Any Siberian husky owners?

[SpotTheCat]

So a small dog.

Handling a 75+ pound dog is vastly different.

Thats what I was worried about

Is there a breeder near you? Maybe see if you can do a meet up to learn about that breeders line of dogs.
Don't let them think you are looking to buy one but that you are learning about the breed so that when the time comes you can make an informed decision. You need to know the good and the bad about any breed you are looking to add to your household. Make it clear that you want to make an informed decision so you choose the right fit for your lifestyle.


One other thing about the Malamutes.....they hate the heat. It gets over 75°F and they are miserable. They will dig wallows in the snow and lay in those refusing to come inside. About the only time I don't see panting is when it's less than 50°F out.

I was going to go visit breeders closer to the time that we want to get a puppy. I do want to go to crufts which I am hoping to do next year and see if I can talk to breeders there.

Thank you!

 

[black_cat]

@SpotTheCat if you go to crufts I will be sO jealous
but it is a great place to talk to breeders
people on instagram and facebook will probably be super open to questions as well

 

[21hens-incharge]

By the by.....the breed standard says females should be around 75#. Ours are a bit bigger at 85-90#.

My easiest to train and least problematic dog out of the dozen I have had has been my pit husky mix. She is 70 pounds and knee high to me at her shoulder.

Just sayin....don't rule out a nice mixed breed dog in your searching for a good fit.

 

[SpotTheCat]

By the by.....the breed standard says females should be around 75#. Ours are a bit bigger at 85-90#.

My easiest to train and least problematic dog out of the dozen I have had has been my pit husky mix. She is 70 pounds and knee high to me at her shoulder.

Just sayin....don't rule out a nice mixed breed dog in your searching for a good fit.

My problem is I really want to do mushing, other wise there would be plenty of dogs that fit

 

[SpotTheCat]

@SpotTheCat if you go to crufts I will be sO jealous
but it is a great place to talk to breeders
people on instagram and facebook will probably be super open to questions as well

Prepare to be jealous I am jealous of you getting to do junior handling and volunteering

 

[21hens-incharge]

My problem is I really want to do mushing, other wise there would be plenty of dogs that fit

If there are any mushing teams around you it would be awesome to see if you can observe. It would be a great resource for information on how to get started, pick the right dog and train them.

 

[ShrekDawg]

I’m not sure about the cat thing, that largely depends on the individual dog, but I just wanted to say that you do NOT necessarily need a “mushing breed” to do this sport or really any sort of joring. In fact, I would say it might be better to NOT get one given your current circumstances. Unless you were planning to compete with the dog??? But even then, there are other breeds and purpose bred crosses that may be better for you.

Just about any breed can do bike joring, ski joring, etc. as long as they’re over about 30-40 ish lbs and love pulling. Labs, Terriers, GSDs, even Border Collies can do this. I would also recommend perhaps a Eurohound (purpose bred cross specifically bred for speed for sprint racing and, quite often, dry land racing) or an Alaskan Husky or even just a regular purebred German Shorthaired Pointer or just Pointer (different breed. Think the latter is English).

Just try to find a breed and temperament you want for your family and worry about mushing later cause essentially any dog can do it if they’re big enough and raised right. If you want to race with it or something, then maybe get one for that but even then, I would just practice and gain experience first before racing.

 

[ShrekDawg]

My problem is I really want to do mushing, other wise there would be plenty of dogs that fit

Mushing or joring? Because just about any dog can do joring. You do not need a mushing breed for that. If you’re talking actual mushing with like a whole team of dogs then it might be a little different but even then, I’ve seen border collie teams and poodle teams succeed soooo... and look into the breeds I mentioned as I think they may be better fits for you.

 

[NatJ]

My problem is I really want to do mushing, other wise there would be plenty of dogs that fit

you do NOT necessarily need a “mushing breed” to do this sport

Just what I was going to say!

Your best bet would be to talk to actual mushers about what kinds of dogs are suitable, if mushing is what you want.

In Alaska where I grew up, real sled dogs (the racing kind) are usually NOT purebreds recognized by any kennel club or registry.

The ones pictured here look to me like a typical assortment:
https://www.researchgate.net/figure...ly-for-their-racing-performance_fig1_45281024

 

[black_cat]

I’m not sure about the cat thing, that largely depends on the individual dog, but I just wanted to say that you do NOT necessarily need a “mushing breed” to do this sport or really any sort of joring. In fact, I would say it might be better to NOT get one given your current circumstances. Unless you were planning to compete with the dog??? But even then, there are other breeds and purpose bred crosses that may be better for you.

Just about any breed can do bike joring, ski joring, etc. as long as they’re over about 30-40 ish lbs and love pulling. Labs, Terriers, GSDs, even Border Collies can do this. I would also recommend perhaps a Eurohound (purpose bred cross specifically bred for speed for sprint racing and, quite often, dry land racing) or an Alaskan Husky or even just a regular purebred German Shorthaired Pointer or just Pointer (different breed. Think the latter is English).

Just try to find a breed and temperament you want for your family and worry about mushing later cause essentially any dog can do it if they’re big enough and raised right. If you want to race with it or something, then maybe get one for that but even then, I would just practice and gain experience first before racing.

Spot really wants a spitz