USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -Before the arrival of horses, Native people traveled on foot or by canoe. When the hunting tribes of the Great Plains moved camp, tipis and household goods were usually carried by women, or by dogs pulling travois. The distance anyone could travel in a day was limited.

Detailed explanation-2: -The Lakota name for a horse is sun’ka wakan or “holy/mysterious dog.” Peter explains the Dakota and Lakota believe the horse came as a gift from the Wakíŋyaŋ (Thunder Beings); in fact, horses are all members of “horse nation.” The Horse Nation represents the West and a connection to the spirit world.

Detailed explanation-3: -Until the horse the only domesticated animals were dogs; these were sometimes eaten but were mostly used as draft animals. Dogs drew the travois, a vehicle consisting of two poles in the shape of a V, with the open end of the V dragging on the ground; burdens were placed on a platform that bridged the two poles.

Detailed explanation-4: -They roamed throughout the region for some 100 years before being settled on reservations. Reversing the usual human progression from hunter-gatherer to a sedentary lifestyle, the formerly sedentary Lakota adopted a nomadic lifestyle, pursuing the buffalo-their most valuable resource-across the Plains.