I need some input.

A friend of our family is a dog walker, she used to take our old girl out. She's pretty super awesome, she does off leash walking/hiking, some days Korra will be out of the house for a good 5 hrs (including driving time) and it wears her down really well (Korra's naturally a pretty low energy husky too), really helped with her recall, we've known her for years.
She walked Korra when Korra was younger, and we took a break over the summer, and resumed since school has started.

She's never liked how rough Korra plays, she likes her pack to be more of a running and sniffing pack, not a wrestle pack. I guess over the summer Korra forgot her dog walker manners and now I've been given a choice- stop with the walker or train her not to play, well, like husky does.

Korra gets "looks" at the park- y'all know what I'm talking about- but she never hurts other dogs, or makes them squeal even (she used to though haha), they always come back for more, and her "leave it" mid play is actually really good. I've been kinda proud of her recently with it

I've seen dog walkers throw balls or snap leashes at their packs when the dogs play too rough, jerk up on collars, etc.. I don't really trust most walkers..

I'm doing my senior year..and I'm afraid of spreading myself too thin and Korra not getting the attention she deserves. I could cut back my work hours, if they let me, it's not a job I really need, it's just for the extra cash that has allowed me to go from totw to all raw for Korra, plus the work experience.

Or should I train her to play like a boring dog. If I can. I love her husky play though.

What to do, what to do.

So did the walker actually give you an ultimatum: make your Husky play like a not-Husky or I won't take her with me?

Is it legitimately possible to have her play like a not-Husky?

Let's say it is and you do.  What about when she is with Link or Arya or Barron or Karli. What then?  Is it going to be a double standard issue?

Sounds like a tough situation, sorry buddy.

Yup, it was pretty much an ultimatum. Now, I can train her to nosework in a specific harness, when it's on, it's game time. Maybe it's possible to do a similar thing?

And to clarify (not to you Jeff) I don't wanna get into the whole training a husky not to be a husky thing, of course I want her to be a husky. But I need to think about what's going to be easiest on Korra during this rough patch.

My aunt taught our old lab-mix girl not to fetch when she was around 1-2 years because she was one of those crazy ball-fixated labs. She never did really fetch again. Sure, her hound side had fun sniffing at the park, but I always wanted to see her run and do her lab thing.
I don't want to do that to Korra.

In a way I guess it's decided then, but..I really will need some kind of help, and I don't trust anyone with my girl more than our current walker, whether we agree on proper dog play or not.

Ouch..that's a rough one.

I really don't have any advice. If you think you could *retrain* her, then you could always give it a shot, but I will say I probably wouldn't have the heart to do that with my girls. I realize that sounds like a guilt trip, I'm sorry!!

Is daycare an option at all??

Don't apologize haha, it's what I'm saying too, I don't have the heart for it either. Hence the dilemma I guess.

We do have daycare options around here- I'm sure I could do a few trial days. The one my friend uses is great but in rush hour traffic, I could easily wear her out in the time it'd take to bring her there- I live 10 minutes from a 40 acre dog park. We just don't find playmates every time we go, then she just prances around a little and gets bored.
That friend has offered to come get Korra a couple times a week to help out (and wear hers out lol), which would be so amazing. But she has a lot of her plate right now too so I feel so bad. But we've totally exchanged keys before and just turned our living rooms into a "fight pit" that wears them down in an hour lol It's easy because we're so close..
But wrestling a lot at the park/inside with her GSD buddy all the time isn't the same sort variety she normally gets. And I do think it *is* important for them to have and understand different play styles.
Maybe even a so-so daycare once a week + lots of play dates + park would do. And during death weeks I could up the daycare to a few times a week. She also goes to nosework once a week.
Maybe I'm just worrying too much. I just need to talk this through with/talk at people who understand why I don't want to change my dog.
Why am I typing so much..aghhhh. This was just one thing I'd planned on before I got a dog, so I have to recalibrate.

I totally understand where you're coming from. I'm starting to face something similar with Dizzy and am debating my options. He is not neutered and I plan on waiting until he's at least a year to get fixed, and I will probably only have the retained testicle removed and leave the other one in tact (NOT for breeding of course). He goes to day care twice a week and the dog park several times a week. The daycare is starting to pressure me to get him neutered, not because he's causing a problem, but because 'its what is normally done.'

Anyway if daycare is an option for Korra, I highly recommend it. It has really helped Dizzy decrease his play intensity. He is better at playing on different levels with different dogs. He has a couple husky friends that he plays with like huskies, but doesn't have a problem adjusting his play style to a less intense level for other dogs. That is a huge change from a before daycare. His dog walker told me he was 'aggressive' and 'lunged' at another dog before I decided to do daycare (I was like, he's 5 months old, that's not aggression lol). We had a play date with Ceara and Mechta and Bella a few weeks ago and I noticed his play intensity increased for a few days, but after a day at daycare he was back to being more polite to other dogs. He is great with small dogs and puppies now and it completely wears him out. Give it a try and see what you think. Dizzy absolutely loves it and he still gets a variety of activities other than daycare.

I think daycare would be a good option too. They do pre-screening for Huskies around here to see if your Husky is too much Husky, but I think Korra would be fine as she is exceptionally well socialized and on the more gentle side of the Husky spectrum. :cough:

The bigger picture issues aside, just thinking practically, it doesn't seem like it would be possible to get Korra to a point to where keeping this walker is possible. The time and effort and margin for error involved are all pretty big. I'm sure Korra is a different dog when you're not around, as they all are to an extent. You wouldn't be able to guarantee that you can satisfy the walker's requirement, especially if Korra is alread under the microscope.

Oh, and just for the record, is there a specific day or two that is needed for her to be with someone or is it the whole school week?

Daycare is a really good option.

At Bodhi's daycare, the keepers love it when I bring him. He gets the other dogs running laps.
His best friends are GSD's and malamutes that are double his size.
No fights, just active "husky" play that includes lots of wrestling.
When I pick Bodhi up, his fur is wet around the neck and head from all the other dogs mouthing him.

Thanks guys, I guess I'll do some trial days and see if I like any of these daycares (and they like her). I guess I've always preferred dog walker to daycare because her play energy definitely jumps when she's in a confined space vs. have other distractions outside.

Jeff, probably just every other day, maybe on days I'm at work since I always close. Oh! we got a new box of kneecaps so I picked some for you lol.
I've gone out with them before, if anything, Korra actually listens better. At least when I'm there AND the dog walker is there vs. when it's just me. But even cheek and ear biting is not ok for the walker.
The receptionists at my vet actually aw'd when I didn't bring Korra in last time when I was picking up her Trifexis, they really like her. Maybe I'll give 'em a shot. I really don't wanna drive out to nowhere Issaquah for daycare with her GSD bud.

Jen, that sucks... Why do they care if it's not causing a problem..his balls are in no way their business.

Yay, I love knee caps!!

If it helps in the near future and especially once I'm in Greenwood, if you can get Korra to me Monday or Tuesday I can have her until 5, just to kill some time for you.

Speaking of Greenwood, once we move we are gonna need to figure out something on Wednesdays because my friend won't be able to nanny for Link anymore. It'd be great if him and Korra went to the same daycare, of course we would have to supply the staff with hazmat suits and storm trooper shields.

Wasn't Eli's human a dog walker??

I definitely agree with daycare. I love Yuki's personality, she can get rough occasionally but for the most part her play style is fine, and in the long run I would hate it even more if I changed her into another dog completely. Plus daycare will expose her to even more dogs and play styles!

Something like that might help a lot Jeff! Also, Wednesdays I'm done at 2:50..that be too late? I'd be down to come lend a hand though. I think Eli's person was! Wonder if we can track her down..? And lol..even that wouldn't protect them from these two.
Megan, yeah..I don't really think it'd be changing her completely, but it is a big part of her. And in order to stop her from doing it, she'd basically be restricted from seeing her best friends.

Anyway, you guys were the reassurance I needed, so I grabbed some business cards we have a work for day cares and I'll see what I like. Thanks :')

Dot wrote:

My aunt taught our old lab-mix girl not to fetch when she was around 1-2 years because she was one of those crazy ball-fixated labs. She never did really fetch again. Sure, her hound side had fun sniffing at the park, but I always wanted to see her run and do her lab thing.
I don't want to do that to Korra.

I hope she likes daycare. This reminded me about my parents golden. I inadvertently taught him not to fetch because he would sneak into my room and steal underwear out of my laundry basket, and I scolded him when I caught him doing it. He has a super soft personality (not to mention he isn't the brightest bulb in the bunch) and instead of learning that my closet was off limits, he leaned not to retrieve. Poor guy, I felt so bad.

wpskier222 wrote:

I hope she likes daycare. This reminded me about my parents golden. I inadvertently taught him not to fetch because he would sneak into my room and steal underwear out of my laundry basket, and I scolded him when I caught him doing it. He has a super soft personality (not to mention he isn't the brightest bulb in the bunch) and instead of learning that my closet was off limits, he leaned not to retrieve. Poor guy, I felt so bad.

Aw, poor buddy. Can't really blame yourself for scolding the underwear thing.

I love, love, love taking Pippa to daycare.

We get "those looks" at the park all the time, but everyone loves her at daycare. If you can find a good place (and check online too, people review places on Yelp a lot), with knowledgeable people, they'll understand the what rough dog play looks like.

And honestly, try not to feel too guilty! I'm in the same boat as you, senior year of college. It's rough because I know Pippa doesn't get as much attention as she needs during the week, but I try to make up for it on the weekends! You obviously do everything you can for her, I'm sure everything will turn out ok!

katiesham wrote:

I love, love, love taking Pippa to daycare.

We get "those looks" at the park all the time, but everyone loves her at daycare. If you can find a good place (and check online too, people review places on Yelp a lot), with knowledgeable people, they'll understand the what rough dog play looks like.

And honestly, try not to feel too guilty! I'm in the same boat as you, senior year of college. It's rough because I know Pippa doesn't get as much attention as she needs during the week, but I try to make up for it on the weekends! You obviously do everything you can for her, I'm sure everything will turn out ok!

I LOVE your avatar pic. Pippa seems like such a character.