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Help please.

4K views 54 replies 20 participants last post by  cjla 
#1 ·
Okay this isn't about GSD's but there isn't a place for Siberian huskies. My boyfriend recently got one from a good friend of ours and she is a little over 3 months. I was wondering if someone knows the breed and can help me. She's not potty trained yet but we've been working with her and she's doing better but not quite there yet. She's not really interested in coming to us when we call her. The only time she will listen is when we have a treat in our hands. She's more interested in going outside and playing with our other dogs. She's even more interested in our neighbors dog and getting out of our fence to go play with her. Can anybody help me

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#6 ·
Okay this isn't about GSD's but there isn't a place for Siberian huskies. My boyfriend recently got one from a good friend of ours and she is a little over 3 months. I was wondering if someone knows the breed and can help me. She's not potty trained yet but we've been working with her and she's doing better but not quite there yet. She's not really interested in coming to us when we call her. The only time she will listen is when we have a treat in our hands. She's more interested in going outside and playing with our other dogs. She's even more interested in our neighbors dog and getting out of our fence to go play with her. Can anybody help me

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Sounds like typical Husky behavior. They are opposite from GSDs. They are very independent and stubborn, would rather run away than recall, they are escape artists. So always keep her leashed when outside. As far a potty training, if you can take her out every two hours and 15 minutes after a meal. When she goes to the bathroom, praise her and give her a treat.
 
#7 ·
Is this your first husky ? They're a breed that definitely needs to be researched before getting one. My first dog was a husky, and I've since converted to shepherds because of the trainability level. Huskies are natural runners, and unfortunately are also natural escape artists. Once a husky realizes that they can disobey you, you're going to have a **** of a time getting them to listen. They're not bad dogs, they're just VERY intelligent and very independent. We put over a $1000 into our fence to ensure ours didn't get out, yet he still found ways. Don't bother getting an electric fence, they're so fast that they don't feel it. I would look into the two week shutdown like mentioned from the other person. And keep her tethered to you. You want to make sure to train that when you say "come", she HAS to "come". Recall should be your biggest focus with a husky, because they LOVE to run, run, run! After all, that is what they are bred for. Unfortunately, huskies are one of those breeds that just LOVE to do things their way, and you MUST be a very strong owner to make your dog into an enjoyable companion. My advice is to get a trainer and train train train. She is still young so you have plenty of time.


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#8 ·
I used to own and sled Siberian Huskies. What you have is exactly what they are and should be.

Independent, stubborn, live to run so they will escape the average yard by jumping, climbing or digging. They LOVE to dig holes in the summer so expect your yard to resemble the moon. I would suggest purchasing a dog run as you can make it escape proof...unlike your yard.

Beautiful breed and I still love them but they are much more than a pretty face. You really should have done your homework before getting this dog. This breed was bred to pull a sled and hunt so they are a working breed dog that live to run. Very high energy and be prepared for lots of shedding come spring.

Teaching recall....very difficult and always unreliable at best. I did put cd titles on two of mine but always had several friends hanging out around the ring during off lead and recall. They were 50/50 at best and took 10+ trials before I managed 3 legs.

The shelters are full of huskies because people did not take into account how difficult they can be to contain.
 
#11 ·
The shelters are full of huskies because people did not take into account how difficult they can be to contain.
This is sadly EXTREMELY true. People get them for their beauty without ANY prior research and then have a rude awakening when they realize the effort they take. Two friends of mine thought it would be a great idea to get two sibling puppies without any prior dog knowledge and against my warning and they were miserable. I ended up being their main care giver until the owners could get their crap together and fix their fence / exercise them everyday.


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#9 ·
Keep her on a tie out for her own safety. If she gets out, you run the risk of her either never coming back or being hit by a car. I was also always nervous someone would keep mine because of their beauty. Invest in microchip- I've heard they have tracking ones now as well. While you're in the house, randomly call her to you thought out the day and treat her. Teach her coming is a good, rewarding thing. Never call her over to yell at her or crate her (unless she likes her crate). Play bond building games with her. Someone recommended to me that I keep toys put away and only take them out when I was ready to play, so that they learn you're the fun person and she should be excited to see you. (I never actually tried that one)


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#13 ·
Too distracted?

The little one likely has DISTRACTION PROBLEMS.
If she is too new in your household, she hasn't yet learned that
YOU are her pack leader. Likely, the little one regards you as her lesser, or at most, her equal, (her LITTER MATE) so she pays no attention to you.

Use a firmer voice and make her EARN her treats. The "Watch ME"
command will help you. HOld up a treat that she wants, to your
eyes, and keep repeating WATCH ME, so that every time she hears this command, she will look in your eyes... then when you have her attention, give her a treat. You need a lot of repetition followed by a reward... to the point where your reward is no longer a TREAT, but loving words.

Huskies are very INDEPENDENT so you need patience and time to
get the little one to understand you.
 
#14 ·
Huskies are a challenge for sure! They are amazing escape artist! Only use a plastic crate to crate train, they can and will figure there way out of a metal crate! Exercise your husky a lot. Invest in interactive toys, a bored husky is a destructive husky. The husky is highly intelligent like the shepherd but are stubborn and not focused on their owner. Huskies enjoy the company of other dogs much more than their master, don't take it personal. Never have a husky off leash if they get free never chase them! They will view this as a game and run harder and faster. Always have a treat on hand to lure them back with.
Positive training only with a husky, prong collars do not work. PATIENCE! They are a great breed but read read read and educate yourself. You will be glad you did. I have a nine month old husky as well as 2 shepherds. They are a fun loving dog but are completely different from the shepherd. Huskies will challenge you in ways you never thought a dog could. Good Luck
 
#18 ·
Never have a husky off leash if they get free never chase them! They will view this as a game and run harder and faster. Always have a treat on hand to lure them back with.
Question here I don't have a Husky nor plans to get one. I have heard this samething about Greyhounds.

My thinking is that a properly trained dog comes when you call them? So what's the deal here? Just curious not doubting those with experience! :confused:
 
#16 ·
Thank you for all the responses!! As for research yes i should have, I'm a stay at home mom and its my boyfriends dog he's just working everyday so its up to me to train her. My boyfriend knows these dogs and has had them before. He used to live in Alaska. I'll be sure to research a lot on the breed!! She is very stubborn lol but I'm up to the task. I was going to take my shepherd mix running with me once i get him a collar but i think i will walk him and take her running with me. We aren't going to give her up so no worries on her being a shelter dog. It won't happen. Again i really appreciate all the advice!!

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#19 ·
Siberian huskies being independent thus not really caring where you are or what you want. Not a breed that can be off lead or ever having a reliable recall....live and breath to run so that overpowers keeping them close. Breed characteristics tell you what they will be. You won't see a Siberian Husky in Schutzhund for a reason just like you won't see a German Shepherd dog team in the Iditorod.
 
#28 ·
I am many years out now for having multiple dogs but when I had my huskies I had 2 females...2 males all kenneled together. There were squabbles, the worst instigator was when I let dog #5 a Cairn Terrier into visit. He was something else but he earned his spot in the pack by jumping on top of a dog house and howling with the others. Fights always looked and sounded worse than they really were. As for male/male or female/female, I was able to allow them to sort it out. I do think huskies are more pack oriented than many other breeds.
 
#29 ·
Like Middleofnowhere, I had a gorgeous Samoyed. She was as sweet as she was beautiful. She loved other dogs. Got along with everyone. My female GSD, on the other hand, was DA. One of the only dogs the GSD ever liked was a husky.

I love the GSD breed, but there is something to be said about breeds that aren't so picky about doggie friends. My hound mix can be with any dog, male, female, old, young, large or small. Same sex dogs, siblings, even same sex siblings can live together in hound world. I'm loving hound world. It makes life so easy and peaceful. It's nice to not have to deal with the DA anymore.
 
#30 ·
Huskies are pack guys so I would suppose they would be able to deal but yeah depending on the other breed of dogs, And hounds to I can see that.

But when you see a goofy wiggle boxer girl go off her nut!:eek: The thought of two females in the same household scares the living crap out of me!

Can you say...Bomb squad! :)
 
#31 ·
oh man I don't envy you!!! You've gotten a pretty good run down on the husky breed. I cant stand their mentality of "What can I do for you? Oh no no, you have this backwards... It's what can YOU do for me?" They're beautiful dogs but you'll never catch me with one. I love them... as friends dogs lol.

Siberian Huskies ADORE running. If you find one that doesn't like to run, something is wrong with that dog! Escape proofing your yard is next to impossible. As mentioned already, get a dog run. MUCH easier to escape proof. You'll want that sucker anchored solidly on some sort of cement dig proof area and the top of the run covered so no climbing or jumping out because they will totally climb out given the chance.

Kiss thoughts of a recall goodbye. All the huskies I've know and worked with, even from an early age had ZERO recall. They are so independent, it's like a reliable recall is a death sentence to them. Tether her to you, train as well as you can and make sure to enforce commands taught.
 
#38 ·
She's not really interested in coming to us when we call her. The only time she will listen is when we have a treat in our hands.
So always carry treats and reward her when she returns to you. Teach her to heel for food. Teach her to sit and stand and lie down with food. Teach her to wait and reward with food. Get her to focus on you.

Many people will get bored or fed up with using food rewards after a few days and don't realize they can use this technique to their advantage in many ways.

You have to use what the dog likes.
 
#39 ·
I've had huskies. You *can* train a recall, but you'd better make it well worth their while. I've found that rewarding them with more free time to run when you recall them is one effective way to get them to come back. One of our huskies would ONLY return if you asked him if he wanted to go for a ride. Every time he came back when I said that, we went for a ride. Even with a fenced yard, unless I was right there AND engaging our huskies, they were tied out. So if I was going to play fetch with another dog and not be on top of the huskies, they were on the tie-out.

I love huskies, and may indeed have another husky in the future, but you definitely need to do some research if you're going to a husky from a breed like the GSD.
 
#40 ·
OP here's a husky forum that some of us from here are on in regards to our sibes:
Husky Owners - The Siberian Husky Forum

I've had northern breeds all my life. I am addicted to the challenge, beauty, exercise, and independence. Couple of tips that may help:

1. To instigate a desire to come to you, you can try calling the dog and then turning and jogging away. For my sibes it has always triggered several instincts (prey, pack, and play). When the dog catches you, or up to you, offer a high value treat reward. As OriginalWacky said, a recall can be trained but I wouldn't trust it 100% of the time.

2. As others have said don't attempt an off leash recall outside of a contained area. They will be 5 miles away before they realize you're not keeping up.

3. I wouldn't trust a sibe with a small animal. I've heard many stories about sibes killing cats, small dogs, birds, vermin, etc. A couple I'm friends with has a system worked out with the farmers they live near. $10 per chicken, $15 if its a rooster, $5 per pet bunny, and $$$$$$ per cow calf. Obvs the couple needs to do a much better job containing their sibes but it speaks to the prey instincts of the breed. Certainly there are exceptions to every rule though, not every husky will be a supreme hunter.

4. And OP, if you have a fenced back yard please don't let the sibe out there unattended...ever. Sibes will dig under, climb over, break through, unlatch, or whatever else they can problem solve to get out of an enclosed space. I had a female that once found her way off a second story balcony terrace. :confused:

5. Invest in an undercoat rake if you don't have one already. A furminator is all well and good for finishing, but I've yet to find one with tines long enough to get through the winter coat. Vacuum daily, shop vac hourly, and dust flat surfaces every 5 mins during spring and fall. :)

6. Other than a sleeping husky, a quiet husky is a mischievous husky. Husky proof the house. For us that means: no food on counters, no dishes in sinks, all towels and cloths are above human eye level, papers are weighted down on desks and counters, pens/markers are in drawers, trash cans are behind closed doors. When I'm gone my husky always has access to bones/antlers for chewing, puzzle toys, highly durable squeaky toys, and is restricted to hard wood floors. I've had two huskies get bored and dig up my carpet.
  • This can all certainly be avoided with crating a dog all day. I've just found it easier to deal with doing these things myself than coming home to a stressed out sibe who has potentially injured itself trying escape a crate and/or destroyed the crate and then the house.

7. Easiest way to avoid the destruction is through exercise. I do 3 miles every morning with mine and then free play in the evenings out in a large fenced in lot.

8. Lastly, huskies are much smarter than a lot of people give them credit for. After doing 4 repetitions of the same trick wouldn't you be over it? Same with huskies in my experience. Food will only get you so far. After that make yourself waaaay more interesting or take a break. Finder (husky in my avatar) is training toward getting TDI certified. We train in 5-10 intervals and take lots of breaks. They can be trained. You have just gotta get creative and be persistent.

On a happy note though, I have never come across a more silly/playful breed. Personally I think they are easily as smart as GSDs :eek: (just less willing to train) and between the antics, noises, contortions, and jumbo sized personalities are an absolute riot to live with.

I wish you all the very best with your husky!
 
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