild wolf. It could be pretty good character development of Steele. I mean, he hates the half-breed not just because of jealousy (Jenna) and envy (the fastest dog), but because wolfdog reminds him Balto's mother (who was Steele's friend or mate in the past). Or Steele and Balto's mom were rivals (both of them are the sled dogs). It could be, 'cause Steele looks much elder than Balto. Plus, I think, Steele is absolutely unnecessary antagonist in the movie (just a stereotypical rival without personality).
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Cool, thanks! And that's actually a really cool idea I hadn't considered! Steele having a relationship with Balto's mother would be a very interesting backstory, the way you put it. The other theory could work as well, I've been thinking if Balto's mom had some sort of acquaintanceship with either or both of Steele's parents. I tend to interpret Steele as not being that much older than Balto, but still the older of the two by possibly a good amount. I like the idea that they were friends as puppies.
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Wolves maybe be seen as a kind of barbarian to domesticated dogs. Notice that the wolves seen in the first movie seem more "feral" than dogs such as Kaltag, Star, Nikki, Steele, and the others of Nome. Also not how the dogs begin to become frightened at the mention of wolves when Balto and the white wolf howl. I'm not even going to mention the wolves from the second movie... In my opinion, compared to the wolves shown in the first movie, those were unrealistic and... I can't find the word. Not so feral? They didn't seem to live up to any kind of possible reputation the domestic dogs had set up for them. Aside from Niju, of course.
The idea of a wolf and a domesticated dog becoming mates is kind of like how some people in the real world may see interracial marriage. Many may look upon it with such hate and discrimination, and look at the cover before they read the pages. There is probably the same situation with dogs and wolves.
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Great point. I totally agree with you. It would be awesome and quite deep prequel to the original "Balto". As a child, I saw only the first film. And I always thought that father was a wolf and mother was a husky. However, I could never understand why Balto avoids the wolves. We saw quite a friendly wolf pack, who tried to contact him and accept him in their group. I have identified two versions -- or Balto never lived among the wolves (he was born in Nome), or he was banished from the pack. I'm leaning towards the first option. He never lived among the wolves, he doesn't know them, so he fears them (so wolf side was canselled and forbidden for him, but when Balto met with the white wolf, his separated wolf side, Balto has found the inner harmony). Simon wells mentioned that (Boris has found Balto as a puppy-outcast in Nome).
Personally, I always wanted to see more scenes with the wolves and Balto's relationships with them in the first film. Because we know nothing.
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I may end up drawing something involving Balto and the wolves from the first film.
I personally theorized that Balto's mother may have had the puppies, but her owner may have not wanted them after they found out that she had them. There may have been a situation similar to what happened to Aleu. Once people began to find out that they were part wolf, they didn't want to adopt them. Perhaps, as sad as it was, the owners abandoned them. Balto's mother was a pet, so she may have had no choice in the matter of allowing her master to do whatever he wanted with them. And because Balto's father couldn't come into the town, he didn't know of it. Perhaps he never knew of the birthing of the pups in the first place.
It might not be a concrete theory though. There's some holes in it, but it's just an idea.
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I thought about it too. However, it works with Balto, but it doesn't work with Aleu. I mean, her dad is a hero, who saved children. She is the only puppy, which looks like her famous father. So, I think, everyone would wanted to get this puppy as a pet.
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And that is a good point. I've always wondered why everyone flocked to see all of the puppies of the great hero of Nome, and then suddenly won't pick Aleu because, as Balto put it, she "looks more like a wolf" than himself, which I honestly don't see happening. I mean, look at the cover of the movie case for the VCR tape. That's the one I have anyway. She looks like a husky with light markings resembling Balto. She basically had the same markings as Dusty in the third sequel. I understand that people may have not wanted a dog, and not everybody of Nome probably knew about the birth of the pups. It could have been one of those cases where Jenna's owner could have taken the puppy herself, which SHOULD have happened since, you know, Jenna had her? Makes me wonder why Aleu wasn't taken care of by her own mother, and instead went to live in a shipwreck some time after the adoption incident.
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Yes, I agree with you. I also have similar questions. Rosie would become the owner not only of two sled dogs, but also a guard-dog. On the other hand, I frankly don't understand, why Balto was so afraid that one of his children will be a wolf and will be different from others. Why he wanted all of his children were dogs? He accepted himself as a wolf in the first film. But in WQ, we see him as a notorious and cowardly loser. And yes, the director of sequels really hasn't seen the original film, when he worked on WQ. But for me it was predictable plot twist. It is used in many bad sequels with conservative parents: "Oh! I am different from others! Oh nobody can understand me!". Personally, I dislike Aleu as a character. Typical capricious and insufferable crybaby. And, she looks more like a husky (I agree with you).
Plus, I really can't get it. What a point of those totem spirits?! The wolverines (it would be cool if they told something about Balto's forgotten past or were the reason of his separation from his family), the fox (it would be cool if she was trying to seduce Balto and to test his loyalty to Jenna), the bear (unnecessary even in the first film), the raven and the wolf. What's a point?! These ideas for fox and wolverines were in my old fanfiction.
By the way, about your design for Balto's mom. Her chest, muzzle and belly are white. And I sometimes assumed, Balto's mom could howl like a wolf (huskies enjoy to howl). And then let's remember Balto's words: "I remember, she was white as snow." Got a hint?
And about Father-wolf. In WQ he said absolutely nothing about his father. In WoC Balto tell about Boris:"He is a dad I never had." So, he doesn't know who his father is. As a kid, I assumed, the wolf pack from the first film was the family of Balto's father (or the leader wolf with dark fur was his dad). All the wolves in the first film looked feral and without individual traits (exept the white wolf). So, probably Balto has more traits from the mother (brown fur, big brown eyes, big ears, small size; markings on the legs and on the muzzle he got from his father). In WQ the only wolf, who fits that description, it's Nava (he looks like Balto, plus probably Aleu inherited from him these strange abilities). Your quote: "Balto's father couldn't come into the town, he didn't know of it. Perhaps he never knew of the birthing of the pups in the first place." Got a hint?
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I don't think it was the wolf heritage that scared him about his children. I believe it is merely the experience of the pain he had gone through during his life, being judged by others only because of a part of him which he couldn't control. He doesn't want his children to go through that pain. It is merely the instinct to protect them. I don't think he accepted himself "as a wolf", but instead he came to understand that there was more to a character than what they were- it was what they do with it that matters.
The subject of Aleu's personality, can be... um... painfully justified... She was not a favorite character of mine growing up as well. Though, I don't want to just throw her off without some kind of understanding of what might have caused her to be the way she was. She may have been spoiled all her life. Pampered by the overprotective and desperate Balto who only wanted his daughter to find a forever home that she dreams of. He may have kept her in this protective bubble and babied her. When reality breaks that bubble and everything she's ever known is shattered to pieces, her mentality breaks as well. Her long-lived dream and hope of finding a human that loved her, was suddenly gone. After all, if Balto had saved the town and was considered a hero, then how come he continued to live in the ship wreckage? The wolf heritage idea still lingers. Perhaps humans continued to not fully trust him. He was part wolf after all. (In the movie. I understand that he was actually a purebred husky in real life. I'm speaking on fictional terms.) Though, that cannot be for certain. He may have very well chosen to live in the wreckage despite the possibility of a human adopting him.
The totem spirits were a kind of, or were supposed to be, "interesting" points of the story to lead the characters on through their journey. They were a a source of mythology that was supposed to play an important part, but failed to really give the feeling that they may have intended.
I can try to explain my idea of the to spirits, thought it may take a while.
The fox was possibly a test of his judgement. Seducing him sounds a bit... drastic, especially when they are completely different species. I can understand where you're coming from on that, but to me personally, it's not exactly logical. Why would his loyalty to Jenna need to be tested, if his priorities at the moment rested on his beloved daughter? Perhaps it was a test to see how much he was willing to put himself trough to find her. Would he take Aniu's warning of the "cunning trickster", and continue his search which would have resulted in him having not found Aleu's trail, or would he offer aid to the seemingly endangered vixen if she tempted him by offering aid in finding his daughter?
The wolverines I believe were a test to see how determined Balto was to seek out what was most important. They also intended for him to, once again, accept his wolf heritage as a way of either defending himself, or asserting his dominance with not exactly the wolverines, but within himself. The largest obstacle he had to face was himself, his own fears of the unknown. His fears of reuniting with that wolf side. It was possibly to reawaken the wolf which may have been disconnected from his conscience during the time of fathering his pups.
The bear is tricky. I believe this was the final test to see who was the true leader of the wolf pack to come, or who was the one to truly understand the spirits. Who would see the vision first? Who would look past the fear, and explore the mind of the spirit? Aleu seemed to be the only one affected by the bear's test, as she saw the edge down the cliff, and not Balto. Aleu may have been able to do so because of a spiritual enlightenment due to her meeting with her possible spirit guide, Muru. She found her inner knowing of what she needed to do, and that was to make the journey. As for the voice stating "Inner Knowing", Balto may have heard the voice, though that cannot be for certain. It may have been an acknowledgment to the viewers, of the totem the bear represented. In the first film, the bear was merely used as a obstacle between Balto and the sled team, and perhaps was meant to give Jenna, Boris, Muk, and Luk a reason to go home, resulting in Balto making the journey alone. I don't believe that bear was a spirit, however, and was simply a grumpy member of the local wildlife.
The caribou. That was pretty easy to understand. The caribou was the life source for the wolves, who would have died if they did not find a solution to following them. Caribou brought the wolves life, as the brown female wolf explained during the wolf council. Without them, they would starve, and life would be lost.
The wolf? Is there more I should say? Balto was struggling with the remembrance of his heritage, and Aleu was struggling to accept her newly found one. Aleu soon found that her lack of fondness towards her wolf heritage was not important as accepting it and the fate it brings. Because she understood that there was more to her destiny than the wolf inside, she chose to follow her instincts. She chose the wolves over her once obsession of becoming a pet to a human.
Onto the subject of Balto's father. He was indeed mentioned in Wolf Quest. During his argument with Aleu, Balto explained, "My dad was a husky who had pups with a wolf." Now, this goes against what the original director of Balto explained. Which in a way... is uncalled for and may appear inaccurate despite the movie being "canon". Regarding the quote Balto used, "He was the dad I never had." This brings up the possibility that Balto never truly bonded with his father I which he could remember. He may have never seen his father. Be it because his father was killed or he could never come into town. I don't exactly think that the wolves in the first film were related to Balto, and rather offered him a way to solve his inner conflict. He would probably be accepted as a wolf to a pack, but because of his desires to be with Jenna in Nome, to be accepted into that society, he was afraid to turn to wolves for mental stability. He wouldn't accept his heritage.
Are you implying that Balto and Nava be related? Like, the possibility of Nave being his father? That is unlikely, I would assume. Think of all of the wolves seen in the films. It was as if they tried to repeat the wolf-like concept, and used the same design traits over and over again on even background characters. NOW. There MIGHT be a possibility of blood relation. Why would Aniu, this apparent spirit, choose this pack, who obviously lives far from Nome, to help by bringing Aleu into the picture? I have seen a theory of Nava being a much older brother of Balto. This is not concrete theories, though, on my end. Nava refers to Balto as "brother" at the end of the film. His could merely mean the brother relation as a term for wolf to wolf. The "We are of the same, for we are bound" kind of idea.
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Don't take it seriously) This is just my thoughts and nothing more (the assumption that Nava is Balto's father). Just my look from different angles.
I know about the role of the spirits (I think, Aniu is a shapeshifter, and all these spirits are she). But I think, it could be shown much better and more creative (again, the wolverines could give some detailes about Balto's past and his fears).
I just wanted to say that Balto called his dad as husky in WQ, but he never mentioned some details about his father (some proofs). I mean, how can he know that his father was a dog, if he never saw his father and was separated as a small puppy from his family? Plus, he always mentioned only his mother (her voice and fur color, so why he is so sure that she is a wolf? she could be a dog with the white chest and belly). He was separated from family, when he was very very young, so he can't remember them. It's just a vague recollection. It doesn't work. I heard the theories that mother and father were killed by the hunters, but it still sounds unlikely.
I prefer the idea of the original film than direct-to-video sequel, 'cause WQ is mostly illogical and it ruins the idea (White Wolf) and the ending of the first film (I really can't understand, how they could work on the sequel, if they didn't see the original film earlier).
And I will never believe that Aniu can be Balto's mom (spirit guardian — yes; mother — no). I doubt that she ever existed as a living wolf. All the wolves never mentioned that she ever existed as a living wolf, or that she died. She's a kind of the legendary spirit or patroness for them (Mother of all the wolves, so it can have a sense). And again. If he's her son, why didn't she try to find him or contact him? Why didn't she come in dreams, when he needed her? Why didn't she stay with her son a little longer at the end of the movie?
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I didn't mean for it to sound so serious, sorry about that! I know it's only fan concepts and opinions.
The spirits were indeed poorly explained and shown in the story. They had little effect on the viewers (or so they did/do me nowadays) and didn't have enough screen time to really make a difference. They might as well had not been in the film in the beginning.
Balto does mention that he was very young when he was separated from his mother. Though, he never mentioned how he had become separated from his father, either. So, I figured that his father may had never been in the picture other than the fact that, well, he and Aniu created the pups. Maybe it is an assumption on Balto's part, to think that his father was a husky. I wouldn't think that both of his parents would be killed by hunters, if that is the case for one of the parents. I can see the wolf parent being killed, but not the husky.
They merely made the sequel to earn money, I suppose. They know that the first film made good money, and by creating a sequel would grab viewers' attention. Low budget, lazy or not I won't mention, and because they never watched the first film that I know of, they were trying to exaggerate something that... didn't need to even be included. They were too focused on the mythological area of the story.
It was unnecessary to try to say that Aniu was Balto's mother in the second film. It makes more sense for her to be a sort of spirit guide, such as Muru to Aleu. I agree with you there.
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No problem)
Agree. The Wolverines are the best part in WQ, in my opinion.
I think, it was his assumption in the case with his mother too. On the vague memories from the deep childhood (maybe the vague memory about his mother merged with the image of the white wolf later, who knows). Again, dogs (huskies) can be pure white too, and they howl. So, it is possible to confuse a dog with a wolf. (some huskies really can be very similar to the wolf).
Well, maybe they were killed by another wild animals (polar bear, grizzly bear, lynx or wolverine).
However, now we are just trying to connect the events of the sequel with the events of the original.
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Connecting events from this sequel to the first movie is rather difficult, since there are very few parts of the movie that actually connect. The third sequel was most like the first movie and had more relation than the second.
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I agree with you. The third film was unnecessary too, but for me, WoC has the story, which should be in the first film. Okay, let me explain. The third sequel has no villain or "from zero to hero"-cliche (what annoyed me in the first film). So, if we compare the original film (without fact that it was based on true story) and WoC, the story of WoC is much better. In the original film the villain and the cliched story about "loser, who became a hero and got a girl" were absolutely unneeded (I dislike this type of story), and they ruined many movie's parts.
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Well, they merely wanted to recreate a true story while adding some extra details that some people would usually like; a villain to challenge the protagonist and provide some sort of conflict, a pretty girl to encourage the protagonist and further give him reason to succeed, so on. It doesn't necessarily make the movie have a bad plot unless it was just portrayed lazily and such. I honestly liked the first film's plot, and the characters in it. Then again, it was my inner child that always came out when I watched it. And I think that was the reason for all of these "absolutely unneeded" parts of the film. It was because it was what kids usually liked.
I don't really think the third sequel was "better" than the first film. It was a good film, I'll admit. It had a solid plot and good character. Though, i guess I'm just a sucker for the classics. I loved the plot and character in the original, mainly because all of the characters were fresh and had developed personalities. They hadn't been worn by the reuse.
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I just think, in the first film they should focuse more on Balto's inner conflict and his relationship with humans and wolves, instead of creating the typical and unneeded villain and his annoying and hypocritical lackeys. I don't know. Even as a kid I disliked these elements in the original film.
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Wow, you're right! I hadn't quite thought on that point before, but it's a really good one. As for the wolves from the second movie... yeah, definitely won't disagree there. Unfortunately, that's what usually happens when a different creative team works on a sequel to a movie years later. It certainly would've been more interesting to see a story play out using the more seemingly feral wolves than those we saw in the sequel.
Good example, I was thinking the same.
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Forgive my rambling, I really enjoy this movie and am really interested in fan ideas like this.
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There's no problem with it! I'm just happy that I have ideas that others may enjoy considering.
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No problem!
In the idea of Balto's mother having the puppies, but her owner not wanting them after finding out she had them (a very likely occurrence) and abandoning them, do you assume she died shortly thereafter or she was moved away from town with her owner, or some other explanation to her not being around in the film? The idea of Balto's father not knowing of the birthing of the pups is also quite an intriguing and tragic idea, makes me wonder how it would go if Balto met his dad after the events of the first movie. I would have loved for that to have been the sequel. XD
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As for his mother, dogs have been known to die from grief. Perhaps the weight of not being able to see or take care of her own children along with the fact that she can't even see their father, the wolf, and not tell him what happened, it may all have caused her to pass away from symptoms of anxiety and depression. Another possibility would be that she may have never lived in Nome at all. She could have traveled to Nome for a short period of time, and stayed while her owner had business in the town.
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