Hey guys, my name is Ashley I am so glad I found this forum this morning. We rescued my Husky Charlie on July 6th. I'll be honest, I didn't do any research on the breed before we took him in. He was running around skinny and begging for food and so I picked him up.

The reason I am breathing a sigh of relief is I didn't realize what I was getting into with a husky and I was at my wits end and ready to rehome when I found this forum. Now I feel as though there is hope and I have a clue as to how to help Charlie and a support group to guide me.

With our other dog Jack we were able to crate train. Charlie has destroyed two crates digging to get out. We used the same method as with the first and it worked fine. Charlie also eats everything. EVERYTHING. Things that Jack wouldn't look twice at. Sometimes it's as soon as we set it down. The obvious things, like shoes and cords which were our fault, and the less obvious things like mail and clean folded towels for example. Tips with that would be helpful. He is mostly potty trained, we still have some accident issues, but he is doing much better. He still gets diarrhea occasionally and I am going to look and see if there is a thread that addresses that, I'm sure we need to switch food and would love recommendations. On the whole Charlie is a very very sweet dog. He isn't the brightest dog (and I say that with lots of love and affection), but he loves us completely. We've had a couple of incidences where he tries to play with our three year old like he would another dog and she has gotten hurt. They aren't allowed in the backyard together without strict supervision, another thing we didn't have to worry about before.

I hope our love for Charlie come through in this message, I just didn't know what to expect with a husky.

He's beautiful. Looks like maybe a hint of the wooly gene so going to have lots of fun grooming. Most of your questions have many answers that the search button above will address. Most of us hear lean toward feeding grain free foods since many are allergic to grains, and try to look for a 4 or 5 star food that's in your area. dogfoodadvisor.com is a great place that breaks down the star ratings of different food.
This is the biggest thread we have on food choices.
What are you feeding your husky?

As for the destroying things, how much are you exercising him? Huskies are great animals that are hard work but totally worth it. There is a saying, a tired husky is a good/happy husky. And it's very true. The more you exercise and keep him worn out the less destructive they tend to be.

Welcome to the forum!

Welcome, glad you found us! please read all the sticky post at the start of each section, there is plenty there all ready to answer ALL your current issues
thank you for picking him up and giving him a home!
Do you have an idea how old Charlie is?
have you gotten him chipped yet, did he have a chip?
where do you live, if you fill out your profile, we can help direct you more or see if any members live near you.
for the most part you need to treat him like you did/do your child. clean up everything you think he will even think about getting into, do not leave anything out to temp him. safety first is better then a blockage from eating something.
how is he getting along with your other dog, it seems in the pics they are doing well?

I now realize that the hour a day in the backyard running like crazy isn't anywhere near enough. I'm not sure how old he is, we took him to a vaccine clinic and they didn't do that kind of exam. I'm going to invest in more toys and start taking him on daily walk/run/outings. Jack and Charlie get along fantastically.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/H2M2.Texas/
check out this meet up group in texas, they meet all over

and as we say here, a tired husky is a happy husky and less items get destroyed!

oh and try to get into a vet to figure out his age, if he is still under a yr you want to take it easy on the runs, but if he is older you will be ok.

Welcome to the forum!! Too bad I'm so far away, I could use an extra play date with Miya, lol. She loves the boys Both Jen's gave great advice, figuring out his age will help greatly with the amount of exercise you can do. If you have questions and you can't find an answer, ask away.

Welcome! Charlie sure is a handsome boy! And yes, huskies can be a handful...they're amazing, but require a lot of attention. I have my hands full with 3 Excercise, exercise, exercise! Trust us it's the first step in keeping them "calm" and happy. I walk my nuts 2-3mi a day in addition to play time in the yard and meet ups about once or twice a month. Like Jenn said, they're like children...make sure that you pick up everything that he can eat. I've had my fair share of scares with Kody eating whole toys and socks! They normally destroy toys within minutes (at least mine do) so make sure to get them VERY durable toys and never leave him alone with them if hes' that destrucitve. Sorry if I missed it, but how long have you had him now?

We got him on July 6th.

Opps, yes that was in the first sentence! Sorry, I read through it quickly.

It takes them a while to get used to their new family so maybe he's not totally setteld in yet, but it sounds like he's being a typical husky...probably a young one. Looks like it from the 2nd pic. Either way, exercise will work wonders. Also, Kody had bad diarrehea for months until we firgured out a food that worked for him. What's he on now? Grain free is the way to go!

Hi! I just joined the forum myself, and I'm in Fort Worth as well! We just adopted ours two days ago. We have an appointment set with a trainer tomorrow. Just based on the research I've done in the last few days, I agree with everyone else that huskies require lots of attention, but are completely worth it. We are trying to take Gaia out for at least 2 hours a day. So far she seems to be pretty laid back, and isn't as hyperactive as I thought she would be. I'm not sure if it's the exercise that's mellowing her out, or if she is just less hyperactive than most huskies, but it has only been a couple of days, so that might change haha.

I live in SW FTW. I honestly have no idea what food he is on, my husband buys it and typically feeds the dogs. I'll look into it.

ashley.tully wrote:

Hey guys, my name is Ashley I am so glad I found this forum this morning. We rescued my Husky Charlie on July 6th. [/url]

Hi Ashley,

Just wanted to welcome you to the board! Charlie is adorable! So glad you are going to work at this new relationship. I'm a newbie to the Husky world, but I think you are on the right track. Hang in there & please keep posting!