We've been waiting patiently on a litter from a local breeder for some time now. Well, she has a litter now, 3 weeks old, and we went to see them yesterday! They will be ready to come home in about 17 days. They just started eating puppy food (as well as still nursing) and they are hobbling around. We decided on a boy and a girl. My DP let me pick since I tend to get more attached and he has trouble seeing their different personalities that young.

The little girl is black and white. She's cuddly but also spunky. She's walking very well already compared to her siblings and seems more awake and alert than them. She's the only one in the litter that looks like she won't have blue eyes. They are guessing brown or caramel. We've decided to name her Tesla.

The boy is a redhead, as I like to call him (we have two redheaded human kids ). He's a mama's boy. He kept walking away from his sibs the 3-4 feet back over to his mama. I hope he will be that attached to us and his sister. He seems like a sweet, loyal little thing. He's a bigger boy too. And he likes to sleep a lot. LOL We are still struggling with a name for him. DP likes Cedar, but I'm having trouble deciding whether I like it or not. It's a perfect description of his coloring though.

We recently bought a house and built a fence around the backyard. We've been living in apartments all these years and did not feel right about getting the big dogs we like while still doing the apartment thing.

We have two kids, a boy and a girl. Boy is 7 1/2, girl is 4 1/2. Both have special needs. Boy7 is being evaluated this summer before entering school (previously homeschooled). He possibly has Asperger's and/or developmental coordination disorder, we know he has a sensory disorder, and he has a mostly resolved feeding disorder. He LOVES animals, especially cats (can't have any though...DP is very allergic!). If you talked to him for 10 minutes you'd think he's a totally typical kid, but after a bit it's obvious he's...quirky. LOL He's smart as a whip though and I know he'll be fine with a little extra help for the social and physical stuff.

Girl4 has severe quad cerebral palsy and is 100% care dependent and non-verbal. She's has a feeding tube and trach. Obviously her special needs are much more obvious. She's a lot of work, but we receive in home nursing so I don't go crazy. She's the happiest kid I've ever met and totally worth everything we do for her.

Currently I'm staying at home with the kids. I hope to go to school sometime soon, probably to study nutrition. DP is an engineer. He's a private guy so I don't share a lot about him on-line to respect his feelings.

We are hoping these pups will complete our family. We don't intend to have more human babies! I think they will be awesome for both the kids. I've noticed bigger dogs tend to be a little timid around Girl4, I think because of her equipment. Or they just instinctively know it's not ok to jump on her. I think we will be able to train the pups well so they can play with her gently. Boy7 will hopefully learn more responsibility and I've heard pets can be great for kids with ASD or sensory disorders.

Pics of pups and kids!

Welcome! Wow you guys certainly have your hands full already!

Just a few things I want to share... Puppies should really be at least 8 weeks old before you take them home for developmental reasons. 3 weeks plus 17 days is putting you around 6 weeks old... Puppies at this age who are taken away from their litters are usually quite mouthy and can grow up to have some difficulty with socalization and bite inhibition. With young children, especially special needs children, this is raising huge red flags. I would urge you to have the breeder keep the litter together until they're at least 8 weeks old. It can be a very stressful thing to try and break the mouthiness with 1 puppy... let alone 2... plus 2 young children. They need a lot of consistency and with young children that often can be very very difficult.

I'm sure you will enjoy the puppies very much I just have some concerns it may be TOO much. I have 5 and while it's do-able for me I don't think I could have handled getting 2 at once, let alone 2 puppies at once! They are quite the handful.

Regardless we are here to help!

I will talk to the breeder and DP about waiting a little longer. Is there something specifically difficult about getting 2 puppies together? I'm able to be home with them to housebreak them and they won't be left alone much at all for the first few months. When I do start school, I will be going to campus just up the street and will be able to pop in several times a day.

With 2 puppies it's obviously twice the work and many negative habits can be reinforced by each other. There's also the concern of them being very bonded to each other to the point where separating them (such as walking them apart or going to the vet apart) can lead to some pretty serious screaming or even destruction. It's best to try and raise them independent of each other so they don't grow up to be dependent on one another. It also can cause problems when they are so dependent on each other because then YOU don't matter. It doesn't always happen, but the majority of the time these issues exist.

It also takes a toll on how you can raise them. It's a lot of work to raise one Husky puppy, let alone 2 at once. Many breeders won't sell 2 puppies to one family for these reasons.

Kristina has good advice. I would have went with a older dog of know temperament if it was me, especially having kids with special needs.

Congrats, they are beautiful. So are your kids.

+2 Husky collector is right.

Lordbroll wrote:

I would have went with a older dog of know temperament if it was me, especially having kids with special needs.

Agree with this whole heartedly.

I can tell you first hand, the larger breeds do amazingly well with special needs kids, (if trained well). My mom was a foster parent for medically critical children for 35 years. We had kids with trachs, vents, IVs, you name it. Her giant schnauzers, and Kya, my red husky, were the best with them! The kids LOVED the dogs coming around, and loving on them.

BUT, like Kristina said, You are taking 2 puppies into a home with special needs kiddos, and having to train them up. While I think it's a wonderful idea to raise a pup around it, because it may be easier to acclimate them to the sounds, smells and machines, it may be too hard to handle 2 at the same time.

Not to meantion, a husky has a lot of hair, and that could cause issues with the trach, as the hair could easily get into the trach, and lungs. That could cause a serious issue. I wouldn't want something to happen to that precious girl!

I'm not trying to scare you away from getting a husky pup, because lets face it, everyone here thinks they are the BEST, but there are things like that to consider.

In anyway, the pups are adorable, as are your kiddos!

Welcome & congrats on you're new additions!

I completely agree with everything Kristina has to say. I currently have 6 dog's & 2 of them are Husky puppies (8 months & 3 months old) and let me tell you, it is WORK (not so much the other dog's, but mainly the huskies)! I constantly have my hand's full and it can be rather stressful at times. Even with working at home, it's still a lot. I would do A LOT of research and make sure that handling 2 is going to work for you.

The trach is not an issue. I've talked with parents of trach kids about owning pets. Many of them do. My daughter is usually on the vent and when she's not she wears a humidvent which is a cap that goes over it with paper filters on the sides to recycle the humidity she breathes out. Both devices prevent things from going into her trach. She's been around DP's parent's german shepherd who sheds a TON (they don't keep up enough on her grooming ) and she does fine. We plan to gate off the kids' room as there's just too much in there for curious puppies to get into (legos and a ventilator...no thanks!). We do have the time and energy to raise puppies now. We are young and healthy and I stay at home. Boy will be going to school in August and Girl has 91 hours of in-home nursing each week. DP has plenty of experience training dogs. He trained the german shepherd and she's amazingly obedient. I will research and discuss 1 vs 2 with DP. I've been reading and it seems some people think it's a great idea and some people think it's a horrible idea. There doesn't seem to be any middle ground. Either one side of the fence or the other!

We've been looking for months for dogs to adopt and we haven't found any in our area. Obviously that would be our first choice. We rescued the german shepherd 10 years ago from the pound (she was just a pup then), though she quickly became his parent's dog since they had a house and we didn't. She visits us more often now that we have a house and the kids love her.

Just be sure in your research you're looking up Huskies. They are very different from many other breeds and while your hubby may have had an easy time training a GSD, they are not GSDs! They are what I like to call willingly disobedient. They are smart, and pick up things quickly. But usually will only "show" that training when it is convenient or beneficial to them. Simply put, they are not easily "trained."

There are some who think it's great and some who think it's horrible on nearly every dog issue. But I just think what makes this situation even more unique is the 2 special needs children living in the home. It just seems as though it's putting unnecessary strain and stress on a family.

Why do you want 2 puppies at once?

What area? Lots of rescues and especially therapy dog groups will transport. Just because you raise a puppy there is no guarantee on how they will turn out as adults.

all i know is i have my first husky puppy, and although i've had and trained many dogs[9months and up], a puppy is very stressful and overwhelming at times. i couldnt even imagine having 2 at the same time.

arooroomom wrote:

Why do you want 2 puppies at once?

DP has been researching for a long time. He's had his heart set on huskies for a while. I'm not sure his exact reasons for wanting two. I think because he's in the camp of "it will be better to train them at the same time". I will ask him when he gets home.

I appreciate all the advice. I do hope no one is looking at our situation and is thinking our kids will interfere with training the dog (s). I know from the outside looking in we have our hands full already, but I cannot express enough how much of a non-issue the special needs are. I know people pity us and wonder how we manage as it is, but being a parent to these two kids I honestly think I have it easier than most parents. Our kids get services out the rear. LOL We finally have a good routine and good help. We are honestly a little bored and want more action in our lives. We sit around with the kids watching movies and wish we could DO something more. Not sure if that makes sense. We take them out on the bike path and I'm looking forward to taking dogs on the bike path. DP can even take them into work once they are reasonably house-broken. They love having furry visitors up there.

I completely understand your situation. It's great to have the services for them, and it can get "boring."

Like I had meantioned, my only concern was the shedding with your girl. If you can take precautions, and still have them interact, that's great! It could be a great thing.

You will definitely have more action in the house with a husky pup! LOL!

If I were you I would try out one husky puppy and after 2 month's, then decide if you are willing to take on a second. I've owned German Shepherd's in the past and comparing the two breed's, they are like night and day. GSD's can be easily trained and are better listeners to say the least. Huskies require TONS of patience! My two pup's know a bunch of commands, but only choose to use them when food is involved or they "feel like it". They are extremely intelligent, which makes them harder to train, because they like to find the easier way of doing thing's.

As cute as having two puppies are together, it's seriously something you should think long and hard about. The only reason I have two puppies is because it's just me and my boyfriend. If kid's were involved, no way would I ever take on two of these guy's as pups! It's you're choice nonetheless, just be aware that as beautiful and fun as these guy's are, their beauty comes with a price. I tell everyone who ask's about my dog's that looks can be deceiving! My pups are high energy, can be destructive, hard headed, very willful, and complete holy terror's! As I speak, my 3 month old is making a pool in my kitchen out of her water bowl on my hard wood floor lol. They can also be quit costly as well. My male pup had to have a GI surgery within the first 2-3 month's of us owning him, which in total cost me about $2,000 from what I can remember. Thankfully I didn't have my female at the time! It's funny because whenever I bring my new pup into the pet store, they always ask "what was one Husky not enough? Are you crazy??!?!?!" (Most of them have huskies and know how they can be).

So, my advise is just browse through the forum and look very carefully at the information people post. Mainly look at the bad, just so you know exactly what you're getting yourself into.

Welcome to the forum.

Your kids are very cute .

Quote :

I do hope no one is looking at our situation and is thinking our kids will interfere with training the dog (s). I know from the outside looking in we have our hands full already, but I cannot express enough how much of a non-issue the special needs are

I don't think that is the case at all. You've just happened to come to a forum where people have a lot of experience with this breed and are trying to pass along as much information as they can to you before you take your pups home. Everyone here wants nothing but the best for you and your children first, and they want to make 100% sure you know EXACTLY what your getting yourself into with 2 pups.

Like Kristina said you never want to take a pup away from it's litter before 8 weeks of age. It may seem like a long time, but the longer the pup stays with it's litter and parents the better adjusted it will be in the end.

My breeder would never sell 2 pups from the same litter to the same house hold. We never asked him to but we know that is one of his rules. The bond litter mates form is intense... Again Kristina raised the flag on this on this one, but they can become so dependent on each other that any little separation is HELL in their world. This also has the added problem of you having a harder time establishing yourself as their master. Your inviting a pack into your pack, trust us when we say this isn't the easiest thing to do.


And the amount of training that goes into one pup is insane enough.... Just between house breaking, Crate training, general obedience, and exercise it's a job all by itself.... Don't think for one second you will be able to teach them anything together... When they are in the same room as pups all they will do is want to play and nothing else. You'll need to separate to train, and do double the training MINIMUM.

So of our long time members still have breakdowns trying to train or retrain their new additions, and they have a balanced and stable pack they are bringing these pups into.

Again I agree, Huskies are a special breed. Kelly and I are both fit, active people, with no children. Until recently we only had 1. Ours tire out super fast.... But the recharge time on them is almost instant. they are NEVER tired.

We jog or blade-joring in the morning for 30 - 40 minutes (intense cardio)
In the evening is an hour walk with a 6 pound backpack.

On the weekends we Hike an hour in the woods on trails (again sometimes with the pack)
and spend 2 hours at the dog park.


Owning 1 Husky has changed our life SOOOOOO much from a year ago it isn't even funny. We recently got our 2nd though that was different circumstances

Do yourself a favor, please seriously think about just getting one puppy, and if everything is working out and as good as you hoped get another some other time down the line... An older rescue maybe.

The people on this forum are right to express the worry they have. For your sanity if nothing else .

Either way I, and I believe everyone here too, wishes you the best of luck. If you can keep your family and two puppies happy and healthy more power to you .

Just consider the FULL extent of what your getting yourself into is all we ask

~Chris~

Congrats on your new additions and welcome!

Welcome.

I agree with just all of the advice given by others here.
I am not young like alot of others here but I enjoy having my Huskies. I walk my huskies 2 miles in the morning and either the dog park in the evening or an other walk in the evening.

I got the first one 11 months ago he was 9 months at the time already house broken. I had no idea what I was getting into but we (my husband myself and Blaze ) have manage to make things work out for us. We did some beginning dog training with him which helped alot.

Within the last two weeks we adopted a second husky from a rescue that is 2 years old.
She is a real sweet heart Kerian and Blaze have begin to bond they play several times a day in the back yard. She has had some dog training and is crate train so things are easier.

Do read some of the topics on this forum for additional information.

If it were me I woud consider a puppy and a rescue for adoption.

Congrats.

As the rest of the people here I would also suggest only 1 puppy. I have a 5 month old puppy right now and a rescued husky that is 2 years old. Even the bond they share is incredibly intense. Mind you, we brought Cato into the house after having Delilah for over a year. Now, they cant even walk 6 feet apart without him crying. Thankfully, I can walk them at separate times as long as he isn't alone.

As a fellow puppy owner (at the moment anyways) I would not wish potty training two huskies at the same time on anyone. Double the accidents, double the stubborn antics. And believe me, they can be stubborn little butt heads.

If you want two, raise the puppy for a few months and then consider adding a rescue that is already housebroken. Rescuing is just as, if not more rewarding than having a puppy and they allow for a special bond between the two of you. I promise you wont regret rescuing.

FWIW, our rescue is only 2 and our pup is 5.5 months. They have very similar energy levels, but she is mature enough to tell him when to quit with annoying habits

Welcome! This forum is a great resource for all things husky!

Everyone already weighed in on the puppy situation. I will agree. Huskies are not just a pet, it's like taking on another hobby. Puppies especially are time consuming, and then huskies go through a very difficult "teenage" phase. It's hard enough with an older huskies in the house to train the teenage husky, I can't imagine 2 teens at the same plus 2 kids! Huskies are so incredibly wonderful that we want to give you the best husky experience for your lifestyle.

What state are you in? Many of our members, myself included, have many rescue contacts in every state!

Welcome to the forum! The only thing I would add is make sure you get the puppy or puppies used to you leaving for a bit everyday since you plan on going from a stay at home mom to going back to school. You don't want them completely dependent on you being around 24/7. It's best to prevent separation anxiety right from the start.

Welcome to the forum.

Amen to what aroooooomom and tika had to say

Welcome! Here is a good article from Whole Dog Journal about the risks of taking on two puppies at once. It also includes training tips for owners who decide to try their luck at rasing two pups. Best of luck to you, I'm sure you and your family will love having a husky (or two!)



http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/13_1/features/Problems-Adopting-Two-Puppies-At-Once_16190-1.html