Has anyone on the forum owned Alaskan Malamutes? How do they differ from Huskies? I think they are beautiful dogs and their size is another attraction for me. Just wondering if they require about the same amount and type of care that a Husky does. Anyone raised Malamutes and Huskies together?

Ask Eddy, or maybe not.....

I love Mals but they are diff. Than huskies

My friend owns a malamute and a husky. Her malamute is verrrrry aggressive, which ive read can be common with the breed. With her being 140lbs it makes it very hard to handle her and her aggressiveness when shes at my house

I love malamutes too. They are similar in many ways, with the shedding and the stubbornness and not being allowed off-leash. I've heard that they can become dog aggressive too (how does that make sense in a sled dog?!). The Alaskan Malamute Help League has some useful factsheets on them, and AMAL (the American one) probably has some too.

I've always wanted to really put my 2¢ about Malamutes out there. Just never got around to it because I'm sure it will turn into a 2500 word ramble. Here's the quick version (and of course all opinion)...

I've had a puppy, and three adult rescues. Every single one of mine have actively attacked other dogs, and every loose Malamute I've encountered has displayed this same tendency. These dogs originated doing a task a bit more intense than Huskies. They typically need exercise more muscle oriented than Husky running type activity. In my opinion they require a bit more advanced owner than even Huskies. The Husky is eager and unconditionally wants your company, whereas the Malamutes seem to look at you like you're supposed to earn their affection. They are much more aloof than any breed I have had experience with.

They are also bred much more poorly in general. Ideally the breed standard (AKC) says that males should be about 85 pounds and females about 75. Mine are both 10 pounds over that. Any Malamute getting bigger than 110 pounds sounds like bad breeding to me. That of course means higher chances of additional health concerns later down the road. I still have to figure out Coco's limp this week, but I fear that her diagnosis will mean that every Malamute I've had has had inherited genetic faults. This has me wary of ever trying rescue again.

I would say that the effort of each Malamute has roughly been that of 1.5-2.5 Huskies. But if you have a lot of dog experience and trust your own instincts with training and integrating a new dog. They are worth every minute of lung bursting cussing sessions.


Not sure where I would direct you for more information, but I do strongly suggest reading every single item you can on the breed. First hand anecdotes to breed club overviews.

Elara's breeder has one malamute. She got along with her huskies until one day for some reason she decided she didn't like one of the females anymore. Now she has to keep the mal away from the huskies all the time, but she is friendly with people. I did meet one old malamute at the dog park and he was very friendly with people and was just fine with other dogs. The one's I've watched in the show ring didn't ever show any aggression either. But that's about all the experience I've had with them!

Just want to piggy back on what Eddy said...

Malamutes are very commonly overbred. Any Mal you see over 100 lbs is definitely bad breeding or overweight. There is a popular "designer breed" known as "Giant Malamutes" that look like a Newfy with a Malamute exterior. They are in excess of 120-150 lbs, some even getting as large as 200 lbs. PLEASE stay away from ANY "breeder" who "claims" to breed Malamutes that big or who calls them "Giant Malamutes." Their life expectancy drops from ~14yrs to ~5yrs and it comes with a BOAT load of health problems. They are NOT supposed to be bred that large.

Malamutes were bred for more of the "freight" sled (heavy loads, shorter distances I believe) than huskies who were bred for light loads over longer distances.

As many have said, Mals tend to be more dog aggressive than huskies and come with the same drawbacks. I've heard their temperaments are more mellow, but Eddy's experience seems to debunk that, so I hesitate to say that.

They are a GREAT breed and one my husband and I have considered, but as with any breed, they require research and education before ownership. Kudos to you for starting that process

The first word that entered my mind was ......aloof.

If you were another dog his thoughts were ..... stay the hell outta my yard.

First you really have to work at having the Mal respect and honor you not the other way around. Mylo, usually weighed in at 90-95 pounds and knew how to use every ounce to his advantage. Sometimes it was fun with what he would do, other time he could be deadly. Ask any dog in Akron that tried to cross with him. He never started things but would finish with me dragging his ass away. (I hated that crap)

BUT I also never connected with any other dog so soulfully, almost 1 1/2 yrs since he passed away I'm still not recovered probably never will either.

The bigger the Mal the less life they'll have and be more prone to cancer. I loved him with all my heart but could never do it again

My Keimo is named after a Malamute that my aunt and uncle had when I was a kid. I loved that dog... but he was a LOT of trouble for them... ate the tires off of 4-wheelers and lots of other destructive behavior. However, he did not ever have the "escape artist" problems that I have had with my Keimo. He was off leash all of the time and never roamed too far from home. He's the only Mal I've ever known.

I came across some Giant Malamute pictures browsing Google the other day....does anyone know how breeders got them so large?? I'm just curious, because I can't figure out why people would intentionally breed them so big when it's not a normal size for a Malamute.

Some people will do anything if they think they can make some money off it...

Sad... that's not healthy for those poor pups.

Mermaidista wrote:

I came across some Giant Malamute pictures browsing Google the other day....does anyone know how breeders got them so large?? I'm just curious, because I can't figure out why people would intentionally breed them so big when it's not a normal size for a Malamute.

They just keep breeding the big ones together. Like with huskies, a lot of the ones you see are actually oversized (though nothing compared to those giant malamutes!). They just do it for the money or they just think it's cool.

I'll weigh in here:

My wife and I rescued our pup with the intention of getting a Sibe, woops! Everyone we met said he was a malamute - and the more he grows, the more malamute he becomes. Since getting him I've met a million people that had a malamute at one point in their past and every one of them says it was the best dog they ever had - but more work than they want to put in currently.

When we come to the conclusion Appa was a Mal we put in our due research and learned all we could about the breed. When we heard that they can become dog aggressive we kicked Appa's socializing into high-gear. He attends dog day-care and dog parks frequently just to keep him socialized. We are very active in his behavioral training (he might not do many tricks, but we don't really care so much about tricks - just good behavior). The only times he's ever been aggressive with another dog was when food was involved - and when we were careless in our introductions with another male dog and Appa's favorite female dog was involved. Without the female around he was fine with this other male, once the female showed up - watch out.

Once Appa hit "teenager" we find him hanging out on his own in the house more than right next to us, but I wouldn't say he is aloof. He just picks where HE wants to be, and that doesn't have too much bearing on where WE are. If we call him to us he comes running happily and will stay with us.

He loves people and dogs of all sizes and is gentle with the littler ones and plays rougher with the big ones.

All the labs and boxers and collies and other common dogs around here at the dog park display the "I just want to make my owner happy" mentality. You can see they are eager to please their owners and will do anything to do so. With Appa it's not like that at all. You can see him weigh every decision against an invisible scale of "do I want to do this? Is this going to benefit me?" Appa's happiness is 80% independent of our happiness.

He is about a million times more mellow than any husky I've ever met - most of the mals at our rescue are.

After our experience with Appa and the Mals and huskies with the rescue / neighbors / dog park, my wife and I have concluded we are a Malamute family for life. It's a lot of work (sometimes owning something like a lab seems like a great idea) but the trade offs are completely worth it. His demeanor, temperament, and personality are worth all the extra effort we have to put into keeping him a well socialized, happy, behaved dog.

Riley, your a good owner/ownee don't ever stop.

Thanks, and I don't ever plan on stopping. I've been officially hooked.

rileyflorence wrote:

Thanks, and I don't ever plan on stopping. I've been officially hooked.

i still remember us all telling you he was a Mal and you would not believe us
Appa is on the top as one of my fav. Mals, having the time with Eddy's pack i do love the Mals but im not sure if i could handle some of the behavior, i love Coco to death but i know there is not way i could deal with her in her moods. and Sioux i did not know as a youngster but he is great now.
we need some new pics of Appa!

I just updated his scrapbook a day or two ago!

SaraB wrote:

Mermaidista wrote:

I came across some Giant Malamute pictures browsing Google the other day....does anyone know how breeders got them so large?? I'm just curious, because I can't figure out why people would intentionally breed them so big when it's not a normal size for a Malamute.

They just keep breeding the big ones together. Like with huskies, a lot of the ones you see are actually oversized (though nothing compared to those giant malamutes!). They just do it for the money or they just think it's cool.

Ah, I figured this was what they did. Some are just so enormous...one person was boasting that their dogs are often mistaken for bears (black I assume?) from a distance. Errr...

Riley, you do sound like a wonderful owner, and I'm glad Appa has such an awesome home. I do think they are beautiful dogs, as well, our neighbor down the road here has a Mal. Going to check out your updated scrapbook!!!

A picture of a giant mal Jenn and I saw in Estes Park after Christmas. He was a Bear.....a Teddy Bear.

https://servimg.com/view/15677367/146

https://servimg.com/view/15677367/147

So tell me, what are the personality and behavior traits of a Mal verses a husky? As I said before, I have only been around one Mal in my life and I loved him.

Keimo&Izzi wrote:

So tell me, what are the personality and behavior traits of a Mal verses a husky? As I said before, I have only been around one Mal in my life and I loved him.

i think that has been covered in all the post on this thread....

I have mentioned my desire in getting a Malamute next and I have located a Breeder that lives an hour away from me. They do pulling competitions with there Mals. I'm hoping to meet with them in a couple of months and get to know more about their dogs and about the pulling competition. I would like to see if it is something I can get into with my new pup if I decide to get one from them.

I own a mal but all the differences have been addressed!