Hey guys, whats up!
I am frustrated now and wanted to know if anyone else went through this with their husky....I have been training my guy since he was 8 weeks old and he just turned one year a couple months ago, and long story short he is very hard headed, stubborn and strong willed. I have been using positive only training for awhile now and it does not seem to work with him only using corrections.

His only issues are he lunges at other dogs to play and jumps on people when greeting. I've tried almost everything from toys, to the highest value treats, but if he passes another dog he wont even take any treats and will lung. Using a regular collar doesn't faze him at all and he continues to lunge.
Also on a regular collar he will sprint ahead hit the end of leash, lunges, pulls, and is distracted because he knows the corrections on a collar mean nothing.

.....But, if i put a choke chain on him, he walks loose leash, will not lunge and overall not a problem, but most importantly, I barely have to correct him.

Is anyone's husky like this too?




P.S.- I have researched these tools and initially taught him leash pressure etc. before using them on walks.

I use a prong collar and ecollar on my guys. Pure positive is great for telling a dog what to do. Not so great converting what not to do, especially with a strong willed teenager which is what you have at the moment.

I prefer prong collar (herm sprenger preferred) over Connie because the chrome collar can go infinity smaller. The prong collar has a martingale like design and will only tighten so much.

http://www.leashesbydesign.com/training-collar-info/

Info on doing at bottom of page.

Training info: https://thegooddog.net/training-videos/free-how-to-training-videos/

Ive had great success with a halter when my shepherd was that age. Now that hes older he only drags me until he has peed on 2 things then he walks nicely. I do the positive reinforcement with mine and i will admit sometimes its frustrating. Ive trained all my dogs and my horses that way. And with spider things get boring so what works today may not work tomorrow with her. Squirt used to lunge at other dogs. We got something she really liked and fed it to her as other dogs were passing and as dog agressive as she is she is very well behaved in public. Spider that wont work on i tried at the va several times. Shes insanely nervous in new places and even elk wont get her focused. Spider wears a nylon martingale collar and squirt has a regular nylon collar. My shepherd has a nylon collar. Im not an ecollar fan or a prong collar fan. I extend the principles of natural horsemanship to my dogs and not in a cesar milan way.

Look at a halter (gentle leader, calf/goat halter) go through training the dog to be used to it before you implement using it and be amazed at the difference of controlling yiur dog by the head instead of a collar. If you think about it a 4 legged animal goes where its head goes the rest of the body follows so by using a collar the dog can pull with its full body weight and a head halter keeps that from happening. I also think it makes the dog more responsive but that is just what i have experienced.

In general, if "positive only" training doesn't work, I would say to mix in some punishment. Huskies ARE strong willed. This isn't a german shepard. THAT SAID, huskies are going to jump up to people and want to play with dogs. This is the breed you got. I think this is a fool's errand to try and change it.

I have a gsd there are other issues that go with that breed. Personally ill take jumped on and hyper over stalked and attacked anyday.

Lostmaniac wrote:

I have a gsd there are other issues that go with that breed. Personally ill take jumped on and hyper over stalked and attacked anyday.

Every day of the week.

Frankly, an obedience course can go a long way in assisting in desensitizing a dog. Doesn't have to be anything too fancy, you would be going to socialize and work on focus in a stimulating environment with other dogs. It can be done also by just going near a dog park where there are other dogs and running through training commands with the other dogs nearby. As time goes on then work on moving closer to the action. I like the obedience courses though since you have at least one other dog knowledgeable person there (the trainer) that can help if your dog becomes overstimulated to the point of not playful.

I would personally swap to the prong. Slips can pull hair on longer haired dogs a bit more easily. Once you have started working on desensitizing from other dogs and basic stimulus then you can start working on not having to use the prong constantly.

I used the abq va hospital to desensitize squirt. The only thing we couldnt train her out of was rabbits and chipmunks. As a bonus she is wheelchair, medical device and prosthetic safe also. I used a combo martingale and head halter. Now i just use a regular collar.

Spider i used to take to a training class that was specifically for wolves, wolfdogs, and northern breeds. I thought it would help her confidence in public. It didnt but it did give me some insight on spider, including most of her issues are husky problems not wolfdog problems, but on a level that most huskies never reach.
When spider is on a leash and another dog is near she will pull until she is standing on her back legs, or starts whining and screaming and bouncing. Because of that i really just dont take her places with alot of dogs or kids.

Thanks for all the advice, I really do appreciate it!....I guess I should be happy with the progress I've made so far, because he used to lunge at the site of people and dogs, but now he only lunges if another dog reacts first close by.

Also thanks for giving me your own experiences, really helped me put things into perspective. As my expectations are way to high for him and want him to act like a gsd or malinois, and behave perfectly.

How do you guys get past the fact that your huskies will never be obedient as other breed dogs?

Also, as this is my first husky I would love to hear what your dog does that makes him/her the typical crazy and stubborn "husky"?

For example, if i take my guy downstairs, he will sprint back and forth like crazy since he knows that's a play area. Or he would lie down and not move if he knows he's about to go in his crate. Haha

Spider puts on the brakes when i try to take her outside to the truck without splinter or my hubby. Also the loaner car from dodge or any unfamiliar vehicle she has to be picked up and put in the first time she gets in or she wont get in. Spider does not do good with change or new things and places

Squirt loves to have conversations. If you tell her to do something she talks back before she does it. Squirt also tells on herself even though sometimes i cant figure out what exactly she did.

And awhile ago i posted a rant about Huskies and shepherds. I actually have met some really really well behaved huskies. They are all in the adult not teenage category and i know it took alot more work then to train a lab but its doable. I know the timeline was way longer to get to the same place as a non husky. Keep your expectations high but at the same time be realistic. Keep working at the reaction around other dogs. Its one of those things that all you can do is repeat the exposure until the reaction is appropriate. It just may take longer then your average dog

Have you ever done an obedience class with your dog? Loose leash walking is one of the main things they will teach. In rewarding for a calm pass of another dog or human, the timing is critical - you ask the dog for a calm behavior such as looking at you or sitting, then you reward. If they freak out, then take the treat once they have calmed down, you are essentially rewarding them for their "freak out" (er, I did this for months until I read an article about dog training and had an Ah Ha! moment. Once I fixed my timing, the walks got better in a couple of weeks! )

Also, I don't think it's that bad if you have to walk your dog with a choke but he is well-behaved? There are dogs around here that are wearing a prong on every walk (an akita, a dobe). Better to wear a choke and not pull, then wear a regular collar and be leaning on it, gasping and panting (can cause damage to trachea over time)...

My dog is husky x shepherd - "positive only" never really worked for him and once he is out in the big wide world he won't work for a treat. What works however is lots of repetition (until good behavior becomes a habit), praising when he does well, correcting when he doesn't.

Thanks for the great advice, will definitely try! Him lunging has also gotten better as well, but I think all these issues are a result of his current age, 15 months. Isn't this the rebellious stage, and they try to test boundaries until 2 years?

Yep, this is a tough age and I see that most of the huskies turned in at our local shelter are generally between 6 monthes - 2 years old. It seems like if you make it past the 2 year mark, fewer of them get rehomed...so that must be a sign!

( My dog was 5 when I got him, so my road was easier...although it seemed like he hadn't been walked much or been out in the world much. He used to zigzag all over the sidewalk and street, pulling me this way and that, rearing up and growling and howling at the sight of other dogs, barking and taking off to chase joggers...it was HARD at first! Every walk was training, training, scanning the horizon for dogs and people, baggies of cheese in my pocket. But once "good manners" slowly becomes a habit, then walking gets easier...)

Shepsky13 wrote:

Yep, this is a tough age and I see that most of the huskies turned in at our local shelter are generally between 6 monthes - 2 years old. It seems like if you make it past the 2 year mark, fewer of them get rehomed...so that must be a sign!

( My dog was 5 when I got him, so my road was easier...although it seemed like he hadn't been walked much or been out in the world much. He used to zigzag all over the sidewalk and street, pulling me this way and that, rearing up and growling and howling at the sight of other dogs, barking and taking off to chase joggers...it was HARD at first! Every walk was training, training, scanning the horizon for dogs and people, baggies of cheese in my pocket. But once "good manners" slowly becomes a habit, then walking gets easier...)

Oi. Brings back memories. Ami was 1 year old. Never trained. Tied to a telephone pole for months on short leash before "surrendered" under duress. After the first day of trying to walk him on a regular collar, I called the shelter to ask where they got the prong collar with the side release buckle. The gave me his as it was specifically modified for him by a woman who donated then to t he shelter. That prong helped immensely but it was still a good 6 months to a year before we got walking under fill control. Many a ditch I landed in, frequently face down, when that boy spied a rabbit it other critter

I don't know how to do the multiple quotes...making do with italics...

"As my expectations are way to high for him and want him to act like a gsd or malinois, and behave perfectly...How do you guys get past the fact that your huskies will never be obedient as other breed dogs?"
I don't expect an offleash Heel! But I do expect that my dog can be out and about in the world without being a terror to other people and dogs, and that he will usually come when called. I also expect him to not potty in the house and have polite house manners. The obedience and schutzhund titles, maybe not...

"Also, as this is my first husky I would love to hear what your dog does that makes him/her the typical crazy and stubborn "husky"?"
A small example...sometimes if I want to go left and he wants to go right, he plants his paws and throws his head back against the leash pressure and narrows his eyes at me. I just stand there until he gives up - then we go my way.  

"Many a ditch I landed in, frequently face down, when that boy spied a rabbit..."
Yes, I found myself lying in a ditch when Rumo chased a raccoon up a tree! That is when I decided to get Serious about looseleash walk training!

Shepsky, the most memorable of the ditches, he leaped across, I thought I could do the same, almost made it, as I lay splat on the grass other side of the ditch, Ami came over, looked at me, sniffed my head. Then lifted his leg and peed am inch from the top of my head.

Such a lack of empathy!

Shepsky13 wrote:

Such a lack of empathy!