I want this dog gone! (graphic)
 

Huskies are naturally skittish, that's normal. So, unfortunately, is the instinct to kill small animals. It's a hunting instinct.

I completely disagree that the dog should be killed. The dog should be relocated to a home where they don't have small animals and where the natural shyness of the dog is understood.

I understand your frustration but it'd be far kinder to find the dog a new home. There's nothing wrong with the dog, other than it is the wrong breed for your family. You might see if there is a husky rescue group in your area, or even contact one outside your area. I'd keep mum about the "part wolf" part, as in some places that is illegal and will result in the immediate confiscation and destruction of the animal.

Since she is living with you & your mom, I would think your mom has final say if the dog stays or goes if she really wanted it gone. I also agree with finding a rescue group instead of putting the dog down...that is irresponsible.

Whose house is this? Yours? Or your moms?

If you're willing to do it, and it's your house, you could simply put your foot down and say that you will find it a loving home (or turn it over to a rescue group whose mission is to find loving homes for rescue pets) but that it will not live in your home any more.

Only you know if that will work. I know with MY mom it would be over her dead body would I get rid of one of her critters, but if your mom is living with you and the dog is causing that much conflict I'd think she could agree. Maybe you could get her a smaller breed dog that is more social to replace this one.

Yah... high prey drive are huskies. Totally and completely. DO NOT worry about your little sister... dogs go after prey type stuff and we're not really prey to them ;)

DO find a great rescue or someone that is well versed in huskies to take your pup. A breed rescue will be great as they greatly screen where all of their dogs go.

Sorry, but I find this statement to be incredibly irresponsible. First of all, you do not know the individual dog or its tendencies. Secondly, newborns are mauled and killed by dogs every year in this country and to say otherwise is simply not true. Even normal, well-socialized, family dogs should be carefully watched around newborns and small children. It only takes a moment for a situation to get out of control and for a child to be permanently scarred.

The dog needs to be rehomed, and whoever owns the home needs to step up and insist on it. In the meantime, the child should never be left unattended with the dog.

I've got three labradors myself and love them to bits, but the first responsibility here is to the defenseless child.

While a dog probably will not see people as prey, there are incidents with huskies mauling people. They are a shy breed and not always good with children. I don't think that the incidents with the cat and bunny are indicative of whether the dog would attack a human- it's completely different- but it's a large breed and so (as with ANY dog) I would teach the child proper caution around the pet and not leave a child unsupervised around the pet. That said, I do feel the dog should be re-homed because it's pretty clear that this is not a compatible situation. People come first. Jemappellesierra (the OP) has indicated that she is very unhappy having this dog in the house, and that should be more important to her mother than keeping the dog. The satisfactory answer for all involved should be to find the dog a good, loving home where the owners enjoy Huskies and their unique personalities.

It's her grandmothers dog....her GM is living with her & her mom ;)

That is a very sad situation!! I love Huskies and wish I could adopt Kita. I'm so sorry about the loss of the bunny and then your kitten though..someone (you or your mom) needs to put the law down and unequivocally state that your grandmother needs to get Kita out of your house. As another poster said, the dog needs to be in a home without any other animals and probably just adults for now.

We (well my husband) adopted a husky/shepherd/wolf mix when our #2 son was under 2 years old. The day I found the dog wrinkling his snout and snarling at our baby son, who was rolling in his baby roll-about-thing toward's the dog's food bowl, was the day I said "we love Nikki (the dog) but she has to go back to the adoption kennel!"

Dogs with high prey drive will often chase and take down running, screaming children. I'd not ever let the dog in the same room with the child.

It's extremely irresponsible to allow animals with a high prey drive near creatures who could be considered prey, is the dog crate trained? Huskies also need to be walked for hours a day to have their basic needs seen to.

I absolutely cringe when I hear people wanting to get rid of a dog (let alone kill it) for being a dog. All dogs are predators. It's not the dog's fault that it's acting like a dog (even the smallest dog has more in common with wolves than with humans). They have predatory instincts, they have a predator's brain, and a predator's teeth. When you're adopting a dog, you're getting a dog - not a person in fur (I also hate when people talk about their pets "thinking they're human" - I think it's degrading to the animal - as if being a dog or a cat or whatever isn't "good enough" It's more likely that your dog thinks you're a dog, than it thinks it's human, and people make better dog-surrogates than dogs make people-surrogates).


I adore wolves and wolf-dogs and wolf-like dogs (huskies, malamutes and other large spitz breeds). They're amazingly loyal, intelligent and independent animals. They're not a pet for people who haven't been trained in owning these wonderful animals - and they're not for people not willing to train, house and supervise the wolf-dog properly. You cannot expect a wolf-dog - or even a husky to act like a poodle (and even a miniature poodle shouldn't be allowed unsupervised access to kittens, rabbits, or babies).

If the dog really is part wolf, it's probably not skittish around humans because of abuse. Wolf-dog hybrids tend to be one-person dogs. It's just their nature. They can make good pets, but often don't because of their shyness and/or agression towards people and other animals it doesn't perceive as part of the pack.

What you're describing though doesn't seem unusual for even a well-adjusted Husky (or poodle for that matter). Dogs, especially large dogs should never be left unsupervised with small pets or small children. Really they should never be allowed, even supervised in a situation in which they are able to harm the smaller being. Even in play the large animal can seriously injure or kill a smaller child or pet. This is a dog that could easily weigh 60-100 lbs or more (if it really is husky and wolf). Expecting it to be "safe" with a 5 to 10 lb rabbit or kitten is unreasonable. Even if the dog sees the smaller critter as a "pack-mate" rather than prey, a dog can't "know it's own strength" - not in the way people can (and even people make mistakes and accidentally harm very tiny animals). If the dog was "playing" with the kitten or the rabbit as it would a fellow canine, the kitten and rabbit still can end up dead. This is the humans' responsibility not the dog's.


Even the tiniest of dogs (and most pets, for that matter) shouldn't be left unsupervised with small children and small pets, for that matter, as even yorkeshire terriers (the smallest breed of dog) have been known to kill an infant.

It disturbs me that you and your mom are pushing for the dog's death. Even rehoming seems premature, without considering other options. Professional training (not just for the dog and grandma, but for every person in the house old enough to participate in the training) really is a must. Training does not remove the responsibility of supervising the dog (or any pet) when small children or animals are present, and that responsibility falls to every human in the home who is able to do so.

I don't know if grandma has the skills to take on a large dog, especially a wolf-hybrid - if the dog really is a wolf-dog. (Many people will falsely claim wolf parentage in huskies and malamutes, because it's considered "cool" to have a dog with wolf ancestry. Most alleged wolf-dog hybrids, when genetically tested - turn out to have zero wolf parentage).

But regardless, both huskies and wolf-dogs are often one-owner, or one-family dogs. Meaning that it could be difficult or impossible to rehome this dog. If the dog is bonded to grandma, the best situation for the dog would be to be in a home with grandma (assuming grandma and the dog go through obedience training).

I'd suggest grandma take the dog to the vet and have the vet determine whether there's actually any wolf ancestry in the dog. Especially if you live in an area where the keeping of wolf-dogs is regulated or forbidden, but mostly because wolf-dogs can present unique challenges. There are some really good books on training and living with wolf-dog hybrids (I've always wanted a wolf-dog hybrid, so I learned everything I could about them, and learned that I am not living in a situation that would be fair to such a dog).

I think the family should support grandma's responsible ownership of this dog - and that means finding a home for grandma and the dog, and encouraging grandma to become an informed and responsible owner through education and training (for her and the dog).

Grandma needs rehoming.

I have a 120 pound Malamute. We have had her for years. She is going to be 12. We adopted her from a shelter when she scared her original owners by growling at a child, her second owner by not doing well on a small boat (duh) and our family dog had passed, and we were missing a dog.

We read up on her, and chose her advisedly. We were managing a large camp in the wild, and she and my husband roamed it all the time. She cohabited with a cat, and our family, although she is most fond of my husband. She is a team dog, and we are part of her team. We work hard in introducing small children to her, and she has done extremely well. She has caught and killed fish and rodents in the wild, but so far no domestic animals. She has been awesome bear protection although I wish she wouldn't chase porcupines, and now that she is old and arthritic, we are caring for her, and keeping her away from most noisy stuff. She has been loyal, mellow, even tempered and quite un-dog like in many ways- but now that she is old and achy, she is being not quite so mellow. Because I researched, we worked hard getting her used to us, and us to her. I I had some worries, but that was 7+ years ago, and she has been lovely.