Am I prepared?

[infernalstone]

As you can guess, since I'm here, I'm looking into getting a husky. My intentions are to look for a younger rescue dog, because from I've seen locally, there are a decent number of rescue huskies and they're pretty much all house trained (one less thing to teach!). There's a lot to take in, reading around on huskies, so I'm hoping some more experienced people can look over this and see what I might be missing or forgetting.

I'm a college graduate student, working under assistantship for atleast the next year. So, what this means is while I don't have a set schedule, and I live close enough to the school that if need be, I can make a trip home, there will be times that I may be away for most of the day. I'm not new to animals, having owned a dog (Retriever mix) who lived to be a happy 14 years old. She never have any health issues, aside from plumping up, which we found out was the neighbors feeding her their leftover biscuits and gravy every morning. On top of that, I also have had a few reptiles, all of whom lived to their general captivity age.

My intentions are for the husky to be and indoor/outdoor dog as my cousin's older dog (A mutt if we ever saw one) is. When I or my cousin is home (when he's intown, due to the nature of his work), she'll be inside. Most likely, when we're not here, she'll be outside on a runner. This is one area I'm not certain of. My cousins dog can be left outdoors with no intentions of escaping. He's too lazy and attached to home to do that. the problem is, all but two 6 foot sections of the fence is 6' privacy fence or 6' iron gating. One section is about 5', the other is the problem, where it's only about 4' tall. I'm worried that having her on a runner, while the other dog is free to roam (read: lazying on the porch or driveway) might create jealousy. I've also considered using invisible fence to barrier off the two problem spots.

As far as sleeping areas, she'll have a crate indoors, in the room I use, and for outdoors, I'll either build or buy a dog shelter. While I do intend to crate train her, she'll won't be crated unless I'm not around and the weather is bad, she needs some cooling down time, or when she has to stay at my mothers for a few days.

Speaking of, when there won't be anyone around for a few days, for whatever reason, my intention is for her to go stay with my mother, who she should get quickly acclimated to as I visit her on the other side of town frequently. My mother doesn't have the space that I have here, which is why I want the husky to be crate trained, and see this as ok and not some bizarre new experience.

Things that I'm preparing for, given what I've read:

Huskies can be trained, however they can be a bit stubborn about it.

I'll need to assert that my cousin and I are the alphas in the household, since huskies are pack animals. My cousin's dog is too lazy to care about that stuff.

Toys. Lots of toys that are going to get chewed to pieces.

From what I understand huskies can be trained to either not dig or dig in a designated area that they know is theirs to dig.

The dog could probably pull my truck down the block before she gets tired.

As with any dog, I'll need to find a vet I'm comfortable with, and has some experience with huskies. I don't think this will be a problem in Memphis.

I am looking into microchipping.

I am aware of the usual stuff needed for dogs.

Hopefully I'm still not missing something, but if I am, please point it out. Like I said before, it's a lot to read, take in, and keep track of.

I like what I've read about husky personalities, and I think I'm as mentally prepared for the challenges as I can be without real experience. Also, it doesn't hurt that they're gorgeous dogs.

[Sarah]

Wow - excellent!

You've sure done your reading!!

Crating is a good idea, especially if staying with your mum

With the outside fencing, i'd be careful, huskies are escapre artists and are not as nuts as they make out to be lol The 4ft part of the fence i think WILL be an issue - they could clear that with theirs eyes closed. incisible fencing works but only to a point - if they see something they want badly enough - squirrel etc, then they will get through it.

I know a few members from the US have looked into this type of fencing in great detail and I'm sure they can be of more help than I can lol

The only other thing I can think of is food - have you decided what food you will feed?

[BingBlaze n Skyla]

also they cant b let off lead as they will just RUN AND RUN AND RUN n not stop till unfortunately sumthings stops them - it is possible 2 train a recall but i wud want it 2 b bomb proof b4 even thinkin about it if u cnt trust ur dog 2 ignore a rabbit/dog/cat/other small animal and come back dont risk it

also good luck in ur search for ur pup check out this part ov the forum http://www.husky-owners.com/forum/index.php?/forum/22-husky-rehoming/ as far as im aware there are still some dogs in rescues in the threads there - good luck

[Mazz]

Landon, All good points to consider. Regarding fencing, here's what we have. An acre fenced in with 5' cedar fencing. Our last Husky could jump that with ease, and did until she was older and did not care. Before we got Zoya home, we had an underground fence installed. It was not the Invisible Fence brand, but one called DogWatch. It was not cheap. But, it uses FM frequency instead of AM, and is more robust in features and design than the Invisible Fence we looked at. We had the wire burried inside the perimeter of the fence, about 3 feet all the way around. What this does, is it slows Zoya down just enough, that she does not even attempt to jump the fence. It works. That's all I can say. The burried fence alone will not normally stop a Husky. Their prey drive is so intense, that what little stimulation the burried fence provides, just simply does not register and they go right through.

We found also, that having a second dog in the pack, keeps the attention away from the fence and other distractions, and keeps her focused on the other dog. Now, if you get two Huskies, it may be a whole new ball game.

[infernalstone]

Food is not something I've considered, thanks for reminding me. I think I'll ask the local rescue groups what they feed their huskies.

The more I look into our backyard, the more I think a good length runner is the best option. I don't know how I missed the woodpile that cuts about 2 feet of climbing height out of the fence line. I could move it next to the shed, but that really only moves it about 3 feet from the fence. I've considering coyote rollers, but then I still have to deal with her trying to get under the fence.

I went back out again a few minutes ago to give it a look, since it's finally warming up a bit here. And I got the joy of finding out that the back fence (which is really the neighbors fence, on the next street) has the awesome security measure of lining the fence with old, rusty razorblades. So guess who gets to pry those things out.

So yea, I think a creative dog runner will work for unsupervised outdoor time. I'm pretty sure I can give her access to 90% of the yard, and keep her away from places she doesn't need to be or could get hung up on. Then I think she won't have the jealousy of the other dog's free roaming, as long as I allow her access to the areas the other dog hangs out at.

[Smithy]

Good replies there, but you've all forgotten one thing........... a really really good vacuum cleaner! And no I'm not joking...

[infernalstone]

Thank goodness for hardwood floors and cheap vinyl couches?

[shanetez1]

seriously think about the boundries of the garden we were out smarted every time! we put 7ft solid fencing round

our garden to find her in neibhours garden in less then half an hour. she dug clean under it! We then went down a few feet to

secure it all again! dont be as blonde as me i also gave her a helping hand by placing picnic table next to fence

i may as well have left the gate open! if they see an oppertunity there gone! just a good job i have nice neighbours lol plus i have

a nature reserve that backs on to my garden so theres always something fun to temp and chase!

oh and your going to need a very good sense of humor as long as you have that you and your husky will get along just fine!

[utahraptr]

Hey, we have a runner for our two and it works well. We don't let them on it unsupervised though, as they can get tangled up. That and Haley could slip her collar and harness, and she'd be off, especially if the neighbor's goats or cats are out. I had a dog as a kid that was on a runner, and she learned how to unhook the runner by rubbing her collar up on the other dog (also on the runner). She'd get loose, and the other dog would be hooked to two lines! Only took her about a minute to get the runner line off her collar. I'm waiting for Haley to learn that one (she got the leash off her Halti off one day at the park by rolling around, but thankfully she didn't realize she was free and didn't run off. I went to walk, and the leash went slack, and I realized she was loose before she did! SO I wouldn't ut it ast her to learn how to unhook a runner from her collar or harness).

We want to put up a fence this year though so they can run freely. I agree with putting the nvisible fence in on the inside of the fence line, to slow them down when they get too close to the fence (stop them from jumping the fence). It's also good to stop them from digging under the fence. We plan on having a chainlink or similar fence, with a buried invisifence along the inside. I also thought about a hedgerow or plants right along the fence, so they couldn't see through the fence.