"Huskies" Topic

I've managed to persuade my family that we should get a dog. They have decided they want a Husky but I don't realy know much about them other that reading stuff on the web.

Any one here with experience of them ?

Thanks,

Steve P

My cousin raised a number of them. Surprisingly they (the dogs) werent very smart. I would have expected a higher intelligence in a "working" breed.

Huskies are very smart. Like Malamutes (which I owned) they have a short 'attention span' when it comes to training. They bore easily.

So, training sessions should be kept to 15-30 minute intervals, and more often, with plenty of activity inbetween. Pulling stuff, etc.

Expect hyper-activity too, so plenty of walking for you and the family. If he/she gets bored, it will create its own adventure.

Great family dogs too, well, Lakota was anyways.

RIP Lakota Kamots. Best dog ever.

I had two. Fantastic dogs for a young active family. We got them when my kids were toddlers. The kids would trip over them, tug on their tail – all the normal stuff little kids do and if they go fed up they would get up and move.

THey did require lots of exercise. I would not advise getting one unless you have a fenced yard of at least a third of an acre or so. We trained them to pull a red wagon and it worked reasonably well, but was not enough of a workout. We would usually take them for 1/2 to 1 hour walks and my wife and I would talk – how was your day kind of stuff.

You MUST train them. They want to pull and will be miserable to walk unless you can train them properly on a leash. They were personality somewhere between cats and dogs. They wanted to be with us, but were not as insecure as some dogs that have to be in your face. As we moved around the house they would always be in the room with us without being obtrusive.

Mine were not territorial towards humans – terrible guard dogs, they would rush to greet anyone that came to the door but without any threatening body language or barking.

Fantastic dog if you are active, not looking for a guard dog and have small kids.

They do tend to run away as well. My friend had one and it would get out any chance it could get and run for miles and miles. They found it once after it got kicked in the head by a horse.

The second time they found it after it got kicked in the head by a car, it didn't run away anymore after that.

This would not be as effective with a huskie:

picture

We have a Czech wolf dog which looks quite like a husky but actually comes back to the recall- I am told huskys often run off and difficult to get back on the lead.

Quite intelligent ( any dog that can open a fridge take a packet of ham and close the door again then hide the evidence under her bed must be)

Take a look at cry-wolf.co.uk

Thanks all. My boys are 11 and 9 so past the age of unconciously annoying (tugging etc…) dogs, although considering how much the annoy each other thoughtlessly perhaps not :)

I'd heard Huskies do run away a lot and difficult to recall so that may be an issue but there is a 2yr old potentially available via a friend of a friend. I've yet to check it out but it it's already trained and with a good temperment it could work out. Our new house does have about a third of an acre but the fences would need replacing.

Jlundberg How big was the red wagon? Being bred for pulling would setting up some form of kid's go-kart be suitable substitute or would that cause concern (assuming correct harness etc…)?

The Malamute is another good option so ta for the heads up.

I'll check out the cry-wolf site, that could be interesting too.

Steve P

Oh, and can Huskies/Malamutes be left alone during the day at all?

Steve P

I have one who is 12 now. She is a great dog. Never makes a sound unless we are playing. I use a pinch collar to walk her. Initially she would pull to the point of passing out with a regular leash. The pinch collar didn't hurt her but quickly taught her how far she could go. I've had obedience trained dogs before, but I didn't bother to train her. She's pretty well behaved on her own. Good companion dog. She is always near but dosn't have to be on top of me. Not a good guard dog. She loves every person that she sees but is very jealous of any other animal that gets near me. She will try to fight any that do. They do need to be walked alot. I take her at least 3 miles a minimum of two or three times a week. I have a room that is hers alone. I leave her there whenever I am not home and at night with no problems. I have left her alone in the house for several hours at a time with no problems as well. The biggest problem with Huskies is shedding. They shed all year long. They need constant brushing and you will still have hair everywhere. I wouldn't give her up for anything though. I call her Xena. You know, pretty, blu eyed, huskie. It's Xena.

I currently have 2, and in the past 10 years have raised 2 more (one of mine that passed away young, and my brother's). Huskies are smart, but they are stubborn as anything. They do get bored easily, so short positive training sessions are key. My huskies are good with kids and other dogs, and all but 1 of the 4 were great with cats (my older huskie adopted the kitten my roommate brought home, and now the kitten acts like her puppy, even to the point of defending her from the other dogs while playing). My youngest husky loves to chase the cats and refuses to let the cats intimidate her, no matter how many times they bat her nose. I don't open the gate to my yard unless the huskies are in the house or on leads. They love to run and will wander if you let them. They also will take any opportunity to steal food. My huskies love to "talk", which is they will semi-howl at me like they are telling me how their day was. They also like to howl when we leave or get home.

How big is your yard?

Huskys don't just like to run, they do run -- a lot. These are not a 'house' dog. They like it outside and actually will 'overheat' if you leave them in too long. Mine used to go out and splay herself out on a sheet of solid ice -- and sleep there in 30 below temperatures.

I used to exercise my last husky by driving up Mullan Pass (about 15 miles at 30 mph with a 1500 foot rise) -- while she ran through the woods alongside me. I suspect she could have done that run a time or two more if I had pushed her.

A husky can be a predator. A big husky can take down a deer. Bad news for the neighbor's cat sometimes.

Keep them away from skunks. They have two fur layers (the inside layer is very oily) -- if they get 'skunked' the smell won't go away for months no matter what you do.

Mike at work's comments are right on. Huskys 'sing' quite often -- especially at night --- woo, woo, woo. Mine never barked, but she would sing quite often.

mjc

You may want to check out Keeshunds.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keeshond

These are half the size of a small Huskey. Seriously armored -- nuthin gets through all the fur. Same tendencies as a Husky other than they don't sing -- they bark.

mjc

Echo other thoughts. Definitely an animal that I would have a microchip implanted in. Our wagon was a radio flyer style thing. We did find plans to build a dog chariot (no sythes though) but never got around to it