dog whisperer, I adopted a husky mix from a rescue agency who is a behavioral terror. Need help!!!?

Question

Cara is loving, devoted, happy & extraordinarily beautiful. I adopted her (June 6, 06) after losing my dog-companion of 11 yrs. Having fallen in love with her on our first meeting - I have tried to press through Cara's behavioral issues. She was so sweet, sedate, and well mannered during the 2 wk. trial that I named her Caramel Honey. It beats me how she knew when that trial period was up, but she became a terror the next day. Truth is, I would have kept her anyway, but my husband would not have agreed. She is about 15 months now. Her bad habits are leaping on me and all others. She throws her 55 - 60 lbs into her front feet that hit mid-stomach knocking the wind out of whoever is on the other end. That is a particular problem for the last 2 months because I have been gravely ill. She is also hyper, has running fits in the house and delights in continually tormenting the smaller pets (a Yorkie and 2 cats). A friend recently described her as "beautiful but awful." Help!!!!!!!!!

Answer 1

Haha well I am not a dog whisperer, but I am a vet student specializing in animal behavior. I also work with a DVM/certified animal behaviorist for 20+ years, and I have read Cesear Millan's book :) I can tell you exactly what to do if you would like to email me. I can also consult with the DVM for free. I dont' have time to post an in depth response right now, but if you email me I can send you a good response later. Edit your messege if you'd like my email, and I will edit mine to add it in. As I am not a professional (aka I'm still in school :) ) I cannot and will not charge to give you info. I will be passing on info from the DVM and a very VERY good website I can give you.

By the way, you should never ever take an untrained dog/puppy to obedience classes. A dog needs an environment free from any distractions to learn. Sticking an untrained dog in an obedience class and then expecting it to learn while there are 10 other dogs sitting around sniffing and barking and whatnot is just cruel. Obedience class are for when your dog has the basics down and needs to move on to a higher level, meaning to learn the commands under distraction.

Um how about I heard that "bulls*it" from a guy who has trained working dogs.......personal protection dogs......police dogs.......searcha nd resuce and Schzund (spelling?) for many MANY years. More than 26 I promise you. He also has waiting lists for his puppy litters and can charge whatever price he likes, also waiting list for his police dogs (and other trained dogs). And from a CERTIFIED ANIMAL BEHAVIORIST/DVM meaning he went to school for 8+ years and had to take special tests. He also has the expericence to back it up. He has a whole ROOM FULL wall to wall of 1st PLACE ribbons from obedience/Sch trials. Plus, it's COMMON SENSE, if you understand anything about dog behavior. Dogs CANNOT learn properly and as quickly under distraction<<<< known fact. If someone was teaching you calculus, would it be easier to learn in a quiet classroom by yourself or at the carnival? I hope that is a rhetorical question. It is imple thing to teach a dog the basic commands at your own home. If you dont' know how to do it, ask or read about it. Some trainers and behaviorists also do at home consultations.

Answer 2

Huskiys were bred to pull a sled all day and sleep outside in the snow.
You have a dog who is not getting any where close to the amount of exercise she needs. And that is the start of your problems. When they are not getting to burn off the energy it is going to go some where. She needs to be getting much more exercise. You need to be walking her for at least 2 hours per day or get a treadmill and get her going on that. If you know some one who runs that would be the best for her. She could go out and run with them. Huskies excell at this.
Next TRAINING. If you cna not control her in a class setting you need to start with a few one on one lessons with a trainer so you can learn to control her and then get into a class.
There are tips and tricks the trainer can show you on how to control the dog on a leash and it will make things much easier. Getting her started in basic obedience will help alot. From there you can work on specific problems like the jumping on people. That is one that is not that hard to fix but the dog needs to have some basic manners and behave when asked.
You have gotten a very active breed and the rescue should have told you that they require TON of exercise and that maybe this dog breed is not going to fit into your lifestyle very well.
Huskies end up in rescue as they are behavior problems becasue of the high prey drive to chase small animals and the excess energy. They are also escape artists. They will go over under or through anything to get loose to run.
Good luck.

Answer 3

It can take several weeks, or a couple of months for the dog to completely adjust to it's new environment.

I suggest getting her into obedience.

Also, she is a husky mix. This breed needs a lot of exercise and stuff to do, or they can and will be destructive. Make sure you are walking her for long, briks walks daily. Throw in some training during the walks, like having her sit before crossing the street, and you will keep her mentally stimulated as well.

Teach her to sit when greeting people. When you see her coming to jump, turn your body away from her and completely ignore her. Do this consistantly, and only pet/give attention when she is sitting or has all 4 feet planted on the ground.

There are other remedies for the jumping if the above does not work.

I do email consultations, for $25 if I can be of further help. Email me at [e-mail]

Answer 4

First, be careful with huskies, as they have a small animal prey instinct and if she was not raised with cats or small dogs, she may hurt or even kill one.

Second, she is a puppy and needs obedience training. Enroll soon.

When she jumps, what helped with my husky is to grab her front feet when she jumped and make her walk backwards. I also said no when I grabbed her feet. Within a week or two, she was sooo much better. If that doesn't help, try a firm knee to the chest when she jumps and a firm NO. You must be consistent! Give one of these two options at least two weeks before trying the other. If, after two weeks, you see no improvement, that's when you switch, but don't switch if you are seeing any improvement!

Good luck. Huskies are great family animals and love to live with their pack indoors.

Answer 5

Have you tried obedience classes? It's not that hard to teach a dog not to jump, a professional trainer can give you a hand. Most places like Petsmart have their own training classes, or you can ask a vet for a reference.

As for the hyperness, huskies are working dogs. She needs to be getting 2-3 hours of exercise every day to stay happy, and if she's not, she's going to take it out on anything that will run from her. Try long walks, jogs or bike rides, doggie parks, or enroll her in a dog sport like agility, sled pulling, flyball, etc. There's bound to be a club or team in your area that can give you a positive outlet for all that energy.

Answer 6

the jumping up problem might be solved by raising your knee up and allowing her chest to hit your knee. It isn't mean or cruel and it does work. Remember animals do better with body language and hand movements than words. Yelling at them does nothing more than create a more hyper environment and unstable dog.

The more "attention" you give when she is hyper or being bad is only going to extend that behavior.

I agree she's a working dog and she needs to be worked, or she will find things to work her mind like irritate the other dogs.
Walking her is one of the best ways to exercise her mind and body.

There are some good trainers, just do your homework if you decide to do hire one.

Answer 7

OH MY GOODNESS I CAN RELATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I had a husky who managed to break my foot while pulling me when we went for a walk, pulled the aluminum siding off my house....would go into running fits every night, and various other problems....

I called the breeder and she said, get him a treadmill!!!!! In all seriousness...AFTER going through all this drama, I learned that husky's are not meant to be "pets" really. They are a working dog....They are quite Alpha, and must exhibit the Alpha traits, that's why yours picks on the yorkie and 2 cats... Think also about what Huskys do...they run, some can run for hundreds of miles a day, they do not like to be kept inside...they also do not like to be alone and will destoy things when they are left alone.
There are several sources of information, but try this website and review the "temperment"....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Husky

Good Luck

Answer 8

Ok, go ahead and laugh now, but it did work for my hybrid chow/wolf and myself. Same situation, though I did start her out a little bit younger than your baby. We started doing a meditation time every morning. We listened to soothing, calm music of serenity, beauty and peace. While I was on the computer we put on our cd's at least 2 or 3 and went through this every single morning and while we listened to the music, I spoke to her very softly and made sure that I petted her softly and kept it up through out our time. She was at that time about 10 weeks old and was just as hyper as your dog is now. Ebby is now almost 7 years old and still nudges me to the computer and the music if I am running a wee bit late and she lies right by me and enjoys her time. She never jumps on me or anyone now and hasn't in years. She is still very curious and protective but that is ok. I wish you luck, but you could give the music a shot.

Answer 9

OK, a husky needs lots,and lots of room to run, they are bred for running, outside safe fenced in area.. as for the jumping, you need to knee her in the chest when she jumps, just put you knee up so she hits it, tell her to sit and congratulate her when she does so..
I have a bichon who loves to jump, my husband and I are tying to teach him not to but my kids do just the opposite.. drives me nuts, oh well kids he will get better.
lots of open space should help, play time, sounds like those first two weeks she was getting adjusted to the new home.. very active those Huskies good luck

Answer 10

lucky you i have 4 huskies but no red one I'm sure shes cool. huskies are pack dogs she needs you to be the alpha female when shes bad crate her they also tend to have more energy than most they are a working dog buy a harness and a two wheel cart they make emm just for huskies and rottweilers. let her walk you this way it shows whos boss yes they have brakes. but bottom line youre the alpha female show her that she will respect it all mine do. all i have to do is point and say out they all run but if someone else does this they look at them like you got to be kidding who are you. bottom line pack dogs need to be told what to do if they dont do what you say crate them. like a time out for kids she will get it sooner than you think.