Don't look at his eyes, it's a wolf! (Siberian Husky)

Member Name: whitby

Product:	Siberian Husky
Date:	09/01/02 (2277 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Highly intelligent, Very Beautiful, Extremely rewarding

Disadvantages: Wouldn't trust them with other pets / children automatically, Need plenty of exercise, Expensive

Pet, Worker and Show dog all are roles fulfilled by the breed of dog that I own.

My Siberian Huskies are referred to as many things: Eskimo Dog, Sled Dog and Wolf.

They are not overly common here in the UK but everyone knows what breed they are as they are so striking and they draw lots of attention. They are not a dog to be brought into the family fold easily though.

I am writing this opinion for two reasons. 1. Dooyoo prompted it ? Huskies are something else I know about 2. A person could easily buy Husky and not know what they were letting themselves in for.

I hope my opinion will stop there being a lot of abandoned Husky Pups in the UK.

**** Background ****

Along with the Alaskan Malamute and the Samoyed, the Husky is a direct descendant of the Eskimo Dog. The jury is still out as to whether or not the breed has at sometime been crossed with wolves. This could have happened in Eskimo times as wolves are better hunters but Huskies have better endurance, as they are smaller.

The most famous Husky is Balto the lead dog in the 1925 Anchorage Serum Run. The bronze statue of Balto in Central Park, New York sums up all that he did, and it says: ‘Dedicated to the indomitable spirit of the sled dogs that relayed antitoxin 600miles over rough ice, across treacherous waters and through arctic blizzards form Nenana to the relief of a stricken Nome in 1925. Endurance - Fidelity – Endurance’.

**** Appearance ****

I do not show my Husky dogs although they are able to participate under the ‘Working Dog’ category. The standard allows however, for a mix of colours from red, white, grey and black. My personal favourite is the white and black blend as this is characteristic of the breed.

Husky dogs are often born with two blue eyes, over the early growing up stage the colouring may change. Both of my ‘boys’ were born with blue eyes, Tzar now ha
s one blue and one brown whilst Merlin has both brown.

Husky dogs have a double coat and it appears that they are constantly maulting. In truth it is only twice a year around April and September. The breed is quite vain though and is very good at cleaning itself. Surprisingly they do not have a doggy odour, which means that they do need minimum bathing. What is time consuming though, especially in the longer haired breed is the grooming.

Please don’t be fooled into thinking that a husky pup will keep the same coloured markings and eye shadings as these develop over time and can change. A breeder I have told me of a pup who was born with blue eyes and then deserted when they changed to brown at about 10 weeks.

**** Temperament ****

Although very skilled in snow and extremely sporty and energetic the Siberian Husky is not a guard dog. They are aware of the humans in their pack and are protective towards them, but are likely to show a burglar around rather than defend property. As their expression is always alert and friendly they draw many a fan walking down the road. I would sum them up as friendly alert and intelligent. However as they are a traditional pack animal, the owner needs to take charge and show who is boss.

I must admit that I was scared of dogs (due to being bitten as a baby), and this comes across in my relationship with Tzar. Having learnt more about the breed I am able to keep on top of Merlin but Tzar will often challenge me to see if he can advance a notch in the pecking order. Rarely do I hear my boys bark - Huskies howl and if they don’t get their own way they will howl and howl and howl!

**** Play ****

Each day my dogs are taken to work in my boyfriends van. They are either out in the van or workshop all day. They have a 150-foot square garden to run around in but this is not enough so each evening they are taken to the rugby fields near to where we live. The sad apa
rt about this is that they only ever get to run around on their extendable leads as every book ever written about the breed will tell you – ‘let them run - but don’t let them off’. This is because Huskies have the need to run bred into them, and they are likely to stop running and think ‘where am I?’ We have lost ours twice and it is a heart stopping experience. As we had them micro chipped we got them back.

How could they loose them? ? This is what you are probably thinking. Well we knew we shouldn’t let them off, but we did. We took them to the usual field at about 1am and thought it would be safe. You see we have been to puppy/intermediate training classes and the boys are great at their recalls etc there. But in the fields??.. We lost them as they chased after a fox.

The only safe place to really let them run is a fenced in area or doggy park and these are available.

I have a rabbit and have had to build a stronghold for him as previously Tzar smashed into the old rabbit house I had (luckily my rabbit Whitby fainted so no harm was done). With regards to Huskies and children it is recommended that they are not introduced until the child is aged around 8. My niece aged 3 does not meet my dogs.



**** Cost ****

We bought each of ours for £500 from a well-known breeder in Colchester. With that we had the customary six weeks insurance thrown in to. Each year we take them to the vet for worming, jabs and a check up this costs about £200 for both dogs.

The hard-hitting cost comes with the food. You see huskies have to have a High Protein, High Fat diet that comes mainly from meat not vegetable. It needs to be highly digestible or the stomach problems we experienced with Tzar will occur. We also spend £70 per week on food and boredom breakers to keep them entertained. I have excluded the cost of travelling to days out in this as this type of item varies from owne
r to owner. Personally we take our boys on the 250mile round trip to the New Forest and then to Bournemouth beach as often as possible as it gives them a new place to explore and then the thrill of the sea to calm down in.

You may feel that this review is all negative about the breed but that is not the case. They are highly intelligent and very giving but at the same time they are very time consuming and need to be watched with young children and other animals. I say this because already Tzar is onto his fourth kill - foxes, cats, birds and small animals. I love my dogs totally and wouldn’t be without them but at the same time I know that the people they meet would love to buy one too, because of the lovely way they look and their mannerisms.

This opinion has been written in the hope that people will not steam in and buy a Husky without thinking that they are not a normal dog and they need a lot more care and attention than perhaps a Labrador would.

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