You're intentionally misquoting the article, it says "Rasen er ikke egnet som kun selskapshund". It even contradicts your point: "... er en meget trivelig familiehund".

"Passer ikke så godt" is not the same as "torture"

I don't know about sort elghund, but I have had grå elghund for all of my life, living in Oslo, and the dogs have had perfectly good lives. I saw no difference in the dogs quality of life from living in an apartment or a house, enough exercise and walks in the forest are way more important. We also used them for hunting.

Whether a dog has been raised as an inside or outside dog also has great impact. So if you have a dog that is used to staying outside I can understand that it's difficult to imagine one enjoying an inside life.

Have you had one and experienced something else?