So I got a husky pup her name is Castiel (Cas) and I have a 9 month old Lab/ Pointer mix named Storm. Well we are thinking of going hiking before it gets to cold. Storm(lab) loves hiking I mean loves the hard trails where she has to climb and gets to run around. Storm loves the woods and hiking. Cas (Husky) seems a little to little to do it. Cas is 10 weeks old almost 11 weeks old and weights a whole 9lbs she was the second smallest pup there. Any advice on taking her hiking we started Storm out young. Storm started hiking at 12 weeks old. But cas doesn't even like water or mud. she reminds me of a cat a little. Is that normal for Huskies to not like water or mud or to get dirty. Cas doesn't like to sit still for pics

Penultimate picture: "I am NOT a pillow!!"

11 weeks is way too young for any serious hiking. If you said you were going camping where you could leave him safely in a vehicle as home base then it would be better. That way you could limit the actual "outdoor experience" to roaming (on a a leash) to around the campsite with limited actual hiking. I can never remember this - I think it's 5 minutes of structured walk (hike) per month of age - he's roughly 3 months old so a 15 minute structured hike is fine. Disorganized play is limited only by his ability!

And, yes, Huskies are part dog and part cat ... all of mine will groom themselves after having gotten out in the "nasty stuff" (rain ...)

We weren't going to do hard trails she is still to little for those we didn't start taking Storm on hard trails until she was 5-6 months after a couple of time hiking first. We planned on going on the easier trails. Cas is one hyper ball of fur. Her and our other dog don't stop playing. And she(cas) can walk like a champ we normally walk for about an hour at night and a half hour in the morning. She has no problems with the walk. And Storm is pretty much full grown and weighs a whole 35lbs and loves walks and hikes. And has since she was 12 weeks old. We try to go a couple of times a month. And we want to take her because she does fine after an hour walk and still has the energy to come home and play with our other dog for another hour or two before she crashes.

The problem with longer structured walks while young is that it can impact their developing joints ... it's great to have fun while they're young but joint problems in an older dog are the pits!!!

Someone will correct me if I'm wrong about the time factor but I think that's right.

Cora, what Al mentions is correct, and is something I didn't know either for a very long time. Only thing I'll add is that the 15 minute walks (at this time) are something you can do multiple times a day, just not in one long walking session. She walks like a champ now, but in her future that can change if you are doing too much with her at this young age.

There is a one year age difference between my two, and when I took Kohdi, the older of the two, on long walks and stuff, I carried Mishka so that she can still experience new things with Kohdi. I'd set her down every once in awhile, let her roam a little and stuff, but I did not let her walk for extended periods of time. Only thing I'd ask is if Cas is finished with all her shots yet?

There is a link to a site I discussed with my vet and she said to let my puppy decide how much is to much I don't force her to walk more than she wants when she shows signs of wearing down I take her home. I'm not doing anything wrong. I make sure she takes vitamins and eats meat based dog food. She has been on a joint supplement since she started eating dog food. I continue to give her not only vitamins but a joint supplement which my vet encouraged me to start so it lessens her chances of joint problems. She gets health treats as well. And again She just got some more shots and the vet said an hour and a half walk a day is fine as long as I'm not pushing her to do it. I got her from a good breeder who had all the papers on both mom and dad with eyes/ear, joints, and over all health exams. I made sure that she was healthy and up to date on shots and deworming as well has heartworm and flea meds. And if my vet who mainly deals in dogs with joint problems huskies, Shepard, danes, mastiffs, and grey hounds sees no problem with her care and with her joints because she has such high energy. I have taken every precaution with her because I have had two dogs die on me. One a Coydog( a Coyote Shepard mix) from cancer and a 4 month old German Shepard from a pda surgery. That I made sure to take all precautions. And the joint thing is only a chance. My mother's dog is a retired racing grey hound who just turned 14 and has no joint issues because of the precautions my mom took after rescuing her. Again it id up to the bet to tell you if it is too much and i have discussed it with him at lengths. I get I am new to owning a husky. I have main dealt with wild dogs and Sheps. And with working with animals most of my life from age 7 to now I have learned preventive care helps a lot. I was mainly wondering about the mud thing I have never seen anything like that ever. And i've been around Dalmatians.

If it's fine with your vet and you trust him then that is all that matters. We here prefer to lean on the side of caution as many of us do have older dogs now with some pretty bad arthritis that most likely came about from over use in their youth so we simply try to make the possibility known. Some pups don't have an off button even if we wish they did.

As for mud, you are going to see your pup go through some odd phases of fear. One day it might be mud, the next it might be the pair of shoes that's been sitting by the door for the last two weeks. One member's dog was scared of the microwave for a week and then just stopped one day. I tend to ignore their fears when possible. You can try distracting him or coaxing him through muddy spots with treats. My male gsd mix doesn't like storms but if one blows up when we are on a trail he is too distracted by the scents and sounds of new places to worry much about the storm coming.