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ukrkoz
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Location: Auburn WA
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30-01-2018, 04:52 PM

Set up for a husky puppy

Morning all

We are in process of acquiring a husky puppy.
I am very well aware of responsibility hence, I want this to be a good experience.
Thus I am looking for suggestions.
Here's situation.
We live on a 6 acre fully fenced property. Though fully fenced, it does have some areas where dog can slide underneath fence, though they can be blocked. No intentions to install electric fence.
Property currently has fully fenced large chicken run.
Run is adjacent to a large shed with reasonable unused space available inside.
We will not allow dog inside the main house.
Son, who lives in ADU, has cat. He may host puppy for some time. He's very into pets. But, ultimately, dog will be outside only.
Property has 3 people. Myself, my wife, my son.
I am out 5 days a week, 6 to 6.
Wife does night shifts, 3 nights on, 3 to 8 days off. On shifts days, she is awake after 2pm, taking care of chickens and prepping for work.
Son works from home. He needs to drive to his work about once a week, for around 8 to 5.
This gives idea of how we can work with dog until it becomes independent enough.
I can build any dog house anywhere I want to. I am actually thinking of building it inside the shed and then making opening in the wall for dog to go in and out at will. Also, this should accustom dog to chickens by virtue of being close to them.
Part of the reason we need dog is we have pests, deer, coyote may show several times a year. Free roaming guard dog is welcomed.
I feel, between the three of us, we can dedicate decent time for puppy to grow well taken care of.
I am open to suggestions from more experienced dog owners.
Thank you
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Gnasher
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30-01-2018, 07:56 PM
Absolutely please do not get husky. He will not be suitable for living outside 24x7. Huskies have a very strong pack instinct, and will not understand why you are banishing him to live away from his pack.

Secondly, you just cannot leave such a dog for such long periods of time alone. Leaving him wandering loose on your 6 acres is not an option because huskies are escape artists - they can climb out of a tennis court by just climbing up the wire mesh and over the top. It would be terribly expensive to securely fence 6 acres for such an escape artist. They dig for the Olympics --- so unless the perimeter fencing was concreted well into the inside of the compound, he will tunnel out.

They have massive prey drive instincts. Your cat and the chickens will most likely be killed and eaten. You cannot reliably train any northern breed to ignore livestock when you are not there - it just is not going to happen.

You cannot allow a husky to roam at will - because of their prey drive they will devastate the local population of cats, chickens, even pigs and sheep. They will not deter coyote ... they are close relations of the coyote and most likely he will chum up with one or several and you will never see him again. Coyotes can mate with dogs although the offspring will be sterile ... you do not want to bring hundreds of unwanted half coyote half huskies into the world, you would have no wildlife left in your area.

I have owned wolf crosses for 20 years - a mix of malamute, siberian husky and wolf ... and if anything a husky would be even worse than one of my wolfie guys in terms of prey drive and escapeeism.

Please do not even consider getting a husky - you are condemning yourselves, the dogs, your pets and local wildlife to a hellish existence.

Why you do you describe deer and coyote as pests? Your son's cat is far more of a pest - killing hundreds of birds and harmless voles, shrews etc every year.
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SirRiley
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31-01-2018, 04:11 AM
I definitely do not recommend getting a husky to roam. As mentioned before, they are escape artists, especially if their physical and mental needs are not met. A working breed like that needs plenty of exercise and mental stimulation like training and mind games, none of which they will get just left to their own devices.

If you are unable to dedicate hours of time to a dog every day, do not get a working breed. They will make your life miserable.

The dog will need lots of training and socialization around chickens as well. Huskies have a high prey drive and if they are not tought to leave chickens alone they will find a way to kill them. (It is possible with the right training, but it is a lot of work and it will only work if the dog is properly exercise)
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Besoeker
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31-01-2018, 04:56 AM
Originally Posted by SirRiley View Post
I definitely do not recommend getting a husky to roam. As mentioned before, they are escape artists, especially if their physical and mental needs are not met. A working breed like that needs plenty of exercise and mental stimulation like training and mind games, none of which they will get just left to their own devices.

If you are unable to dedicate hours of time to a dog every day, do not get a working breed. They will make your life miserable.

The dog will need lots of training and socialization around chickens as well. Huskies have a high prey drive and if they are not tought to leave chickens alone they will find a way to kill them. (It is possible with the right training, but it is a lot of work and it will only work if the dog is properly exercise)
Other than meeting a couple on our walks, I don't know the breed. They seem to be not very sociable. I've seen them bark at other dogs including mine and straining on their leads. Max, ours, generally ignores them unless they get too close to myself or my wife. Then he gives them that intense, intimidating stare down. That fixes it. He is jut Max.
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Lynn
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31-01-2018, 08:07 AM
I agree with gnasher 100% on his please do not a get a Husky or any breed to live it's life outside and on it's own for so many hours.

My experience of Huskies is through a neighbour who had one from a pup it was very into the family but extremely hard work to train they dedicated their loves to training. It was still a nightmare could be unsociable towards other dogs and the one time they let it off lead when young even after being told not the best thing to do they lost it for over two hours.
They never again let it off but it was walked 3 times daily in all weathers for 2 hours each time. It still had bags of energy.
Now I live in a village and we have a local Husky it is left to live on a drive I myself haven't come across it as yet when out walking our dog but others have and again this one is quite unsociable to other dogs, it has been escaping and terrorising the local sheep we live in a farming community and peoples pet rabbits also and owners even when told it has been seen have been ignoring warnings.
Locals with livestock are getting fed up and we can see this ending tragically all for want of making sure dog is secure.

Personally reading your set up I do feel it is not ideal for any breed of dog as I have said before.
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Gnasher
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31-01-2018, 10:08 AM
I didn't want to say this as I felt I had been rather harsh on the OP as it was, but I absolutely agree that NO dog of whatever breed, mix or type would be happy living separated from his or her human pack. If you have 2 or more dogs living outside, then this is considerably better but I would personally only advise separating dogs from our living space in this way is only suitable for multiple dogs. We know so much more about our dogs than we did 30 years ago - for starters that they share the same DNA as the wolf, and so have been reclassified as Canis Lupus Familiaris to distinguish them from wolves. Their DNA only differs from a pure wolf by 0.8% so technically genetically no different. All dogs we now know need intense socialisation, as much exercise as you can possibly give them, once they reach adulthood, training and pack involvement. However much we like to think that our dog is absolutely fine living in a kennel or living outside at night, this is not the case. Webcams have proved this.

The best possible scenario for a healthy happy dog is to be with his pack the whole time; of course this is not possible in many cases due to work commitments but personally if I had to leave any dog or dogs home alone for more than 4 hours every day I would not have dogs, end of. And absolutely not, no way,no how any northern breed - it is suicide for both dog and owners - and their property!!
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Losos
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31-01-2018, 08:13 PM
Originally Posted by Lynn View Post
It was still a nightmare could be unsociable towards other dogs and the one time they let it off lead when young even after being told not the best thing to do they lost it for over two hours.
Originally Posted by Gnasher View Post
NO dog of whatever breed, mix or type would be happy living separated from his or her human pack. If you have 2 or more dogs living outside, then this is considerably better but I would personally only advise separating dogs from our living space in this way is only suitable for multiple dogs.
Both of the above posts are from experienced people and I heartily agree with everything they and others have said.

Wonder if the OP will come back
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Gnasher
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31-01-2018, 09:36 PM
As I first suspected I think it was a wind-up but I wanted to be sure I put them off the husky idea just in case it was genuine
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Besoeker
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31-01-2018, 11:32 PM
Originally Posted by Gnasher View Post
As I first suspected I think it was a wind-up but I wanted to be sure I put them off the husky idea just in case it was genuine
A one post wonder it would seem.
Didn't get the answer he wanted.
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Gnasher
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01-02-2018, 07:13 AM
Yup! If he is genuine I hope we have put him off getting any dog, let alone a northern breed.
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