Siberian Husky Owners

[Telephil]

I think I'm about to become one, not a husky, but an owner. I've done quite a bit of research and they seem like quite a handful, but a rewarding handful at that. I found a 1-year old at a local shelter, kind of local, that I may pick up this Friday. My only concern is the NEVER off leash policy. They sometimes will start running and never stop. I could abide by that, but it might be tricky at times. I think I've considered pretty much everything, but anyone have any input on these that I haven't considered?

[Trackhead]

I have had three huskies. The third was my best. He's 9 now. Great dog.

As far as off leash.....take him off a leash right away. Train the little guy with earnest, but they can still be stubborn when it comes to chasing wildlife, etc. When mine was younger, he would chase everything with legs, but always return in 1/2 hour. Now that he's a bit older, the chases are of less duration.

Fritz Rips.

[Xover]

Mals "in general" are more mild mannered, well behaved and controllable with many of the same other characteristics. Just my $0.02.

[Telephil]

I thought that was what you had, check your pm's.

[lemon boy]

A year old dog might be difficult to get really well bonded to keeping tabs on you. They're sweet dogs but the run-off thing is a major bummer. I would aslo see how the dog acts around fireworks/guns/lightening cause a scared sibe can really grease through any fence.

As for running trash, well...that's a training issue (eg: training em that deer have no fun attached to them).

[cj001f]

Great dogs. Bond well - the better they bond the less problem the running off can be. Intelligent dogs - locking up everything around the house can get to be a pain. Great outdoor dogs, great companions for running/hiking/biking.

mixes have have fewer problems (behavioral and health) than purebred huskys or mals in my experience.

[Shorey]

Let the dog run. If all other methods fail, it continues to run off or chase things try this:
http://radiofence.com/shock_collars.htm

I've never used one (on me or a dog) but I have seen them used to good effect.

I've got my opinions on them, I'm not trying to crank up some argument about what is cruel and what isn't.

(If it fails on the dog, pursuade your mate to wear it in the pub, zap him when he's at the bar ordering a round, zap him when he wonders into the pisser (it works through walls) zap him at the pool table..... a whole night of laughs that won't cost a thing if you send it back within 7 days.)

[lemon boy]

Remote trainers are great but they're just that "trainers" and it requires you to put in a lot of effort.

You'll likely have to shave a sibe's neck to use one properly (just a small patch). The Collar Clinic is a way better online source (better collars). They're also the best (IMO) way to trash break a dog although if you want to actually train with one you need to do that before trash breaking with one IMO.

Just for clarity shorey linked to a electric fence site but to their training collars, an electric fence alone is generally not gonna contain a sibe IME.

[altagirl]

We didn't really have to do it with our dog, but I've heard getting a massive lead (or just dying a rope on to a leash) helps. You let them think they're free to run, but you still have control and can train them. Or at least catch them when they decide not to listen.

[OldLarry]

My buddy had one in college- killed everycat in the neighborhood inside of a week. Chased a deer out onto some think ice, which it fell through and subsequently drowned. FUN FUN! Irresponsible kids with hard to handle dogs!

[brutah]

I have a husky, well he lives with my mom but I raised him as I grew up. He has a lot of character and can be a pain in the ass off the leash. WIth him though he never goes anywhere when he is off the leash, just sticks with me or hangs outside my house, but if you call him in, he won't come, it's like he has to come in on his own accord. Of course, he just sits in the driveway and stares at you.

But we have firgured each other out, I just let him do his thing and he never really gets into too much trouble, though when he was younger, he would bring raccoons home with him from his night outs. We lived in a really cool nieghborhood though everyone just let their dogs run around, too bad people are so anal and some try to enforce leash laws these days. As he has become older he wonders a lot less also.

[Huckwheat]

Well I am not an owner but my best buddy has one and I dog sit for him alot. In fact I was taking care of three huskies (and a non-husky) over Thanksgiving weekend.



My main question to you is, where do you live? Not the town specifically, but what type of neighborhood. Suburban with lots of rules, or mountain where dogs are just running free.

My assessment of Husky's is they are super smart and know exactly where they are. Meaning, if they run away it is only because they want to run. They know how to get back, they just dont necessarily want to come back. My friends were super diligent about both morning and night runs when their Huskey was young....so that he didnt need to run away to get rid of his energy. That said, he also was free to roam everyday while they were at work (due to living in rural tahoe neighborhood).

Those challenges aside, they are probably my favorite dog as far as disposition goes.....really fun animals.

Thanksgiving fun, when the 4 dogs treed 3 bears.

[skier0178]

Mals "in general" are more mild mannered, well behaved and controllable with many of the same other characteristics. Just my $0.02.

I'll second this one. Had a Malamute from 6 weeks until 12 years old. They are bigger, better behaved and more loyal. I would get another one in a heartbeat. We had a friend with a Husky and I don't think he would say the same thing.

[altagirl]

Our next door neighbors had a Husky. They're uh... not really dog training or exercising types. It ended up with separation anxiety so bad she couldn't leave home for even 15 minutes or it would have seizures and they had to put it down. Now they have an out of control mutt instead.

[Stanley]

typically huskies only bond with one person in their life. This might make the discipline more challenging. We used a shock collar with her. It was the ONLY way to keep her from chasing wildlife. Didnt need to shave her neck. If you do go with the remote trainer, get one that you can set to beep then shock. In no time flat the beep only should suffice.

[Shorey]

[QUOTE=Huckwheat]



Dog baiting has changed since my days in south London. Back then it was one on one. You've gone and chucked all of them in like WWF and the Lab is getting hammered.

Oh right....they're playing "sniff the groin."

[teledave]

I've had 2 huskies one much more rambunctous than the other. The had free roaming privileges and would kill anything and drag it home to feast on, cats, possums, squirrels, rabbits, ducks, geese, a snapping turtle, a quarter of a rotting deer, you get the idea. When he was six we moved to an area where we had to contain him, Houndini was never the escape artist this dog was. After a few months of failed containments methods, we found a new home for him so that he roam, rape and pillage over a farm of 2000 acres.

The second husky was fenced in from being a pup and apparently content with it. Still a killer on any small mammal that that invaded his territory but containable.

The dogs are the most loyal and fun of any I've ever had, and I would highly reccomend them to anyone that is outdoors and can take the dog for an hour or so of excercise daily. They are also the most intelligent breed I've had any long term contact with, they can be intensely stubborn, and hell on any cats around.

I still love them, and miss mine dearly.

http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...ead.php?t=9219

[Mr. Altagirl]

I had one for about 6 years (the Ex took her). VERY active, you have to be ready for that fact. Mine was very obedient once I broke her, training was a handful. I really think that a dog is only as good as the owner / training / time spent together. Do the right things and you will be very happy, just be ready to work for a while.

[vtdownhiller]

spend lots of time and have tons of patience and be firm, be the alpha male in your pack!...you are looking at 6 years till the mellow and become a great dog...grow eyes in the back of your head too!

[Huckwheat]

The "being the alpha male" leader of the pack quote is the truth.

My buddy has gone so far as when Kody bit him, he grabbed him and bit back. He is the leader....and Kody is a good dog (despite cruising the neighborhood for hours).

The other two huskey's in the pic are good individually, but they are not allowed out together. They have killed 4 cats when together, but alone they are fine.

[CWD]

My only concern is the NEVER off leash policy. They sometimes will start running and never stop.

I got my husky from a shelter when he was two. Took him to an indoor obedience class and we did well and I think it helped. We have become good friends so a concern about them being a one owner dog doesn't seem true in my case.

When he is off leash outdoors, I never know, for sure, where he will end up or if he will come back when I call. I used to try and follow and catch him but I think he thought it was a game and he would just keep going farther away. A friend of mine was dog sitting for him and called me out of breath saying... he seems to have forgotten his name after he got out of the house. My major concern when he gets off leash is that he will kill himself.

I have had good luck backcountry skiing with him.

http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...ad.php?t=27966

On powder days he stays really close and has even started following my skin track when it's really deep, and on spring days or when he can run a bit he tends to keep me within his comfort circle. I keep him on leash until reasonably away from roads and releash him when we get return. It helps when there is another dog in our ski group.

I wish I had leather seats in my car as he sheds and I take him all over in the car. People will get used to seeing dog hair on you and everything you own if you keep your dog anywhere near you. I had a woman, who I had never met, come up to me in a Reno Casino and ask what was the name of my dog. This was after using the lint brush that is now always in my car.

[Seldom Seen]

I have a six year old female husky that i got when she was 8 weeks old.... and she is a very mellow, cool dog.... always has been.
I walk her all the time without a leash and she just stays with me. BUT, this is not the norm for huskies. Most i have met are pretty crazy, run away all the time and cant really be off leashes. To me, that is not a very fun life for a dog or a dog owner.
If you are willing to spend a hell of a lot of time training your potentially new dog, it can work out very well, but a one year old husky might already be pretty damn crazy and more than a handfull for you. Make sure you are ready for the commitment. When people ask me how/why "bear" is soo mellow, i reply with my mantra that seems to apply to huskies more so than other breeds... "a tired dog is a good dog", you have to plan on spending at least an hour a day with them outside, letting them run around (for at least the next five years), its what they are bred to do.

If you do decide to go the husky route, i recommend getting a younger puppy that you can train from the very beginning, you never really know what kind of habits this dog has developed over the past year.
I also recommend getting a female, they just seem to be mellower, in my experience.
Huskies are smart as hell and can be wonderful dogs, just make sure you know what you are getting into.
Once you get the dog, there is a great training book by a bunch of monks who breed, raise and train german shepards... there theories work wonders. I believe they are the monks of "New Skete" or something, but i loaned the book to a friend.
Cheers, SS

[onehotchili]

totally off-topic since this concerns a different breed. but this past weekend i drove 16 hours roundtrip to pick up Harley, a 10 week old English Shepherd pure-bred. he is close cousins to the Border Collie and Australian Shepherd. I know it has only been a couple of days, but he seems to be adjusting well and is pretty smart. i am not a super-experienced dog person, but i've had some in the past and living in Tahoe, i am around them pretty often at friends houses and them bring their dogs over etc.

aside from one house soiling mistake the first night (it was my fault), he has been very good at learning his name, and the basic commands like come, sit, off, and no. i can already see that this is going to be great relationship. spending time with him over these next several weeks will definitely cut into some ski time in the short term... but i think it will pay off huge as he gets older and i get a new running/BC skiing partner!

[lemon boy]

CONGRATS DUDE! Cute!

oh and if you're not now you should be crate training. Best thing ever.

[onehotchili]

CONGRATS DUDE! Cute!

oh and if you're not now you should be crate training. Best thing ever.

yep... he is liking his crate. not too psyched about it the first night, but now he is fine. his little place to get away from everything. i never tried crate training before, but it seems to be working so far. crate + chewtoys = happy dog and happy owner