Do NOT shave your husky for the summer

You may think - gee it's getting warm out and my husky will overheat in this weather. So, maybe I should just have all that fur shaved off. DON'T DO IT! Even if your groomer / vet / friend recommends such radical action, read on first. There are a number of reasons why your northern breed needs the fur during warm weather.

A Siberian Husky, like many northern dog breeds, has two coat layers. The inner, or under, coat consists of short, fluffy, downy soft fur. The other layer is the guard hair layer, which is not shed in general. The guard hairs stay in place while the husky "blows" his coat (the term used for the sudden shedding of the undercoat) - generally in the spring. That guard hair coat has natural oils which keep the husky clean and dry (ours virtually never gets wet to the skin, and does not pick up dirt and debris from the yard in his coat).

Our husky bulks up on this undercoat during the fall so he is warm outside during our cold, snowy winters in Michigan. Now, in the late spring, he has fluffy tufts of fur working loose all over his body. This husky, as you can see from the photo, is a short-hair type. When I scratch him, his fur feels like sheep's wool because the undercoat has become bunchy and tightly packed. The undercoat is creamy colored with a touch of copper at the outer ends. His guard hairs stay in place, and remain copper or white, depending location.



It's a family effort to get the tufts of undercoat loose throughout the spring. Lobo was a rescue, but I don't know if that explains his dislike of grooming. He has sensitive skin, and only plucking at tufts (best done when he's asleep) or holding him down and using a human comb seem to work well. I limit the "holding him down" time to 15 minute sessions.



Why does the husky need his guard hairs in the warm summer? You may ask yourself... why do desert peoples such as Moroccans wear loose, cheesecloth-like clothes that cover the body (http://www.berbertours.net/faq.php#3)? It's to keep the sun off the skin and allow cool breezes to get to the skin. Same thing for your northern-bred dog. He needs the guard hairs to keep sun off of his skin, but breeze will filter through since the undercoat is mostly gone during the summer. Also, the guard hairs protect your dog against biting insects!



If you are in an extremely warm area, you may wish to keep a pool of water, like a kid's wading pool, where your dog can reach it. Of course, change the water frequently to keep it fresh and stop mosquito larvae from hatching. Shade throughout the day, and drinking water should be givens. You may wish the bring the pup inside, too, if you have air conditioning during the peak heat times. Our husky will dig holes to get to cooler dirt to lay in - not that we want him to, but this is one of those behaviors the husky is known for.



And as for the shepherd / husky mix of ours, she has an undercoat the sheds in the spring as well. We can use a shedding blade, or human comb, or wire brush as needed... and she loves to be groomed. Her undercoat is smoother - not as bunchy - as the husky's, and does not bunch up quite the same way. She does have a double coat, and does keep her guard hairs, though.



Further reading and references I've used for this post are at: http://www.sibrescue.com/tip-shave.asp, http://www.ccndr.org/library/shaving.htm, and http://www.siberrescue.com/Flsibes.htm.

Huskies - Great Mousers!

I've read on other websites that huskies are good mousers, and have well-developed hunting instincts. Well, I believe it now, as scarcely a week goes by that one of our dogs does not have a new mouse, chipmunk, or squirrel trophy. Okay - you got me - sometimes a couple of weeks go by, but still, I had no idea we had so many little critters close to the house. A couple of pictures are included at the lower portion of this blog to substantiate this claim. I've chosen the lower area so you can avoid the pictures, if you wish. But there's nothing graphic - it's just that I know some people will think - aawww, the poor little critter.

Lobo, the red full husky, will sometimes completely ignore us humans when he's intent on searching for a small critter. Be wary of that if you're a husky owner - the convenient apparent deafness of your dog. Willy, the shepherd mix, will usually at least listen to us humans, and she definately knows what we mean by "find the mouse!" She gets very intense, and will search all of the surrounding area - especially anywhere we point or poke at with a stick.

Now, the normal hunting zone is, of course, the area each is cabled to by our house when the family is away. There are an abundance of sunflower seeds spilled into my flower garden area, and under the back deck, by the energetic goldfinches (our most abundant visitors). And, we have large beech trees in front that contribute beechnuts for birds, chipmunks, and mice. As the snow melted this spring, I could see where mice had created tunnels through the spilled seeds and shells to get under the deck. BTW, the flowers are fenced in, or I wouldn't have any after a doggie (on a cable) tromped, turned, dug, and laid in them. So some mice get away with months of local living before "their time is up" by sticking to the fenced area and moving when the dogs are inside.

The competition for catching any particular mouse, when both dogs are on the hunt with one of us at the same time, is entertaining to watch. Willy, as the alpha will frequently lead. Lobo, excitable, will follow, run circles, check nearby areas, jump (front feet) on Willy's back (making her mad - she'll grow and snap at him), and (sometimes) try to push his head in front of Willy's. At times, one or the other will give up too soon at a particular area, only to have the rival dog dig at just the right area and !Pounce! on the prize. Still, they each get their share.

Below is a series of three pictures showing Lobo scenting a mouse through a foot of snow, pouncing, and bringing the prize over for inspection. The strange alignment is due to the limitations of the Google's Blogger editing tools. The HTML tags with the photos are weird enough, I'm not messing with them too much.




Here's one that my siblings and family didn't want to see, as they felt bad for the squirrel. Willy caught this black squirrel all by herself. Yes, the dogs will sometimes eat the squirrel (or other rodents), but not always.



Finally, here's a new one. Lobo caught a mole this April, and I have never even seen any mole trails. Yes, it's a snowy Easter week here, too, like most of the eastern United States. So much for our very short spring, and enjoying the crocuses, daffodils, tulips, and forscythia bushes, though I know the warm weather will return.

One more thought. Does your dog like to roll on their catch? Ours do, especially if it's aged a bit. We take turns "losing" the several-day-old prizes in the deeper woods. Phew!

Dairy Queen for Good Dogs

Do your dogs whine, bark, twist in the seat, or stomp on you as you drive past a Dairy Queen red roof? Ours have learned what the local soft-serve stand - including the distinctive red roof - looks like. And, they expect to stop for a treat!

This local DQ give out free drippings, about 4 ounces of ice cream in a plastic cup, for dogs. However, our two spoiled pouches expect to eat the container when the cold, yummy vanilla ice cream has been licked and chomped - thus we purchase cones.

The alpha dog - our husky / german shepherd mix - used to eat her cone at a reasonable pace. With the advent of her doggie competitor, she began to wolf down the cone in about three big bites. You'd be in danger of missing fingers when she got to the cone (not really - but the fingers might hurt) because of her hurry to finish. My husband (aka "the guy") now pulls her cone back as she licks and bites the ice cream to slow her down. He can get the two dogs to finish more or less at the same time. As you can see from the picture at right, she's ahead on this day.

We also are quite memorable, I guess, when we visit our local DQ. People want to come and watch these gorgeous dogs enjoy their ice cream, and ask to pet them when they are done with the treat. That's an important point - always ask an owner first about approaching and touching a strange animal. Our mixed dog is very friendly, and eager to be pet. The husky, as a rehabilitation in process rescue dog, is still a bit shy.

Get out and enjoy the warmer weather, and treat the dogs!

Pet Food Related Deaths - the Contaminate Is... ??

Update on March 31, now the F.D.A. reports that the recalled pet foods were ...

"... found to have been made with a batch of wheat gluten shipped to the United States from China that the F.D.A. said was laced with melamine." ( nytimes.com )

However, there is confusion as to why compound would sicken and kill cats and dogs. Apparently, melamine is used as a fertilizer in China, but not in the U.S. Also reported by the NY Times online was that the list of recalled pet foods could be found at the F.D.A. website (http://www.fda.gov/).

As of March 23, 2007, rat poison is being blamed for cat and dog deaths (bloomberg.com). As noted in my blog, below, Menu Foods, Ltd. was the manufacturer of cans and pouches of "cuts and gravy" style wet food that caused the death of pets in the U.S.

Aminopterin is the chemical, and it is used as rat poison - though the chemical is banned in the United States. According to the Bloomberg.com article, this folic acid derivative can cause birth defects in people, and renal (kidney) damage in cats and dogs. The amount of aminopterim discovered in the food samples tested was 40 parts per million ( www.boston.com ), which is enough to cause the failure of dog and cat kidneys.

Pet Food Recall "cuts and gravy"

A major recall of dog and cat foods has begun in the middle of March 2007. Pay attention to this recall, and don't feed the named (see links, below) wet-style foods to your pet, as the reported problems include kidney failure and death of the pet. Symptoms can include excessive thirst, vomiting, diarrhea, and lethargy. If you feed the named foods, and your pet has any of these symptoms, contact your veterinarian right away!

Menu Foods is the manufacturer of at least 88 different brands of this wet-style cat and dog foods that are affected. The food may be in a pouch or a can, and is - according to reports - a gravy food such as "cuts and gravy." The pet food is manufactured for branded big-names such as Eukanuba, Iams, Special Kitty, OlRoy, and more. As of now, Menu Foods believes that tainted wheat gluten, used as a filler ingredient, is the cause of the problem. The manufacturer reported that reports of pet problems and deaths coincided with the use of a new item from a new supplier in their food (LA Times online).

Business Week (online) reports that the investigation on the federal level is centering around a wheat gluten ingredient. The wheat gluten is used as a protein source and a filler. Menu Foods says that they have changed suppliers for that item. According to the federal investigators, there must be some contaminant in the wheat gluten, such as a heavy metal or fungal toxin, to cause the extreme illnesses (sometimes leading to death) that have been reported by pet owners.

What bothers me the most is that it's reported that Menu Foods started hearing from pet owners as long ago as February 20 regarding cat and dog deaths. The company started their own testing a week later, using between 40 and 50 cats and dogs. Seven of those animals died, apparently from renal (kidney) failure (CBS News online). Reports were that cats are more likely to have trouble that dogs. Why did it take until now to hear about the high death rate and the recall of suspected foods?

According to this report (CBC.ca online news), a Menu Foods spokesperson is telling consumers to hang on to veterinarian bill receipts and packaging (from the offending foods) just in case a compensation offer is made in the future. Hopefully, none of us will be needing reimbursement for any pet illness!

For the full listing of recalled foods, see: http://www.menufoods.com/recall/.

The other trouble with commercially available dog foods that I've encountered involved dry dog kibble in 2005. Apparently, corn used in the food was tainted with aflatoxin - a chemical that is made by a fungus that grows on corn and some other crops (source: MSNBC.com). That recall involved Diamond, Country Value, and Professional brands of dog food. There were deaths of dogs involved with that recalled product as well.

Out-of-season Shedding

Has anyone else had a dog that sheds its undercoat in the "wrong" season? So far, our full bred Siberian Husky, Lobo, has not blown his coat (shed) in the winter - only in the spring and fall (a partial shed in the fall).

However, our mixed-breed, Willy, who is German Shepherd and Husky mix, has been shedding during the winter. Starting around Christmas, 2006, I started noticing tufts of gray undercoat working their way up. You can see the textured look to her hindquarters in this picture with this paragraph. If you click the picture, it will open in a window all by itself (you maybe should right-click and open in a new window). Look closely (magnify if you can) and contrast that with Lobo's hindquarters. Both dogs are a bit snow-covered from play outdoors in our Michigan yard, but you can see the difference. I have combed and picked some of the obvious and loose tufts out, but I don't want to do too much because we leave the dogs tied outside during the day when everyone is at work. Yes, each has sheltered areas to get out of the wind - and you should, too, if you have a dog outside in cold weather, especially with zero degrees Fahrenheit and below wind chill.

Lobo's hindquarters show a bit of matting, but not shedding. He really dislikes brushing and combing, so I don't tend to brush his short coat out as often as I probably should. But, since he does have a short coat - shorter that Willy's - it's not as bad as if he had longer fur.

Another difference between their coats, Willy's coat has different guard hairs than Lobo's. The husky has kinkier guard hairs. Willy (with Shepherd background) has straight guard hairs that are much longer down the middle of her back that elsewhere. Willy's undercoat is gray, which you'd never guess from looking at her. The tufts can be "picked" out with fingers when loose, or we can use a shedding comb, undercoat rake, slicker brush, or (easiest to find) a stiff human hair comb. She is fine with any of these, and none seems to hurt her skin as long as I am careful. Willy can shed out a large paper shopping bag full of fur during the spring!

I comb Lobo in the spring (takes several weeks altogether), and I mean human plastic comb because he "tells" me that the shedding combs and such made of metal, hurt his skin. Lobo can "blow" or shed just as much undercoat as Willy, but the fur is creamy colored and has a different texture (kinkier). It's hard to define the differences. One is that Lobo's undercoat feels a bit waxy, even though I don't really end up with a residue on my hands. Also, Lobo does not end up smelling like a dog (Willy can stink like a dog), and didn't even keep skunk smell strongly on his coat when he was sprayed. The guard hairs left on Lobo are more sparse that on Willy, and he looks quite strange with little undercoat.

And on the off-season shedding - I thought at first that I did not adequately comb out Willy's coat during the spring and summer. Now, I think that perhaps Willy is just shedding out of season because we had a very warm start to the winter in 2006. Even the flowers and flowering bushes were fooled - I had a few yellow blossoms on our Forsythia bush in late December!

Shepherd-Husky Dog Mix peculiarities

I think our shepherd-husky mix is one of the most intelligent dogs I've seen. She is not a fast runner like our full-husky, but if you've seen the pictures from my website (www.huskydogs.net), you can see the husky look to her tail and legs. This dog is also very outgoing, loving to meet people and be pet by anyone around - like a typical husky is usually people-friendly. Also, like a husky, she pulls while being walked and is very, very strong. One thing she does not have is that innate husky need to run, run, run, - oh yeah, and run.

Speaking of strong, this is one thing we have had trouble with. Our dog is so strong that she could pull over 200 pounds on a snow sled (in snow) on her own, even up a bit of a incline. Therefore, we had trouble when we tied our dog out, either on a chain or cable. While we let our dogs sleep inside at night, and they are inside with us during daytimes when we are home. However, when everyone is gone, we put the dogs out on a cable or chain. The shepherd-mix, as she reached one year of age, was able to pull any stake we used out of the ground. We even tried a heavy calf stake-out pole embedded in concrete, buried 3 feet in the ground (unfortunately, our yard is quite sandy - typical for the west side of Michigan). She even bent the pole right over. All of the pulling is from trying to chase after stray dogs or squirrels, and she starts from a lot of slack in the line - so has a lot of speed when hitting the end of the line.

Our eventual solution was to fill a half-55 gallon barrel with cement, burying a solid iron pole with a hoop end (I think it's a 1" diameter) in the cement. We use the heaviest cable available in the stores for the cable, and change the cable at least one a year.

Okay, so that's about her strength. Anyone who has a husky or husky-mix had better start very early to train the dog NOT to pull during walks. Sorry, I cannot tell anyone how to accomplish that, as we never did train our to not pull. Maybe, researching how people train huskies to mush (and therefore to start and stop pulling) could give husky owners some clues. Some weblinks I've found include:

• http://homepage.ntlworld.com/animal-zone/Husky.htm (scroll down the page a bit for comments on this person's experience and suggestions)
• http://www.allaboutpetswa.com/just_ask%20Kathy%20McLeod.htm (a couple of suggestions about walking huskies - but written by an Australian so the spelling is varied from my US spelling)
• http://www.siberianhuskyclub.com/faq (sort through the questions sections - none addressess walking on a leash directly, but there are good training hints)

Also with training, make sure any dog learns to not jump up on people during enthusiastic greetings. Our mixed breed was 65 pounds at her ideal weight (she's a bit overweight right now). With her intelligence, our dog learned to sit, stay, talk, and shake quite easily (my husband is the trainer). She was taught to look at us by hearing her name first, knowing then to pay attention. My husband had us all us the same words, and have the same expectation (for instance, stay in place across the room until "released" with the proper command). We also used hand signals to augment the words. One example is to how one hand up in a typical "stop" guesture while telling the dog to stay. Maybe it was the training, but I expect it was the shepherd in her, this dog actually listens (MOST if the time) when called while running around the yard (the exception usually involved being hot the sent of a mouse or chipmunk).