Tips to improve recall of an unruly Husky?! Help!

[RCP Equestrian]

As title really!

I have a Husky bitch, just turned one. We got her at 7 months from a private home who had no time to give her the exercise/attention she needed.

We have our own place (yard) so we just let our dogs roam about for most of the day and they're locked away at night.

Although she has improved a lot since being with us her recall is c**p or non existant! she often runs away and has been sneaking out the fencing and tootling up the road round the housing estate. Which is highly annoying as we have ample amounts of fields to run about in but even moreso the fact that cars go pretty fast down there and I'm scared she gets hit or pinched

My other dogs are good at recall, Chi and Chi x Shitzu never really leave you and my Wolfdog pup is very good, unless the Husky has kidnapped him and they go off on their travels together!

Nothing tempts her back at all, tried their food (Natural Instinct) treats, cheese, ham etc etc and she just ignores you or stares at you then runs off! Once she's out she cant be caught until she wants to be caught. Shes such a loving, friendly dog when shes with you, loves kisses and cuddles and any sort of attention but only on her terms and when she wants it. She was spayed not to long ago and she has calmed down since and doesnt stray as much but still not how I want her to be.

Wolfdog on his own and sometimes with her is brill, will leave other dogs and come back to you but is getting slightly worse because of hanging around with her they both ran away for about an hour yesterday and we were shouting for ages for them, they did come back and gave them cuddles, pats and treats so its not as if they're getting wrong when they return (as much as you want to I know its reverse psychology for dogs ) I'm just worried something will happen when they're off galavanting, she is very switched on but Wolfdog not so much!

Any tips welcome, feel like I've tried everything but there must be something out there that will work!

X

 

[_jac_]

I don't know much ( or anything ) about huskies except that all the breeders/ enthusiasts say they need to be off lead in a secure area only. These dogs are bred to run, and clearly that is what yours has mind. There is a very good chance this dog will be the cause of an accident if you do not provide this need to run with a safe outlet

 

[Spudlet]

We have a husky at training, who has been with us since she was a puppy. Her owners are great - you can tell they do all the homework, really put their backs into it.

Does this dog recall? No. She was doing ok, but as she has grown she has got bolder, and less likely to return. It's perfectly normal for the breed, and exactly as expected. We still do recall (after a fashion) with her because we're in a safe environment, but only under certain conditions - all the other dogs come out for a minute, only in the double-fenced arena, and last of all, as it is inevitable that it will take time to get her back. Really, it's more of a mad run with a return at the end than a formal recall. And the reason she does that is a lot of hard work from her owners. They do not let her off the lead in public - she is going to be a cani-cross type dog, as fortunately her owners are keen runners. So she has a good life.

Huskies are escape-artists, wanderers and hunters - someone on here, who I am sure will pop up on this thread, has two (clearly she is bonkers) and she can tell you all about it! You need to make sure she is securely fenced in at all times, and keep her attached to you by lead or long-line when out, or I am afraid you are likely to lose her at some point soon.

Sorry, I'm sure this is not the answer you had hoped for. But it is an honest opinion.

eta I give that example to show that it's not necessarily that your training is deficient here - you're playing with a stacked deck from day one because you are trying to go against generations of breeding for independent, tough dogs! Dogs that would once upon a time have been let to themselves all summer to scavenge and hunt for food, and only back in the winter to work pulling sleds, I believe. What I'm saying is, some things you can train, but some things you have to learn to manage instead. And I do think husky recall goes in the latter category.

 

[CorvusCorax]

Look up what huskies are bred for.

They are bred to run, and run, and run, all day. If that is not provided for them by their owners, they will do it for themselves.

They are working dogs, they do not make good pets and while some individual dogs recall well, it's not in their genetics, as a rule, to want to be social, near people and hang around their own home all day. They want to run and to jump and to dig and to howl.

Rather than fit a square peg into a round hole, I would try providing an outlet for her by going joking, biking with her onlead (once she is a few months older and is fully grown to avoid too much impact on the joints) and expending her energy that way.
Look up Cani-X or Bikejoring.
If you don't have the time and energy to do that, as mentioned, keep her in a secure area or dog run when she is not with you.

 

[Nikki J]

You've got yourself a typical husky there! They are social pack animals - which means they want to be with their "pack" - ie their human family - 24/7. she is following her natural wolf instincts to explore, hunt etc., but of course you simply cannot allow her to take herself off like this. She is not being naughty when she slips under or over the fencing, she is merely following her instincts. All northern breeds, being closer to the wolf than most other breeds, are supremely intelligent, easily bored, and really do not have much desire to please their owners in any way - especially where it comes to recall. which is why most husky and mal breeders say you should never let them off the lead except in a totally secure area.

I don't actually agree with this - with hard work, consistency and dedication you CAN train a reliable recall, but it is tens of times harder than with "ordinary" dogs. Certainly my experience with northern breeds is that they are rarely turned on by titbits. The most intransigent of them can never be trained a reliable recall, unless you are prepared to use an e collar which most people are not. We have 2 mal crosses - 1, the entire male, has a superb recall, and is an excellent all round dog. We have never had issues with him really. He was rescued about 5 or 6 years ago. His kennel mate, a castrated male, who we rescued nearly 3 years ago, was a completely different kettle of fish. We got absolutely nowhere with recall training, and ended up resorting to an e collar. He now has an excellent recall and can reliably be let off the lead whenever we want.

It may be that your bitch does fall into the "intransigent" category, but if she does and you really feel - like me - that you confine a dog like a husky to a lead the whole time is totally unacceptable - then you may need to consider the e collar route - having tried everything else first of course. As you probably already know huskies have a huge prey drive, so it is not going to be easy but if you are determined you may well be able to achieve a good recall - without resorting to the e collar.

 

[RCP Equestrian]

I don't know much ( or anything ) about huskies except that all the breeders/ enthusiasts say they need to be off lead in a secure area only. These dogs are bred to run, and clearly that is what yours has mind. There is a very good chance this dog will be the cause of an accident if you do not provide this need to run with a safe outlet

She has only been off the yard 3 times since she has been with us, I got those zappy collars so she would get a zap if she looked to be eying up the fence this did work (ish) but her hair is so thick it was hardly touching her! the yard is pretty safe and is fenced all the way round (owner has dogs so always been dog safe) just not Husky safe!!

We have a husky at training, who has been with us since she was a puppy. Her owners are great - you can tell they do all the homework, really put their backs into it.

Does this dog recall? No. She was doing ok, but as she has grown she has got bolder, and less likely to return. It's perfectly normal for the breed, and exactly as expected. We still do recall (after a fashion) with her because we're in a safe environment, but only under certain conditions - all the other dogs come out for a minute, only in the double-fenced arena, and last of all, as it is inevitable that it will take time to get her back. Really, it's more of a mad run with a return at the end than a formal recall. And the reason she does that is a lot of hard work from her owners. They do not let her off the lead in public - she is going to be a cani-cross type dog, as fortunately her owners are keen runners. So she has a good life.

Huskies are escape-artists, wanderers and hunters - someone on here, who I am sure will pop up on this thread, has two (clearly she is bonkers) and she can tell you all about it! You need to make sure she is securely fenced in at all times, and keep her attached to you by lead or long-line when out, or I am afraid you are likely to lose her at some point soon.

Sorry, I'm sure this is not the answer you had hoped for. But it is an honest opinion.

Thank you! I know her recall is never going to be of police dog standard haha but all I want is for her to come back when asked, she doesnt have to come and heal or sit to attention and I know her breed never will but just an acknowledgment of the fact you have said her name would be nice!

 

[Nikki J]

As a PS, I forgot to say that huskies are amazing escape artists! they can go under, through or over the most seemingly impossible obstacles. A husky could escape from a tennis court by climbing up and over the tennis court fencing - which must be at least 10 or 12 foot! They are incredibly good diggers - my old boy could dig a 2 foot deep hole in our lawn in well less than 2 minutes. They can squeeze through incredibly small gaps - and then can jump from a standstill 5' without touching the top of the obstacle.

 

[CorvusCorax]

I would suggest if you want to persist with the e-collar you buy a good one (not a cheapo one from a pet chain store) and seek out a trainer experienced in their use to teach you how and when to use it. Timing is everything and you can ruin a dog as quickly as you can fix it.
Also you need to be WITH the dog to train this. Expecting a dog like a husky to suit itself while you are busy is a bit of an ask, TBH x

E-collar use is not something that can be advised properly over a forum without seeing the dog in front of you.

 

[RCP Equestrian]

Look up what huskies are bred for.

They are bred to run, and run, and run, all day. If that is not provided for them by their owners, they will do it for themselves.

They are working dogs, they do not make good pets and while some individual dogs recall well, it's not in their genetics, as a rule, to want to be social, near people and hang around their own home all day. They want to run and to jump and to dig and to howl.

Rather than fit a square peg into a round hole, I would try providing an outlet for her by going joking, biking with her onlead (once she is a few months older and is fully grown to avoid too much impact on the joints) and expending her energy that way.
Look up Cani-X or Bikejoring.
If you don't have the time and energy to do that, as mentioned, keep her in a secure area or dog run when she is not with you.

You've got yourself a typical husky there! They are social pack animals - which means they want to be with their "pack" - ie their human family - 24/7. she is following her natural wolf instincts to explore, hunt etc., but of course you simply cannot allow her to take herself off like this. She is not being naughty when she slips under or over the fencing, she is merely following her instincts. All northern breeds, being closer to the wolf than most other breeds, are supremely intelligent, easily bored, and really do not have much desire to please their owners in any way - especially where it comes to recall. which is why most husky and mal breeders say you should never let them off the lead except in a totally secure area.

I don't actually agree with this - with hard work, consistency and dedication you CAN train a reliable recall, but it is tens of times harder than with "ordinary" dogs. Certainly my experience with northern breeds is that they are rarely turned on by titbits. The most intransigent of them can never be trained a reliable recall, unless you are prepared to use an e collar which most people are not. We have 2 mal crosses - 1, the entire male, has a superb recall, and is an excellent all round dog. We have never had issues with him really. He was rescued about 5 or 6 years ago. His kennel mate, a castrated male, who we rescued nearly 3 years ago, was a completely different kettle of fish. We got absolutely nowhere with recall training, and ended up resorting to an e collar. He now has an excellent recall and can reliably be let off the lead whenever we want.

It may be that your bitch does fall into the "intransigent" category, but if she does and you really feel - like me - that you confine a dog like a husky to a lead the whole time is totally unacceptable - then you may need to consider the e collar route - having tried everything else first of course. As you probably already know huskies have a huge prey drive, so it is not going to be easy but if you are determined you may well be able to achieve a good recall - without resorting to the e collar.

Thanks guys! I forgot to say I have started running with her (fit for summer ) and she does enjoy it. I run around the common a few times a week, with her on a lead of course, and she really enjoys herself.

When the snow came she used to pull our water carrier up to the fields for the colts and she's out on the yard from 9am - 8pm when we finish off the yard.

Its just never enough for her! Haha, which I totally understand, thats the type of dog she is and she's not being naughty, I just want to have a bit more control over her, she has all the freedom she wants and most days she is fine and just stays around the yard but the odd time she just gets carried away.

They're all so funny to watch playing together, running around the fields and she pretends she's a rabbit or something with the Wolfdog chasing and the Chi x Shitzu going as fast as he can to keep up

Thinking of getting the perimiter (sorry bad spelling!) wire thing where if they go to cross they get zapped, anyone have any experiences of it? Will it work or will her intelligence take over and she'll realise she will only get zapped once then she's FREEEE!

 

[Nikki J]

She has only been off the yard 3 times since she has been with us, I got those zappy collars so she would get a zap if she looked to be eying up the fence this did work (ish) but her hair is so thick it was hardly touching her! the yard is pretty safe and is fenced all the way round (owner has dogs so always been dog safe) just not Husky safe!!

Thank you! I know her recall is never going to be of police dog standard haha but all I want is for her to come back when asked, she doesnt have to come and heal or sit to attention and I know her breed never will but just an acknowledgment of the fact you have said her name would be nice!

OK, that's good, you are e collar mindful! You are not using it correctly though. If she is double-coated, or thick coated, then you need to make sure that the prongs have good contact with her skin. To do this, you need to put the collar round her neck and wiggle it from left to right until you have a good contact, and then you need to do it up tightly. Not so tightly that the poor dog cannot breathe, but tighter than the normal collar.

Do not zap her if she is just eyeing up the fence. The time to apply a gentle zap, very gentle, is when she makes the first break towards actually jumping or going over the fence (her having ignored your commands to come). Timing is absolutely everything. If she ignores the first gentle nick, then up the anti and give her more of a zap. Both occasions you MUST at the same time issue the command "COME!" or your word of preference - it must be one word only, and do not say the dog's name. Never use the dog's name in conjunction with the correction - the idea would be to call the dog ... "Ben! Come!" If an instant response is not forthcoming, you could warn with a "vibrate", repeating the word "Come!". Still no response, then a nick and so on. Never, ever nick or zap at the same time as using the dog's name. The instance she comes away - not necessarily comes to you, but comes in your direction, heap huge verbal praise ... "Good girl, good girl ..." and say her name in the most positive, happy way you can. She may not come right to your side, this is a northern breed thing - as you say, they are never going to be police dogs - but keep encouraging her to "Come!" right to you so that you can pat her, ruffle her ears etc. With e collars it is all about timing and the appropriate use. You cannot just slap a collar on a dog, give it a couple of zaps, and expect it to respond. This is the road to disaster - you must do your product research, as in everything.

But my personal advice would be to try more conventional training before resorting to the e collar.

 

[_jac_]

Please, if you go e collar route get a qualified dog behaviourist to teach you how to use it . Wrong timing can cause more problems than it would solve.

 

[Nikki J]

Thanks guys! I forgot to say I have started running with her (fit for summer ) and she does enjoy it. I run around the common a few times a week, with her on a lead of course, and she really enjoys herself.

When the snow came she used to pull our water carrier up to the fields for the colts and she's out on the yard from 9am - 8pm when we finish off the yard.

Its just never enough for her! Haha, which I totally understand, thats the type of dog she is and she's not being naughty, I just want to have a bit more control over her, she has all the freedom she wants and most days she is fine and just stays around the yard but the odd time she just gets carried away.

They're all so funny to watch playing together, running around the fields and she pretends she's a rabbit or something with the Wolfdog chasing and the Chi x Shitzu going as fast as he can to keep up

Thinking of getting the perimiter (sorry bad spelling!) wire thing where if they go to cross they get zapped, anyone have any experiences of it? Will it work or will her intelligence take over and she'll realise she will only get zapped once then she's FREEEE!

Yup - the perimeter wire idea is a good one, and it works! Of course, as with horses, sometimes they will be prepared to go through the pain to escape (I had a randy gelding who would grit his teeth and gallop through the electric fencing to get to the mares!!), but I believe this is a rarity and with her being a bitch, esp if she is spayed, or you are going to spay her, it will be virtually impossible for her to be this bold. It sounds great that you go jogging with her - you will never tire her out though!! We found the best thing was to bike along the canals with our 2 off lead - so there was no chance of us ending up in the drink - and because we can potentially motor much faster, this stopped them running away. All of a sudden, alpha male and alpha female have sprouted wings and can keep up with the wolf pack!! Under these circumstances, they would be very reluctant to run off - your bitch will be too desperate trying to keep up with you! Such exercise WILL tire her out if you go far enough. When she gets hot, you can stop, water her and allow her to jump in the canal for a cooling swim and attempt to catch some ducks! She will have great fun swimming after them, but they will never be in any danger.

 

[Nikki J]

Please, if you go e collar route get a qualified dog behaviourist to teach you how to use it . Wrong timing can cause more problems than it would solve.

Absolutely ... I believe I have already said that timing is everything!

 

[RCP Equestrian]

OK, that's good, you are e collar mindful! You are not using it correctly though. If she is double-coated, or thick coated, then you need to make sure that the prongs have good contact with her skin. To do this, you need to put the collar round her neck and wiggle it from left to right until you have a good contact, and then you need to do it up tightly. Not so tightly that the poor dog cannot breathe, but tighter than the normal collar.

Do not zap her if she is just eyeing up the fence. The time to apply a gentle zap, very gentle, is when she makes the first break towards actually jumping or going over the fence (her having ignored your commands to come). Timing is absolutely everything. If she ignores the first gentle nick, then up the anti and give her more of a zap. Both occasions you MUST at the same time issue the command "COME!" or your word of preference - it must be one word only, and do not say the dog's name. Never use the dog's name in conjunction with the correction - the idea would be to call the dog ... "Ben! Come!" If an instant response is not forthcoming, you could warn with a "vibrate", repeating the word "Come!". Still no response, then a nick and so on. Never, ever nick or zap at the same time as using the dog's name. The instance she comes away - not necessarily comes to you, but comes in your direction, heap huge verbal praise ... "Good girl, good girl ..." and say her name in the most positive, happy way you can. She may not come right to your side, this is a northern breed thing - as you say, they are never going to be police dogs - but keep encouraging her to "Come!" right to you so that you can pat her, ruffle her ears etc. With e collars it is all about timing and the appropriate use. You cannot just slap a collar on a dog, give it a couple of zaps, and expect it to respond. This is the road to disaster - you must do your product research, as in everything.

But my personal advice would be to try more conventional training before resorting to the e collar.

Thanks Nikki J, very useful advice. Think I will have to pull the collars out again! we have the longest prongs on them but maybe I didn't have it tight enough like you said.

I know what you mean about timing, I would give her 2 chances to come back and if she ignored I would vibrate then if no luck I would zap, then she would just turn and look at you I tend to shout "come on" but it it better to just shout the one word?

Had dogs all my life, well trained ones so I do know a bit about training them but not an expert and its our first experience of this type of dog. She's the OH's bday present from me as he wanted one so much, even though I warned him what they were like and said I would be the one to end up training her....sure enough I was right! love her to bits though, just want to have her under a bit more control!

 

[Jools2345]

Huskies are escape-artists, wanderers and hunters - someone on here, who I am sure will pop up on this thread, has two (clearly she is bonkers) and she can tell you all about it! You need to make sure she is securely fenced in at all times, and keep her attached to you by lead or long-line when out, or I am afraid you are likely to lose her at some point soon.

Sorry, I'm sure this is not the answer you had hoped for. But it is an honest opinion.

eta I give that example to show that it's not necessarily that your training is deficient here - you're playing with a stacked deck from day one because you are trying to go against generations of breeding for independent, tough dogs! Dogs that would once upon a time have been let to themselves all summer to scavenge and hunt for food, and only back in the winter to work pulling sleds, I believe. What I'm saying is, some things you can train, but some things you have to learn to manage instead. And I do think husky recall goes in the latter category.

this

 

[CorvusCorax]

Echo Jac's sentiments (again) you need someone standing beside you watching what you and the dog are doing before proceeding with e-collar training.

Also, you've had her for three months and whilst I am not sure of the timing, she has had at most, three months of tanking off and having her own fun and self rewarding with no consequence apart from having an excellent time to herself. Her drive may be such that a pop on the neck will be worth fighting through in order to get that high reward of running free. It's not a failsafe.

Also, if you are using food to train her, make sure she is hungry. She won't work for her food if she's already been fed. I hand feed my dog so that he knows all good things come from me, not a bowl. If he knows at the start or the end of the day, a bowl will be plonked on the floor or he can have a ball whenever her likes, then why would he do anything for me in order to get it?

 

[Nikki J]

Thanks Nikki J, very useful advice. Think I will have to pull the collars out again! we have the longest prongs on them but maybe I didn't have it tight enough like you said.

I know what you mean about timing, I would give her 2 chances to come back and if she ignored I would vibrate then if no luck I would zap, then she would just turn and look at you I tend to shout "come on" but it it better to just shout the one word?

Had dogs all my life, well trained ones so I do know a bit about training them but not an expert and its our first experience of this type of dog. She's the OH's bday present from me as he wanted one so much, even though I warned him what they were like and said I would be the one to end up training her....sure enough I was right! love her to bits though, just want to have her under a bit more control!

With that first actual zap, it sounds like you did not have the collar fitted properly. It is very important to have an expert actually show you all this and how to use the collar, but there is also a lot of very good information on the internet. For instance on the Dogtra e collar site, there is a man who is an expert - I think is name is Lou Castle - and my husband learned everything he knows from him and also from a dog behaviourist who uses e collars.

IMO it is better to shout one strong word ... such as "Come!" Whatever it is you choose though is fine, as long as you stick to it 100%. Now whenever we want Ben to come to bed, to move into the house from the conservatory, whatever, all we need do is to shout Come! in a commanding tone and he immediately gets up and obeys without question, even though he is not wearing the collar. We actually are at the stage now when it doesn't matter if he is not wearing the collar at all, even on walks, his recall is that good, but my husband likes to be safe.

 

[RCP Equestrian]

Yup - the perimeter wire idea is a good one, and it works! Of course, as with horses, sometimes they will be prepared to go through the pain to escape (I had a randy gelding who would grit his teeth and gallop through the electric fencing to get to the mares!!), but I believe this is a rarity and with her being a bitch, esp if she is spayed, or you are going to spay her, it will be virtually impossible for her to be this bold. It sounds great that you go jogging with her - you will never tire her out though!! We found the best thing was to bike along the canals with our 2 off lead - so there was no chance of us ending up in the drink - and because we can potentially motor much faster, this stopped them running away. All of a sudden, alpha male and alpha female have sprouted wings and can keep up with the wolf pack!! Under these circumstances, they would be very reluctant to run off - your bitch will be too desperate trying to keep up with you! Such exercise WILL tire her out if you go far enough. When she gets hot, you can stop, water her and allow her to jump in the canal for a cooling swim and attempt to catch some ducks! She will have great fun swimming after them, but they will never be in any danger.

Wow that sounds like so much fun! I know thats something I've always known, we would come back from a run she will continue to tare around the fields being chased by the others, whereas I'm a huffing and puffing mess!

I do evy her stamina!

She has been spayed and has improved since, she will come back much better and have a stroke and a rub then shes off again, whereas if she was next to you and you went to stroke her she'd just pee off!

Will definitely get help for using the collars though, not worth me trying if I'm not doing it properly

 

[Nikki J]

Echo Jac's sentiments (again) you need someone standing beside you watching what you and the dog are doing before proceeding with e-collar training.

Also, you've had her for three months and whilst I am not sure of the timing, she has had at most, three months of tanking off and having her own fun and self rewarding with no consequence apart from having an excellent time to herself. Her drive may be such that a pop on the neck will be worth fighting through in order to get that high reward of running free. It's not a failsafe.

Also, if you are using food to train her, make sure she is hungry. She won't work for her food if she's already been fed. I hand feed my dog so that he knows all good things come from me, not a bowl. If he knows at the start or the end of the day, a bowl will be plonked on the floor or he can have a ball whenever her likes, then why would he do anything for me in order to get it?

Hmmm, I've yet to meet a northern breed who is triggered by food! Our Ben had been running away and getting away with it for at least 2 YEARS when we adopted him - and yet we have trained a 100% recall, when everything else had failed. 3 months of running free is nothing, huskies are so intelligent you CAN overcome their natural instincts - you just need something to trip their trigger - it could be food, it could be praise, it could be a combination of these - in our case it is static electricity. However, with Ben's father, who we had from 8 weeks, his recall although not right to your side, was good enough, and he never "ran and ran" like we were warned he would. He was far too anxious to stay close to us. He was with us 24/7 for the whole of his 10 years, except when he was in the vet.

 

[CorvusCorax]

The OP said she was trying to use food in her first post, my mention of food was in reference to that.

With respect, while you are obviously a great electrics trainer and have managed to over-ride generations of breeding for a single purpose, I think it is worth mentioning that not every handler and dog will have such perfect results and should prepare themselves for lots of stumbles along the way before they get to where they want to be.

I don't personally think there is 100% of *anything* in dog training (especially with huskies ) even the best in the world have their off days, but keep doing what you're doing if it is working

 

[RCP Equestrian]

No she's not food driven at all really, she's even been so involved in something out in the fields she doesnt even come back to the sound of her dish being banged!

The Wolfdog however is a scavengier, his brain is his belly and if he hears or smells you have food he is glued to you! but even if you don't have any tit bits on you, he'll quite happily come back to you just for a scratch or a cuddle. I've had him since he was 12 weeks though so I made sure he was going to be good from day one!

She didnt really have any training apart from "sit" where she came from and was treat like a child more than a dog so I think she wouldn't have been so bad had she been with us from puppy days.

 

[blackcob]

You will never get a 100% reliable recall from a husky (yup, there, I said it ) and allowing one free roam of a yard with only standard fencing will end badly. It may be weeks, months or even years but she will stand a good chance of being knocked down by a car, stolen or her life in danger for livestock worrying.

IMO you either accept that and don't be surprised when it happens or you take steps to manage their behaviour and instinct by improving your fencing. This will probably involve restricting to a smaller area unless you're minted and can adequately fence the whole property. Bolt-together dog runs can be done fairly inexpensively, if you've got an equestrian yard there's probably some suitable spots with hardcore or concrete and you could easily put up a large area. Free running happens in a fenced paddock while you are directly supervising and there's a bazillion fun tiring things you can do with them on a lead which others have already gone into.

I'm not going to get too deep into the electric collar or invisible fence debate except to say that I condemn their use in most situations and this is definitely one of them.

 

[Booboos]

It may be more prudent to keep the Husky on the lead because appart from anything else she is teaching your other dog bad habits. The Wolfdog is young and many dogs go through a 'teenager' phase usually between 18 months and 2.5 years where they seem to forget a lot of what they have learnt and you don't want him to lose his recall as well.

 

[Alec Swan]

I would suggest that before electric shock treatment is considered, those who would plan to use them, consider that if they aren't able to teach a dog, either because of their own lack of experience, or the dog's breed temperament, then they should ask the question, "Have I the right breed of dog", which poses a second question, "Why do people buy dogs which have natural and known tendencies towards what would appear to be delinquent behaviour, and then come on here, and ask for help"? This isn't a direct attack against you, RCP, but the question is valid.

I've made my views obvious previously, and have conceded that in the most experienced of hands, there "may" be a place for electric collars, but then this raises the point that I've known some highly experienced trainers, who've operated at National level, in a variety of disciplines, and don't know of one who's used an electric collar.

In the wrong hands, an electric collar would be cruel, and with certain breeds and types, pain will all so often have the opposite effect than what's desired, and as we whip a horse to make it go faster, so pain created by electric shocks can drive the dog ever onwards.

I would, as always, advise others that they think very carefully before they experiment with electric collars.

Alec.

 

[Spudlet]

Crikey Moses, Alec and I agree on a dog training matter *faints*

 

[stargirl88]

Agree with the majority of whats been said.

Just wanted to add RE recall - I'm assuming when the dog comes back, praise/treats or not (!) the roaming around ends completely and she's bound to the yard.

Sometimes dogs that aren't particularly food-motivated can still be reinforced by praise/food etc then a release to go on doing what they wanted to do - roam and run around! It is the ultimate reinforcer - particularly if it's part of the dogs genetics. (e.g - a 'Yes! go sniff!' command is sometimes useful for a spangle reward).

Hope that makes sense, I'm tired! I'm NOT saying that you call your husky from its great escape and release it out into the wild again but think about what your dog is reinforced by, take control of it, and use it to your advantage.

 

[Cinnamontoast]

When the snow came she used to pull our water carrier up to the fields for the colts and she's out on the yard from 9am - 8pm when we finish off the yard

If she's only just turned one now, I'd be wary of letting her pull, bones may to yet be fully mature. I might be incorrect, but she was under a year when you had her doing this and I think huskies don't full mature structurally til 18 months?

 

[blackcob]

Crikey Moses, Alec and I agree on a dog training matter *faints*

There's just been a shower of airborne swine.

CT, sled dog people typically start huskies very early - rightly or wrongly, I'd rather err on the side of caution and stuck to 12 months+ for mine and 18+ for agility. Just saying that it wouldn't be considered unusual to have a sub 12 month old in harness with a team of experienced dogs for short runs, though that is a bit different to a solo dog pulling an unstable weight.

They mature relatively quickly compared to say a mal and don't typically suffer from joint issues (certainly nothing inherited and even anecdotally apparently cruciate issues are rare, I got a defunct one as always ).

 

[Cinnamontoast]

I stand (sit, am tired after my walk!) corrected!

Are there recommended health tests for huskies?

 

[blackcob]

I dunno, like I say, big difference between a dog being nannied along in a team of eight for 15 minutes and a single dog pulling something that's sliding about everywhere in the snow, possibly without a decent harness on.

Eyes are the biggie - hereditary cataracts, corneal dystrophy and progressive retinal atrophy are all known in the breed. I don't think there's a DNA test for all of these yet (SHCGB website seems to have gone wacko for the day) but they can all be screened for in adults, the breed club holds regular eye clinics. Hips should be done as a matter of course. The breed's mean score is very low and there's proof that it's decreased historically but the last figures I can find are from 1995 so it may be on the increase again. I've never encountered anyone who does elbows.