Had my puppy for 5 months, Riley
He's just over 7 months now and he is a obviously a husky.

Lovely temperament when we are home, matches my personality depending if I'm chilled out watching tv he will be too or if I'm hyper he'll be playful. trained well even gets let off the lead and comes straight back, sit, paw etc obvious husky and will be stubborn and test my alpha position.

But when we leave anything from 2 minutes to, half hour to maximum 4 hours he howls, barks and whines which i understand but didn't know if i could help? Tried the obvious.

Its got to the point that he will escape the locked crate (I'm sure i will get told off for this) but I've had to padlock him in because when he gets out he destroys things. Again a typical husky trait,escaping My hoover s,doors, toys, chews, carpets have all been collateral damage.

He used to do it every time but not so much, going to the toilet in his cage? even if he's been let outside for both 5 minutes before? Is this a husky common stubborn trait or separation anxiety? Its Not him hating the crate either because I've let him free in the bathroom whilst we've gone out and he's continuously barked and howled and ripped toilet paper, curtains etc.

Its not that he's not toilet trained because he is and he's fine at night sleeping downstairs in his cage without a problem? But its concerning me more now because either side of his nose is real and irritated from trying to get out. Is there anything i can do to help his nose, its not really bad or seeming bothered by it?


Would getting another husky help him or worsen it? If help then id prefer not to have another puppy as id like re home a dog. girl be better? older?

Please help, kels.

If you got another husky, get a girl. Huskies can mix poorly with 2 boys or 2 girls. Having one of each tends to be better. But 2 dogs likely won't help your situation and could very well make it worse. Now you'll just have 2 dogs that you need to crate, and neither one will like it, so they'll break out together and use teamwork to destroy your house even faster.

First off, Huskies are a HIGH ENERGY breed. They need to be kept busy and worn out.
My 6 month old puppy gets a 20-30 minute jog in the morning. He gets a 20-30 minute walk after work, and another 20-30 minute walk later in the evening. On top of that he gets 15-30 minutes of yard time over the noon hour about 2-3 times a week. He typically gets 30-60 minutes of yard time in the evening also. He gets way more yard time on the weekends. He shares an indoor/outdoor kennel area with 1 other dog totaling about 300 square feet. They have horse blankets, blankets, a dog house, a raised patio, ramps, a tether tug, and a daily rotation of dog toys.
I feel bad most days because I feel he's not getting enough activity.

If you aren't around to interact with, and he gets left alone, and he has excess energy, he's going to use that energy to cause trouble. He's not intentionally being bad, he just has energy to use up. Puppies like to chew in general. On top of that, you may be dealing with some separation anxiety.

First off, make sure you are getting him enough exercise. A tired dog is a good dog. Make sure you wear him out before putting him in the crate. Need to crate him while you run some errands, get him some exercise first. Need to crate him before so you can go to the office, run off some energy. Need to crate him before you go out for an evening, take him for a long walk first.

Secondly, make sure he has stuff to do in the crate. Try associating certain toys with certain activities. When you guys are chilling on the couch, get him something soft and cuddly, or something soft and chewy (but not noisy). Make that toy about chilling out. Give him relaxing toys when in the crate. Don't give him stuff that he equates to vigorous play (tug toys, fetch balls, rolling/noisy toys). Find a crate treat. Something he likes, but only gets when he's going in the crate. Ice cubes with kibble inside or something like that. He'll see the treat and know to go to the crate to get it.

Third, make sure the crate is comfortable. Does he have something to lay on? Is the crate big enough? Can he move around, stretch out, get comfortable? Think of yourself in an enclosed space barely bigger than yourself. The anxiety would want to make you escape also.

Fourth, reward good crate behavior. When you have some time to actually be around and work with him, put him in the crate, and leave the area. Return after a couple minutes and reward him if he's still being calm. Keep checking in on him every so often, extending the time between check ins slightly each time. Reward when he's being good.

Fifth, find a better crate. If he knows he can escape (he's done it before), he's going to try as escape is a reward in and of itself. See if you can find a more secure crate, and he should quickly learn that he can't escape and that may stop him from trying.

He doesn't like it in the crate, and he's made that obvious in many ways. You need to make him like the crate. He needs to learn that it's a good, safe, comfortable place to be. Don't use it as punishment.

Excellent advice, Kmanweiss. The only thing I would add is, please, please, please, be careful with letting him off his leash. When Zhukov was younger, say about 5-6 months old, he was awesome off leash. He would stay right with me and not run off. However, one day, he discovered his legs and BOOM, he was gone! It was such a shock, I stood there for a few seconds thinking to myself "He will turn around any second now". As he got farther away, I started whistling and calling his name, to no avail. After about 45 min of chasing him around the neighborhood, I finally cornered him in someones yard. That was the day I got the e-collar and realized that he could not be trusted off leash.

I get up early in the morning to make sure I have an hour to walk him down a Heath, this is where I will let him off his lead and throw some balls and run around with him to make sure he's really worn out. Yeah mark, I was told if there's ever one thing not to do with a husky it's let them off. I just felt bad because he was never tired even if I was walking him for longer so letting him off he was able to run around and waste more energy but I'll completely bare what you said in mind, thankyou.

Kmanweiss im at home a lot as I work part time to study for uni but when I'm not home my other half is so he's always got someone to be around with. He also plays with our neighbours dogs a couple of times a week where they have a gated area to chase eachother etc. I understand the chewing thing but surely it wouldn't change dramatically if I took him out for two hours in the morning instead?
Are either of your huskys crated? I just don't know if I should let him out and just trust him when I'm not there or again is that stupid?
I've enforced good crate behaviour since day one, he has it big enough to stretch and lay and have a water bowl in there. He has blankets in there with a treat dispenser when he gets does the puzzle right. I feed him in there so he knows it's a nice and rewarding place

Thankyou both for your responses

I hate the crate. That being said, Zhukov gets put in it every night and whenever there is no one in the house (which isn't that often). It is only because it is what is best for him.... He knows that chewing stuff is bad, but if I am not looking, then all bets are off. Fortunately, he took to the crate and knows the "kennel up" command and walks right in. I also feed him in his crate, with the bowl right outside of it, and keep his blanket inside there.

I feel guilty keeping him in the crate at night, as my other dog sleeps with me and has "freedom" to move around at night, however, it really is in Zhukov's best interest.

Sounds like you have a good handle on it already. Keep it up and good luck with your pup.

Yeah i also hate crating him by my other half is strictly said he is not sleeping upstairs in the room with us. i don't think he would do anything as when I've been up there during the day or fallen asleep and forgot he was in the room he just stayed in the same position. But what my partner says, go's haha.

Thankyou so much

I only crate my dogs in extreme cases (recovery from surgery for instance), but I have an excellent outdoor/indoor kennel area, so I don't really have a need to crate them. My dogs aren't allowed in the house though (shame on me!). I actually have one dog that would prefer the crate to his kennel...seriously, if you leave a crate open around him at all, he crawls right in. He'd live in a crate and only come out to eat if you let him...rescue dogs can be odd sometimes.

Sounds like you do a good job with the crate though. He just doesn't like being left alone in it.

Seems like he has a good loving home. I might suggest a little more exercise if the morning routine is all he gets. Especially right before crating. If he's worn out, he's more likely to relax.

Some dogs do ok out of the crate, even when their owners aren't home. But I would suspect that most are a little more mature than a 6 month old husky lol.

It may honestly just be a puppy behaving like a puppy. I'm out of ideas.

My other half said about making him an outside dog with a good run and kennel outside but i feel like it would be too cruel unless i had more than one puppy.

Yeah i didn't believe people when i was told they are the most cheekiest breed of dog but i love a personality haha. I also wondered if anyones husky loves water? Riley Will go mad for it, jump in my bath when I'm not looking, splash in his bowl,puddles and drinks a lot too?!

Another super important thing besides physical exercise is mental stimulation. Huskies are so so smart and mental stimulation will help wear them out. Whether this is a bunch of short 10 minute training sessions, or recall training while on a walk, it will do wonders. You can also get certain toys that will mentally challenge them. There are interactive puzzle toys that you can put food or treats in, there are wobble dispensers that you can put kibble or treats in, kong toys that are meant to challenge your dog, etc.

Usually I go on an hour-hour and a half easy hike near our place almost everyday (she's 4 and a half months old). One thing that I have found that really tires her out on our hikes is doing recall. I have a 30 foot lead leash that I put her on for part of our hike (I got it on Amazon for $. I will let her explore and get ahead, then call her back and if she successfully comes, she gets a high reward treat. Sometimes I will walk for only a few seconds before calling her back, other times I will walk for a few minutes, very random timing. She absolutely loves this because she gets to explore new smells off the trail AND get some training in-lots and lots of stimulation.

Also, my girl is OBSESSED with water too!! I'm glad I'm not the only one who has a silly water dog:) she always tries to play with the water in her bowl too and loves bath time!

I hope this helps!