My wife and I have owned a husky, Bear, for about a year and a half, he is about two years old. The problem that we are facing now is what to do with him during the day. We have a small yard with a short fence and we quickly learned that if we didn't watch him out there, he would easily jump the fence and run rampant through the neighborhood. We tried leaving him at my in-laws' house during the day where there is a higher fence. After he escaped from here we then tried to extend the fence. HE STILL GOT OUT!!

He is crate trained and he sleeps in his crate well at night. We tried crating him during the day and that worked for a while, but then he started peeing and pooping in the crate so that option didn't work.

More recently, we have tried leaving him in the living room during the day where he has more room. This worked ok for a while but he is now pooping and peeing on the furniture and tearing things up.

I try to exercise him in the mornings before I go to work. This usually consists of a 1-2 mile run 3 times per week. He still acts up on days that I run him.

Help! What do I do with him? I don't want to give him up but this has to stop. I know of a doggie daycare place in town but it costs $11 per day and I just can't afford that.

I've heard tying dogs up during the day can lead to behavioral problems and its getting very hot out as summer approaches. I need to find a solution quickly as our first baby is due in 3 weeks. Any suggestions will be welcome.

I would think perhaps there is something wrong if he has never pooed or peed in his crate before now. Is the poo solid? Does he otherwise act normal? Have you made changes to his routine (i.e. location of crate, amount of time gone per day) because of the anticipation of the baby's arrival?

I brought home 2 babies with our first husky. They are extremely smart and intuitive animals. I would not doubt that he knows something is going on...

My first choice would be to have him in the crate all day rather than outside, either tied or fenced. That involves "fixing" his elimination problems. Hopefully we can help you figure something out!

BearDog wrote:

He is crate trained and he sleeps in his crate well at night. We tried crating him during the day and that worked for a while, but then he started peeing and pooping in the crate so that option didn't work.

More recently, we have tried leaving him in the living room during the day where he has more room. This worked ok for a while but he is now pooping and peeing on the furniture and tearing things up.

I try to exercise him in the mornings before I go to work. This usually consists of a 1-2 mile run 3 times per week. He still acts up on days that I run him.

as far as the pee and poo go, how many hrs is he locked up either in the crate or living room? when are you feeding him his breakfast? i know i need to give mine at least 30 min before i leave so they can poo if they need to. at what time at night are you feeding him?

running him 3 days a week is NOT ENOUGH! he is still wild on days you do run him cause he has all the pent up energy from the days before. he needs to be walked everyday and more then one a day if you can.

have you looked into a day sitter to come to your house for let him out mid day and maybe walk him instead of taking him to day care?

jbealer wrote:

BearDog wrote:

He is crate trained and he sleeps in his crate well at night. We tried crating him during the day and that worked for a while, but then he started peeing and pooping in the crate so that option didn't work.

More recently, we have tried leaving him in the living room during the day where he has more room. This worked ok for a while but he is now pooping and peeing on the furniture and tearing things up.

I try to exercise him in the mornings before I go to work. This usually consists of a 1-2 mile run 3 times per week. He still acts up on days that I run him.

as far as the pee and poo go, how many hrs is he locked up either in the crate or living room? when are you feeding him his breakfast? i know i need to give mine at least 30 min before i leave so they can poo if they need to. at what time at night are you feeding him?

running him 3 days a week is NOT ENOUGH! he is still wild on days you do run him cause he has all the pent up energy from the days before. he needs to be walked everyday and more then one a day if you can.

have you looked into a day sitter to come to your house for let him out mid day and maybe walk him instead of taking him to day care?

Ditto - 3x a week for only 1-2 mile run for a 2 yr old isn't enough especially if he's still very hyper on the days you are running him.

Jenn has a good suggestion to find someone to maybe walk him during the day. But if you absolutely have to take him to doggie day care, most places will have montly package deals to make it more affordable. If that still isn't an option, and you can't find someone to walk him during the day, it'll be up to you to adequately exercise him in the morning and at night when you come home to drain his energy.

Thats 3 times during the work week. I also run him at least once on the weekend. Also, I try to walk him in the mornings on days in between runs. Admittedly, our schedule has gotten interrupted recently because I have been sick.

I have to agree with Jenn and Claudia, it does sound like he could use some more exercise. He really needs to be getting some serious exercise every day of the week, not 4 times a week.

You didn't mention how long you leave your husky alone. Huskies are one of those dogs that need a lot of exercise and mental stimulation, they get bored easily and a bored husky with pent up energy is going to find ways to entertain itself as you've found. This isn't a breed that is content to lay around the backyard alone all day and even leaving a dog in a crate for 8+ hours a day while everyone is at work for example is not going to cut it with this breed. Now some people do make it work but on the whole, it's not something I would recommend with a sibe. If there is no way around work schedules or what have you, then I would strongly recommend getting in a lot more exercise on a daily basis and having someone come by the house during the day to let the dog out in the yard to run/play around and also for a quick walk. Dog walkers are not too expensive or if you have a friend or family member that can help you out even better.

Btw, congratulations on your new baby!

Welcome to the forum, BearDog! I hope that we can help you.

The other members have posted some great questions and I would also like to know the answers before we can help you.

-How often is he fed?
-When is he let out in the morning?
-How long does he have to digest before he's let out again before you leave?
-What food are you feeding him?
-How firm are his stools?

Also-
-How big is his crate? (ie- how much room does he have in it to move around?

How long had you been crating him before the eliminating in the crate started? I would wager a guess all of this is separation anxiety/anxiety from the new baby about to arrive. I would try to work on that, but in case these is a need, there is also OTC medications that you can buy that are natural and will "take the edge" off while you work on their issues, but I hesitate to suggest that until you get to the bottom of his issues. I just wanted to mention it as a last resort

I will unfortunately have to echo the he's not getting enough exercise comments. Can you afford to take him to daycare on the days that he isn't getting a 2-3 mile run? $11/day for daycare is actually a fantastic price (here it's no less than $20/day/dog).

Koda wrote:

Welcome to the forum, BearDog! I hope that we can help you.

The other members have posted some great questions and I would also like to know the answers before we can help you.

-How often is he fed?
-When is he let out in the morning?
-How long does he have to digest before he's let out again before you leave?
-What food are you feeding him?
-How firm are his stools?

Also-
-How big is his crate? (ie- how much room does he have in it to move around?

How long had you been crating him before the eliminating in the crate started? I would wager a guess all of this is separation anxiety/anxiety from the new baby about to arrive. I would try to work on that, but in case these is a need, there is also OTC medications that you can buy that are natural and will "take the edge" off while you work on their issues, but I hesitate to suggest that until you get to the bottom of his issues. I just wanted to mention it as a last resort

I will unfortunately have to echo the he's not getting enough exercise comments. Can you afford to take him to daycare on the days that he isn't getting a 2-3 mile run? $11/day for daycare is actually a fantastic price (here it's no less than $20/day/dog).

-He has access to his food and water throughout the day. He doesn't
-We let him out in the backyard for approximately 30 minutes in the mornings. He doesn't always go in the mornings though he just goes out and lays in the cool grass lol.
-he eats Dog Chow
-His stools are solid. Never really loose at all.
- His crate is big enough for him to stand up and turn around.
-We've been crating him since he was a puppy (about four months old) He did really great with it.

Now that I think about it though, his exercise schedule has been pretty inconsistent recently. I will try to correct this issue and report back if the problem persists.

You already answered the problem....

You free feed. In general, free feeding is only effective if you can be with your dog all day to monitor him. Because you need to leave him for 8 hours a day or so, I would highly suggest scheduling feedings for your husky. By doing this you can not only monitor his food intake, but you'll be able to accurately predict when he will have to go

Try splitting his feedings between two times a day, morning at night. When you wake up, let him out, put his food down and let it sit for 10 mins. When he doesn't eat right away (I'm guessing he won't because he's not used to food being taken away) take the bowl away. Try again for 10 mins at nighttime. Eventually, he'll get that if he wants to eat, he eats when you put the food down (believe it or not, this also helps you bond with your dog as you are becoming the clear provider of food). Ideally you'll have about 30 mins before you then leave for work so that he has time to digest. Then let him out before you leave and crate him.

I think if you try this, you'll find that he's no longer eliminating in the crate or in the house in the middle of the day. I have a feeling he was going to the bathroom in the crate/house because he HAD to go and could no longer hold it.

Koda wrote:

You already answered the problem....

You free feed. In general, free feeding is only effective if you can be with your dog all day to monitor him. Because you need to leave him for 8 hours a day or so, I would highly suggest scheduling feedings for your husky. By doing this you can not only monitor his food intake, but you'll be able to accurately predict when he will have to go

Try splitting his feedings between two times a day, morning at night. When you wake up, let him out, put his food down and let it sit for 10 mins. When he doesn't eat right away (I'm guessing he won't because he's not used to food being taken away) take the bowl away. Try again for 10 mins at nighttime. Eventually, he'll get that if he wants to eat, he eats when you put the food down (believe it or not, this also helps you bond with your dog as you are becoming the clear provider of food). Ideally you'll have about 30 mins before you then leave for work so that he has time to digest. Then let him out before you leave and crate him.

I think if you try this, you'll find that he's no longer eliminating in the crate or in the house in the middle of the day. I have a feeling he was going to the bathroom in the crate/house because he HAD to go and could no longer hold it.

Thanks for the suggestion. We'll try that. Should the exercise take place before or after eating? I usually run him in the mornings to tire him out for the day. Also, my wife is worried that leaving him in the crate for approx. 8 hrs a day after sleeping in the crate is too long. Is it ok to crate him for this long or should we continue trying to leave him free in the house?

Hi, I know that I'm just jumping in here, but my female had the same problem until she was about 2yrs old. I think it was a mix of separation anxiety and me letting her have food/water until right before I left for work (i didn't know any better at the time..lol.)

Is it an option to let him sleep outside of the crate at night? That has worked out great for my 2 since they were puppies. We started leaving my female loose during the day when she was about 3 1/2yrs old, but my 8month old is crated during the day. He sleeps just fine out of the crate, but then again he sleeps in our bedroom. I also take away their water 30min before I leave for work and they're fed about an hour before I leave. Never had any issues with him pooping in his crate unlike her, but like I mentioned before I didn't know any better.

Good luck and congrats on the new baby!

With our first husky, we were both working and really had no other choice but to crate her all day. Eventually we took away the nighttime crating before the daytime crating. When she was young, one of us would come home during our lunch hour to walk and play with her. Often if left uncrated a bored husky will not only destroy things but may do something to harm themselves as well.

I would add to Tori's suggestion of stopping the free feeding that you should take him out on a leash right before you leave for work and "make" him go potty. If you take him to a designated potty spot and begin teaching him a command for pottying, like "Go potty!", he will be more focused on the job he should be doing while outside and less likely to just lay in the sunshine.

Good luck!

BearDog wrote:

Also, my wife is worried that leaving him in the crate for approx. 8 hrs a day after sleeping in the crate is too long. Is it ok to crate him for this long or should we continue trying to leave him free in the house?

That is too long for your husky to be crated both night and day. I would allow him to be loose at night if you can manage it and crated during the day while you're gone instead. If you don't want him to have free reign of the whole house you could either shut your bedroom door or put up a baby gate at night so he has the room to spread out and you'll still be able to hear him if anything happens.

Another option for encouraging him to potty in the mornings is a short potty walk as I call them. Something simple like a quick walk around the block right before you leave should encourage him to urinate as well as stimulate a bowel movement if he's loaded.

I too would recommend putting him on a feeding schedule, partly to accurately monitor how much he's eating and when but also to be able to time his BM's. Once you have an idea of when he typically has a BM you can adjust your feeding schedule to make the timing work around your work schedule for example. I started feeding my dogs early in the afternoon simply because it almost guarantees that they'll have an early BM the next morning. Back when I was working this was important, now not so much but at least it helps to know when to expect a BM so you can avoid accidents.

It depends on how long you have to give him in the morning, I would say. If you can wake up, feed him, give him about 15-30 mins and then take him for a walk or a run, that would be best. If you're just walking it shouldn't be much of a problem, but running right after eating could cause bloat, even in a medium sized breed, so give him as much time as you're able.

I would let him loose at night if you can, as others have suggested, then crate during the day. I would avoid leaving him free in the house at all times if possible, as it can lead to destruction and potential injuries if he's not being exercised enough.

I like the idea of leaving him out, but on occasions when we have done this we have stepped on or tripped over him in the night. With a pregnant wife who goes to the bathroom a lot and midnight feedings in our future we want to avoid hurting him and ourselves. We were thinking maybe a glow in the dark collar.

A glow-in-the-dark collar or one of those LED blue night lights would work well Does he have a dog bed? Mine, if not on the bed with us, would be loathe to sleep anywhere but their own dog beds at night

That's why I've learned to "shuffle" or slide my feet across the floor at night when it's dark and I can't see where the dog is rather than walking normally. This way if he's in my path my foot will slide into him rather than step on him. A tad bit slower but safer for both of us. A little nightlight in the room could help too if you can't get a glowing collar. We sleep with our bedroom door open (with a baby gate up) and have a night light plugged in down the hall. It keeps it dark enough in our room to sleep but light enough that if we have to move around in the dark we would be able to see the dog on the floor.

Hey Charlie, I am also going to jump in here and comment on keeping Bear tied when out in the yard. I do this with my sibe, Miko. We do have a fenced in yard however she will go under the fence when she can. I keep her tethered on a 25' lead. It gives her plenty of space to run and the only time I have issues with it is when I am beyond her reach(I have one of those pups that constantly want to be at your side, not common in huskies to my knowledge). Thats when she starts ripping up the lawn. I do shorten her lead when I am mowing to avoid danger and I have to show her how far she can go when I do this, once she did not realize that I had shortened it at took of running only to get wind knocked out of her when she got to the end of the lead. Aside from that she is perfectly happy on her lead. Bear may have a heard time to adjust to it at first but if you keep it long enough so he still feels like its "his" yard and use a cable instead of a chain (cables are very strong but much lighter), he will come around.

Becky wrote:

Hey Charlie, I am also going to jump in here and comment on keeping Bear tied when out in the yard. I do this with my sibe, Miko. We do have a fenced in yard however she will go under the fence when she can. I keep her tethered on a 25' lead. It gives her plenty of space to run and the only time I have issues with it is when I am beyond her reach(I have one of those pups that constantly want to be at your side, not common in huskies to my knowledge). Thats when she starts ripping up the lawn. I do shorten her lead when I am mowing to avoid danger and I have to show her how far she can go when I do this, once she did not realize that I had shortened it at took of running only to get wind knocked out of her when she got to the end of the lead. Aside from that she is perfectly happy on her lead. Bear may have a heard time to adjust to it at first but if you keep it long enough so he still feels like its "his" yard and use a cable instead of a chain (cables are very strong but much lighter), he will come around.

I know people that do this for their yards that have shorter fences, and I would consider the same for mine once we get our temporary fence installed.

However, just to clear up any potential confusion, I think the OP was speaking about a situation to leave his dog in when they are not home, and I would certainly not advise tethering a dog outside when you are not there to supervise (I know that's not what you meant, Becky. Just wanted to make that clear though )

Koda wrote:

Becky wrote:

Hey Charlie, I am also going to jump in here and comment on keeping Bear tied when out in the yard. I do this with my sibe, Miko. We do have a fenced in yard however she will go under the fence when she can. I keep her tethered on a 25' lead. It gives her plenty of space to run and the only time I have issues with it is when I am beyond her reach(I have one of those pups that constantly want to be at your side, not common in huskies to my knowledge). Thats when she starts ripping up the lawn. I do shorten her lead when I am mowing to avoid danger and I have to show her how far she can go when I do this, once she did not realize that I had shortened it at took of running only to get wind knocked out of her when she got to the end of the lead. Aside from that she is perfectly happy on her lead. Bear may have a heard time to adjust to it at first but if you keep it long enough so he still feels like its "his" yard and use a cable instead of a chain (cables are very strong but much lighter), he will come around.

I know people that do this for their yards that have shorter fences, and I would consider the same for mine once we get our temporary fence installed.

However, just to clear up any potential confusion, I think the OP was speaking about a situation to leave his dog in when they are not home, and I would certainly not advise tethering a dog outside when you are not there to supervise (I know that's not what you meant, Becky. Just wanted to make that clear though )

Your right Tori, even if Miko was an absolute angel I would never leave her out there when we weren't home. Even if we were only going to be gone for 10 minutes. Too much could happen.

Becky wrote:

Hey Charlie, I am also going to jump in here and comment on keeping Bear tied when out in the yard. I do this with my sibe, Miko. We do have a fenced in yard however she will go under the fence when she can. I keep her tethered on a 25' lead. It gives her plenty of space to run and the only time I have issues with it is when I am beyond her reach(I have one of those pups that constantly want to be at your side, not common in huskies to my knowledge). Thats when she starts ripping up the lawn. I do shorten her lead when I am mowing to avoid danger and I have to show her how far she can go when I do this, once she did not realize that I had shortened it at took of running only to get wind knocked out of her when she got to the end of the lead. Aside from that she is perfectly happy on her lead. Bear may have a heard time to adjust to it at first but if you keep it long enough so he still feels like its "his" yard and use a cable instead of a chain (cables are very strong but much lighter), he will come around.

We don't really have trouble with him jumping the fence as long as one of us is out there to watch him. It seems like the minute we go inside though he is up and over. He's just to darn smart! lol

How do I make him poop?!! The last time he ate was last night, he didn't poop when I took him out before bed. I ran him this morning and then gave him his food, he never ate. My wife said that she took him out this morning for about a half hour and he still didn't go. We had my brother-in-law come and check on him around noon. He wouldn't play and he wouldn't poop. My brother-in-law then discovered that he had pooped and peed in the crate again. I have run him or walked him every morning this week, plus we have walked him every afternoon as well. We have tried to regulate his eating schedule (He hasn't eaten much in the last couple days), but we just have not been able to get him to poop regularly. I know this is all going to take some time, how do I get him to poop?

You said it... it's just going to take time.

Trying to regulate his feeding schedule is likely (as you said) making him eat less, thus decreasing his need to have a BM. You're going to have to stick it out for a week at least to try and get him used to not only eating on schedule, but to get his body used to pooping on schedule. It sounds like you're doing everything right. You're just not giving him enough time to adjust

Koda wrote:

You said it... it's just going to take time.

Trying to regulate his feeding schedule is likely (as you said) making him eat less, thus decreasing his need to have a BM. You're going to have to stick it out for a week at least to try and get him used to not only eating on schedule, but to get his body used to pooping on schedule. It sounds like you're doing everything right. You're just not giving him enough time to adjust

Yep, it's going to take a little time to adjust.

When we first adopted Ginger, she didn't eat for about 24-36 hours - not a meal, only treats. And she didn't really poop except for once a day if that! If I remember correctly, it took about a week or so after we practiced a regular feeding and exercise schedule and she's like clockwork now.

Same with Storm, it took about 7-10 days before he settled in with his feeding and exercise schedule. We've have him a month now, and now he's like clockwork too.

Do dogs ever get sick when they are adjusting to the feeding schedule? Yesterday, after Bear ate in the afternoon he threw up several times in the yard. It hasn't happened since and if it does I will definitely take him to the vet. We haven't changed his food or anything. Did he just eat to much too quickly?