Kavik is 3 1/2 years old and I'm getting the itch for a second dog lol. I'm entertaining the idea of getting one this winter or next summer. Like the title suggests, I'm wondering what breeds get along with huskies. Who knows, I might get another husky, but I want to look at other breeds too. Kavik won't have a problem with another dog so there are no quirks to work around. He has experienced having a new puppy introduced to the home (my dad got a husky puppy) so I know how he will react.

What I'm looking for: medium dog to about a max of 55lb that can go toe-to-toe with a husky in terms of energy and roughhousing. Since I recently moved out I'm erring on the side of A dog with a presence that will make unsavory characters think twice and is alerting (but not a constant barker that goes off if the wind blows).

I don't have much experience with other breeds since huskies are the only dogs I've owned.

Right now I'm looking at Australian Cattle Dogs. I've read they're energetic, tough, intelligent, easily trained (idk how I would react to a dog that isn't stubborn haha), they actually come when called and won't run away, and that they're overall good dogs.

If you have thoughts on cattle dogs or other breeds I would appreciate suggestions and insights .

i used to have a neighbor with an Australian Cattledog, and her brother had one of her littermates and would bring her next door to hang out with the other one while he went to work. They were both constantly escaping the yard, not by digging or jumping the fences, but by using tree branches to get up, and then jumping over...both were aggressive towards my previous huskies, one actually biting my huskies muzzle just a week before he passed away ( I hated that dog for that...scratch was still not even having a scab over it when I brought him to be cremated) the littermate was on the higher side of aggressive than the one that lived next to me though, both were also constant barkers and my neighbor did tell me she'd have loved to have my huskies play with her dog so they'd get to know each other better, but that cattle dogs were known for being nippy and she was afraid of that. I know she also had a trainer come in to help her with training, but to this day (she moved to a condo in the neighborhood when she moved from here) when she goes running with her Cattledog, that she has a lot of trouble restraining her if she sees another dog, and she had told me once her dog goes after people on bikes. This is just my limited experience with them, not having actually owned one, I can't say for sure if they're great dogs or not...but I was not impressed at all with the two I "knew".

Have you thought about a GSD, or even another northern breed?

I had a Aussie Cattle Dog here for a while - while both breeds are working dogs, it's kinda like trying to make friends with someone who's into hydroponics when you're the computer geek - yeh, they're both jobs but they have so little in common that holding a conversation just about doesn't work. Huskies and healers just don't make sense to each other. One wants to run and the other wants to stay where the job is, and .... etc.

Kiva was a good little pup (well, little relative to the Husky's) but she wanted to herd rabbits while Avalanche wanted to chase them ... Avalanche likes to play - Husky style, rough! - and Kiva would go round with me but she put Avalanche in his place a time or three.  Sasha just simply ignored Kiva .... and Kiva reciprocated.

I think if I were going to add another dog to my mix it would either be another Husky or a GSD.  I have a decent idea of how to train a GSD - and they will definitely deter a trespasser.  I have a friend here who has two GSD's and enjoys all the racket they make when *any* one comes around his place - to my mind, I want a dog who's smart enough to know who's friend and welcomes them rather than one who barks at everyone.

Oh, Kiva died a quick death when she tried to herd a truck ... I'm not doing that again.

Samoyeds are wonderful, friendly dogs with high energy that can match a Husky. Because they're so different than most dogs on the street, most people assume wolf or (I've even gotten direwolf haha) so most give them plenty of room. Their coats are so thick they look way bigger than they are. My Anya looks like she's 60 lbs, but she's 38 under all that fluff.

Keeshonds are wonderful too, GSD mixes and I've found most huskies love playing with pit bulls--they have similar energy and love of roughhousing. And if started well, pits make excellent pets.

Chow Chow? My dad has a Chow-mix and my girl gets along good with her. The cool thing about them too is DNA wise they are the closest breed to a wolf.

Well I am going to go with Al on this one, GSD for the win!! Everything you are looking for go no further the gsd is it! I got me a working line gsd in October, she'll be a year old in August. and my husky and her play and play. I love the fact since I brought Sofie home at 10 weeks old she can play as rough as Miya, run as fast as Miya, is still learning, but does alert when someone is around that shouldn't be, yet is very friendly to people that she sees me interact with. The beauty of gsd's in general is that most working lines run just a tad bit bigger than huskies, currently Sofie is about 70 pounds and 23 inches, some growing left to do, but they train so very easily that leash walking, if you are diligent will = no pulling, so a very controllable dog. Let me add, since the day I brought Sofie home she is exceptional off leash, I mean she will tight heel if asked with out a leash, she prefers being closer to me than Miya, my husky. So the 2 breeds are very similar in energy, smarts, yet the gsd will naturally protect, and are much more solid in pleasing you vs the husky pleasing themselves.

I hope that helps, I will always have a husky and a gsd, fantastic combo, fyi....my Sofie's daddy I believe lives in San Antonio, if you are at all close, if interested, can't remember where in Texas you were, I just knew south of me. Miss seeing Kavik.

I'm getting a gsd in the spring! They are bigger then the size you said you wanted but they are an amazing match for huskies.

So I currently have a Australian Shepherd with my huskies and she was around for my other husky and aussie husky mix too. Baylin has the energy even at 8 1/2 to still hang with the huskies. She does herd a bit and does nip a bit. But that is the breed and almost any herding dog is gonna do that. The nipping is not the same as biting another dog. They snap at the air directly in front of the object the are herding or warning. As a puppy she had the same energy as the husky. Now she has a bit of a slower pace but can still hang. The dogs that I have seen with other friends and at the dog park that huskies can hang with in general but dependant on the specific dog are gsd, samoyed, pitty type, aus.sheperd, border collie, aus. cattle dog, golden, mally. These dogs all have a higher energy or demand for play.

The aussie does bark but it intelligent. They are good for alerting and loyal. The barking is dependant on the dog but they do bark to tell you thing, it is dinner time, I have to go out, I want to play, I want to sit next to you move over, there is someone at the door, someone parked at the neighbors...but you can train them to alert on what you want. Bark if someone at our drive but not if driving by.

I hear often that GSDs are good with Huskies! But for some reason every time Klaus meets one they're not a match? So I would say it depends on the dog, and their personalities. Out of all of the dogs we play with at the dog parks, and with friends he does best with other huskies, and my cousin's Doberman. My cousin's Doberman is a good wrestling partner for him since not all dogs like to wrestle and he does. He is also stronger than Klaus, so Klaus wears himself out trying to win

@Artic_Wind It sounds like your neighbor wasn't a very good dog owner. From the sounds of it, I would blame the owners over the dogs for the out of hand behavior. I'm sorry for your husky .


@AnyaLuv I love pitbulls! But I'm concerned about a tiff that will inevitably happen. They're bite would do significantly more damage than another dog even if it was a simple scolding bite. If I had one I would prefer it to be a single dog.

@AryaGirl I thought chow chows were low on friendliness?

@HuskyLear I haven't thought of an Australian Shepard. I'll look into it.


I've thought of GSDs and northern breeds. GSDs sound like a good choice and 'husky complimenting dog' from what everyone has said. My only concern is the plethora of health issues I have read they are prone to. Do they often have a medical problem or is that only from bad breeders?

My opinion on gsd's, yes many have health issues, specifically HD, but going thru a good breeder lowers the risk. Again tho, I researched and went to a good breeder, with hip scores that were good on mom's side and excellent on dad's (which is unheard of almost in the gsd world)...again tho I am biased.

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Get a working line gsd the heath risks are much lower then with a show line gsd!

Are there any working line GSD breeders in the US you would recommend?

My Sofie's daddy comes from this breeder http://sudenblick.com/Puppies.html his name is G Quake von Felsschlucht Bach IPO1 CGC you can see his titles with his name, they are out of San Antonio, and my girls momma is out of Abilene and this breeder http://texasworkingshepherds.com/ her name is Dakara vom Kaskadenberge...they were reasonably priced for a working line, have seen as high as $3500 and up. My breeder Van Buren I believe will be doing litters early next year. I only know of Sudenblick because of Quake being studded out to my breeder. If you go to the Texas working shepherd link I gave you and look at previous litters and then look up Quake and Dakara it will link you to a pedigree data base, so you can see lineage. I can actually say I love my little girl, she is phenomenally sweet and smart, and not extremely large. let me see if I can post a pic of Sofie.



I really love this pairing. My breeder offers a lot with his puppies, I think 2 classes, puppy star and the next one after that, and also provides CGC classes, and microchips, I know you live farther away from Abilene, but wanted to throw that in there, that he does include a lot for his price, and also 2 rounds of puppy shots and 4 rounds of de wormer. She came home at 10 weeks, and had already rode in a car, was semi potty and crate trained. I really love my breeder, and the puppy he produced, she is fantastic. Never was mouthy, never chewed on anything. I am happy to answer any questions you may have.

@MiyasMomma Those two sites have some gorgeous GSDs. Including yours! Thank you for the links. I'm not dead set on one yet but a GSD looks like a promising choice.