I'm new :)...heeeeelp me!

[reader]

Hi everyone,

My name is Kate and I live in PEI, Canada. I go to University here and play hockey. I have a beautiful black lab named Keane who is a year and 2 months. I just got another puppy name Cairo who is a siberian husky and he is about 8 weeks old right now. :dogtongue2:

Keane is slowly warming up to the idea of me having to share the love around the house. He shows no aggression ever (unless someone is at the door) and he loves people! But he is a big boy who doesn't know his own strength so Keane and Cairo only get about 10 mins. tops of playing time each day. :dogrolleyes:

If anyone has a husky or knows how to properly raise one please contact me. I'll take any pointers I can get. I've had labs my whole life and thought it was time to introduce myself to a new kind of dog. I'm a "big dog" person but I really do love all dogs.

Cairo's main problems, at the moment, are biting (not too bad) and especially barking and whining when I put himin his crate!!! it's driving me craaaazy. I know Huskies ar very verbal dogs but this doesn't seem right. he calms down after 10 mins but usually starts up again if he hears me close a door or anything like that:dogohmy:. He is learning how to sit/lay down right now and seems to be a very smart dog actually!

Well thats me and my boys. If you can help at all please reply!

Thanks!
Kate

 

[Jean Cote]

I've got a husky! Welcome to the club! :dogsmile:

I gotta tell you, since he is only 10 weeks old, you should give as much training now as possible. The more you train your dog now, the better and more behaved he will be later on.

I would say that your number one thing you should train is to stay with you in strange environments such as parks, roads, etc. As a puppy he isn't really going to want to explore things on his own, so you can definitely reinforce the dog for staying with you. I wish I had done some more on this, as I had to really work on her off leash control.

What you can do, is just bring her to a park, have a light long line on her (they sell those at home hardware, the very light lines since he's a puppy), and just walk around the park randomly. Everytime he walks off, go in the opposite direction without holding he line. When he catches up to you cheer him up and give him some treats. This will teach him that very good things happen when he stays close to you. If anything happens, step on the line (don't try to grab it!) :dogsmile:

Another thing is socialization. You didn't mention that you are taking him to dog training classes? These are great because the dog gets to be around other dogs. My husky definitely loved to play with other dogs, but it can become a nuisance when the dog loves to play more than staying with you or training.

As for your crate training, you will have to discipline youself not to let him out whenever he howls, scratches the door or scream. Buy yourself some earmuffs or earplugs if necessary. The worst thing you can do is to let him out while he is screaming or howling. Because this teaches the dog that if he howls or screams, then he gets let out. Just make sure that he has been quiet for at least 5 minutes before you go and release him. If you walk up to the crate and he cries, just walk back to where you were.

Of course there is a limit as to how long the dog can be in the crate. As a puppy you really shouldn't be putting him in there for long periods of time. A good practice to get the dog to start loving his crate is to feed him in it or have play sessions where you throw treats in the crate (without you ever locking him into it). That way the crate doesn't become a mean thing that you lock him up in. :dogsmile:

Leash control is another issue. A lot of huskies tend to pull. The best way to correct this is to do a complete 180 the moment you feel pressure on the leash and walk the other direction. Yes in the beginning your neighbors will think your a nut. But this will work if your timing is right.

So these are my tips for you. Huskies are great dogs! :dogsmile: But definitely get him into training sessions where you can train around other dogs.

I know that he is probably giving you his 100% attention right now. You can't leave the room without him looking where you are going. But trust me, this will wear off. So it is important that you train the above, especially being close to you in strange environments. Please don't skip this one. :dogsmile:

Let me know if you have any other questions!
Jean

 

[gravelhighway]

My Lab's only deterrent is the water bottle. Nothing else works.

Rosco has done nothing but bark since we brought him home 2 weeks ago this Saturday. After a couple of visits from the police, I begged my trainer for an idea of how to get him to stay quiet while in his crate. The thought of spraying him with water while in a cage seemed SO cruel, but I did it a few times today and he's been SILENT all evening.

 

[storm22]

the water trick works we had to do it with koda, i never had a problem with storm being loud (until he was older hes learnt to talk) they eventually quieten down but yo have to do it everytime he barks or whines when your there or it defeats the purpose

 

[reader]

Thanks so much! I will try these pointers!

I have yet another issue. He won't stop POOPING in his crate! I try not to leave himin there too long, i take him outside before and after the crate but When it's bed time he poops in his crate sometime between when i put him in there for the night and in the morning. I even try to stay up later for him to have less time in there but it doesn't seem to work. :dogsad:I don't want to wake up in the middle of the night to take him out because I don't want him getting used to that!!!:dogdry: haha

Any ideas?

:msniwonder:Oh dear, :doghuh:
Kate

 

[emmasmamma]

At 8 weeks he doesn't have the control to hold it that long. You probably will have to break down and get up at least once during the night. One thing that might lessen the number of times is to stop feeding earlier in the evening, allowing more time between eating and bed time.

 

[Jean Cote]

If the crate is too big, the dog will do his business in one corner and sleep in the other. If this is the case, you just have to make it smaller by either getting a smaller crate, or by blocking some of it using an object. Make sure that the object is puppy safe as you don't want him chewing on cardboard or something similiar.

He should just have enough room to walk in, turn around and lay down.

 

[kujo3405]

Thats exactly what i was gonna say. when i first got kujo the crate was to big but it came with a divider so we put it in. after a while we moved it back more and more until i could take it out and he was fine with it. the trick s to gradually allow more freedom but if he abuses that freedom u take it away. as for the barking try puting the crate where everybody is so he doesnt feel left out. and at night you could put it right next to your bed so he doesnt feel like you are leaving him the barking could also be separation anxiety even though u just got him.

 

[madzoe]

I have a new puppy too, not the same breed (English Springer Spaniels) and I have some of the same difficulties. Though I do allow them to play all day. Maddy is about 40 lbs and the puppy is 15 lbs. So far so good and we're 5 days into it. They are best friends!