How to care for a Siberian Husky, a wonderful breed widely known for its love of people and blue eyes. All important points regarding feeding, training, walking and care.
The Siberian Husky is a domesticated sled dog breed that has existed on Earth for over 5,000 years. They are popular due to their gentle nature, kindness towards people and pleasant appearance, in addition, they are unique as they have a number of properties not found in other dogs.
For example, they cannot bark. Huskies communicate with people and their fellow creatures by howling and strange rumbling sounds, just like wolves. By the way, this similarity further suggests that wolves are their ancestors, but unlike them, Huskies never attack people, even if someone else enters their territory.
In addition, Huskies do not smell like dogs, and their fur can clean itself, which is very rare among dogs.
Where to keep
Private houses and cottages are best suited for this, because the dog needs to run and jump a lot, and the one who keeps a Husky in an apartment must make a choice what is more important: the integrity of the home interior or the happiness of his pet.
In addition, a prolonged wolf howl will most likely drive the neighbors crazy, so the matter could end very badly (even with the participation of the police). Living in a house with a garden, the dog will be able to go out into the yard at any time and run or jump, hunt birds and chew something; in general, this is very important for dogs, but for Husky it is doubly important.
Important: Huskies are a freedom-loving breed, and therefore they often run away from home. You need to carefully monitor the front door, and you should not let her go into the garden without a leash if the fences are lower than 2 meters, since Huskies, having strong legs, can easily jump over them.
Husky puppies
If you decide to get a dog of this breed, you should first study the living conditions. And then decide whether you can provide her with the proper conditions. We'll look at how to care for a husky next.
How to choose a puppy? When choosing a baby, you need to decide on your goals: will it be just a friend or are you planning to participate in various kinds of exhibitions. What does it matter? Very large, since the sex of the animal is selected depending on the goals. Male Huskies are stronger and more resilient, while female Huskies have a stronger hunting instinct.
In addition, husky puppies, like adult dogs, cannot tolerate loneliness. They will miss you all day and wait for your arrival. Huskies are sociable domestic pets. However, it is better to take a puppy from a breeder who raises it at home. Such an animal will initially be adapted for living in a house or apartment and will be more socialized.
You should choose a puppy no earlier than eight weeks. At this age you can already see what an adult animal will be like. For a show puppy, all external signs must be ideal. However, do not discount that some parameters may change in the future.
How to train
Teaching Huskies commands is very difficult because they are used to cooperating with people rather than obeying, and the fact that they have never been used as hunting dogs also has an impact.
It is recommended to train Huskies from childhood, but it should be clearly understood that this is not a Sheepdog or a Labrador. A husky may not follow a command simply because it doesn’t want to, and it cannot be forced.
Raising your voice will only further aggravate the situation.
Command the dog gently in a spirit of mutual understanding. Your command should be more like a suggestion than an order, then the Husky, out of the kindness of his heart, will do what you want from it and everyone will be happy.
Uselessness as watchmen
It makes no sense to use Huskies as guards. The thing is that they do not have the instinct of aggression towards people, or rather they do, but it is blocked, hidden deep in the subconscious. The reason for this most likely lies in the fact that they worked for thousands of years in the terrible conditions of the far north.
Thus, these dogs are not able to protect the owner in case of a threat from a person, but they may well do this if attacked by another animal, for example, a dog or a bear.
Important: If you think that this breed will protect you from robbers, it is better to turn your attention to a Labrador or Shepherd. There were often cases when thieves calmly walked into the house where Husky lived, and when she saw them, she not only did not make a fuss, but also wagged her tail in a friendly manner, caressed her and tried to play.
Education
In order for a dog to respond well to training and education, it is necessary to begin these trainings from childhood. Also, suppress all bad habits in young puppies so that they do not develop into big problems in the future. All achievements should be praised, and misdeeds should be punished. The most important thing is to give your pet as much time and attention as possible.
How to stop howling?
This is a fairly common occurrence among dogs. This is especially common among husky dogs. You won't be able to completely wean your pet off of this. In order for the dog to not howl so often, it needs to be exhausted with walks.
REFERENCE! You can try to scold the dog and say that this is impossible. Unfortunately, howling is one of the characteristics of this breed.
Make you howl
Huskies do not need to be forced to howl or forced to do this in any way. Since this is one of the characteristics of the dog, it will begin to howl on its own. She can howl when she is having fun, so you can play with her and, perhaps, in the very process of playing you can hear her howl.
How to calm down?
In order for your pet to calm down, you need to figure it out and understand what he wants. If he pulls and whines towards the door, then most likely he wants to take a walk or relieve himself. If the dog brings the owner a toy and runs around, then you need to play with him. You need to learn to understand your animal.
Stop biting
The two main reasons for this problem are:
- At two months, babies begin to cut their teeth.
- The ancestors are wolves.
The owner’s games can also lead to this, when he waves his legs and thereby allows himself to be bitten. In the future, the dog will consider them toys. To wean your pet from this, you need to purchase special toys so that he chews them.
Stop chewing on everything
To wean your pets from such a bad habit, which spoils not only furniture, but also things, you need to give your puppy toys that he can gnaw and bite. Then the puppy will be able to massage his gums, as small children do. Such a toy, for example, could be a rubber ball with pimples .
Make friends with huskies
The Husky breed is very friendly, but it may happen that the pet that appears first will not accept the new one and will snap or, even worse, bite.
Advice! If you bring a new dog into a house where a husky already lives, keep an eye on them for the first few days. Send them to sleep in different rooms, locking the dogs out. While walking, try to make them friends through common games and affectionate words.
If the dogs categorically do not want to become friends, then contact a professional dog handler who, in a few sessions, will pacify both dogs and accustom them to each other’s company.
Stop pulling on the leash
Weaning your pet from pulling on a leash is quite a difficult task. To do this, you need to take your dog to a behavior specialist. Most often this happens due to the fact that the pet wants to go to a completely different place than its owner; in addition, strong pressure on the pet’s neck can affect it, and it may simply be painful. In any case, if the dog does not listen to you, go to professional training lessons.
Train to walk without a leash
Since the Husky is easy to learn and amenable to training, solving this problem will be easy. To do this you should say: “Nearby!” - and the dog must stand next to the owner. This task is considered one of the most difficult for a dog. Practice with a leash first, otherwise the dog may run away.
Learn to ride in a harness
By their origin, these animals are considered mounts, so this will not be so difficult. To do this, even an untrained dog needs to fasten a leash to the collar and stand on small, light skis or a sled. The animal begins to pull the sled or skis instinctively.
How to teach singing?
At first it may seem unrealistic and fantastic, but it is quite real. To make your pet sing, you need to turn on the music and start howling a little. Or use collective singing; in such a situation, the pet may also begin to sing along.
Teach to talk
The most common words a husky can say to a patient owner are “yum-yum” and “mama.” If a dog whines when music is playing, it means it can repeat the words.
How to walk
It is best to keep a husky on a personal plot, but even in this case, you still need to take it for walks. The fact is that this breed is used to traveling long distances, so they are very drawn to go for a walk.
A Husky that is not walked may begin to feel depressed and apathetic after 2-3 days and develop a depressed state. The dog will feel that he is not fulfilling his “purpose.”
But a walk is not everything, besides simply leaving the house, they need to be given a lot of physical activity, this triggers the genetic memory of their riding ancestors. Ideally, if the owner is involved in sports, he will take the animal with him for a run to some place, for example, a forest park.
Huskies really do not like the entertainment of ordinary dogs. They never bring sticks or balls in their teeth, do not give a paw, and rarely fight with the owner. But in terms of activity, few are inferior to them - they can run all day and not even get tired.
It is recommended to walk your Husky 2-3 times a day, and at least one of the walks should involve stress on the muscles.
How to fix the problem
It is recommended to start teaching your dog to walk on a leash at 3-4 months of age. When training, dog handlers advise adhering to the following rules:
- If a dog is very excited in anticipation of a walk, and at the sight of a leash with a carabiner in the owner’s hands, it falls into a state of violent delight, jumps, and rushes to the door, it is better to wait until the animal calms down and can adequately respond to the situation.
- The owner must be the first to leave and enter the premises. A pet that rushes forward should be pulled back by pulling on the leash.
- To make training easier, it is recommended to fix the leash in two positions - at the maximum length, for walking, and at the minimum length, to hold the dog at your leg.
- If during a walk the dog begins to pull strongly on the leash, you need to stop it with a command or a conditioned signal, and after a short pause continue moving. As an option, you can suddenly change the direction of movement, then the dog will be forced to follow the owner, and he will not be able to rush forward.
- Dogs perfectly sense the general mood of people. If the owner is relaxed during a walk, his gait is leisurely and measured, the dog will most likely behave calmly, without tension or manifestations of hyperactivity.
- If your pet does not get used to walking on a leash too quickly, or for some reason has violated the already mastered rules, you can temporarily stop walking, but you should never scold, let alone punish, your pet. To avoid punishment, the dog may try to run away from the angry owner and pull on the leash even more.
- It is recommended to motivate correct behavior during a walk with praise and treats.
Tips on how to teach a dog to walk without pulling on a leash are not a panacea; each animal has its own character, and the factors influencing its behavior may be different. If, during the process of training a dog, problems arise that the owner cannot solve on his own, you can contact the instructors, they will help you understand the situation and find an individual approach to the animal.
Is it possible to make a Husky aggressive?
There are special techniques by which the aggressive instinct within an animal can be unblocked. But it is strictly forbidden to do this, because such an individual becomes uncontrollable.
A husky, with an awakened predatory instinct, attacks everyone it sees, even its owner, and given its great physical strength, it costs it nothing to kill a person. At the same time, an “unblocked” dog cannot be returned to its previous state by any means, so it can only be euthanized.
What to feed
Huskies require regular exercise, so they need high-quality, nutritious food. At the same time, it must be balanced so that the animal does not develop diseases from a lack or excess of any substances.
It is extremely difficult to prepare such food; for this you need to have at least a deep knowledge of nutrition, so the best solution is to buy special food in pet stores, but they should not be cheap, since they significantly shorten the dog’s life.
Apartment life
Huskies feel comfortable in an apartment. However, you should remember that the animal needs physical activity and walks. If you can provide all this to your dog, then a city apartment will become a normal alternative to a private house for it. The animal does not require special living conditions, but the husky should have its own personal space. It can be a low or spacious sofa.
Since huskies are riding animals by nature, they need heavy loads. A simple walk once a day will not be enough. Therefore, for a breeder, the question of how to care for a husky should not be so important as the issue of rational education and proper stress should be considered.
Animals of this breed love to travel long distances, and there must be some kind of load behind them. Therefore, to form a beautiful body for a dog, you will have to exercise it regularly. In the summer, you can take your dog for bike rides, and in the winter, you can go to the forest. Often dog breeders negotiate and unite their huskies for sled competitions. This is an excellent leisure option for an animal.
Mating
It is better to breed when the bitch reaches 2 years of age, since with early pregnancy there is a risk that the puppies will be born with deviations from the standard. But late pregnancy (after 4 years) can also be harmful, but also to the health of the dog itself.
The owner of a male dog can earn money from mating, since the owners of the female must pay him for the opportunity to inseminate. But he, in turn, is obliged to provide an appropriate certificate confirming that his Husky meets international standards.
