Are Huskies Good Service Dogs?
Huskies are beautiful animals and make great pets, but do they make good service dogs. I did a lot of research and found out what makes a good service dog, and if Huskies fit that profile.
Are Huskies good service dogs?
Huskies make great service dogs when it comes to being a service sled dog. While Huskies can be trained to be other types of service dogs it is not as common and there are some stipulations on whether a huskie will fit you and your needs.
I’m not going to lie, I am a sucker for huskies and their sweet and loving temperaments but does being sweet and loving mean that you will be a good service dog? I looked a lot into this question and was surprised by the answer I found.
Can a Husky be a Good Service Dog?
Huskies are beautiful dogs and are hard workers. They love people and can handle living in cold temperatures. They are trusting and beautiful, but they can also be hard to train and stubborn.
There are many different types of service animals out there and all of the different catigories have different breeds that are better fitted for fulfilling that role. Some of the different service guards are-
- Assistant Dogs
- Rescue Dogs
- Emotional Support Dogs
- PTSD Dogs
- Personal Guard Dogs
- Estate Dogs
- Sled Dogs
Huskies make great sled dogs which fact is not that surprising. Sled service dogs that pull sleighs or sleds over the snow or ice in case of emergencies. Their job is important and because of the weather and physical demands huskies are perfect for this job.
When it comes to other types of service animals huskies are not always the first choice. If someone needs a service dog but will have to leave that dog alone for long periods of time they are seriously discouraged about getting a husky.
Huskies need attention and do not like to be left alone because they are huge pack animals. So, if someone is going to leave their service dog alone a lot, huskies are not the right dog for that individual.
Now, huskies can be trained to be a service animal but because it isn’t in their natures to be trained easily it takes a lot of work and time. Not all people will train huskies as service dogs, so you have to find a person who is willing to take that on before you buy a husky.
Huskies are very social dogs which means that they don’t always pan out well as emotional support dogs. They can have short attention spans which can make it hard for them to focus on their owner.
That being said there are a lot of service dogs out there that are huskies and they do a very good job. It just takes a lot of training and a very patient trainer.
I, (insert dog name), do solemly swear that I will Faithfully exicute the Office of Service Dog, and will to the best of my ability, unconditionally love you, protect you, and defend you against all enemies: foreign, domestic, emotional and physical…”
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Huskies are highly intelligent which can make for great qualities when it comes to being a service dog, but with that intelligence comes a lot of maintenance. Huskies are the high maintenance breed within the dog breeds.
What is the Husky Temperament?
Some people think that huskies are mean spirited dogs or that they are dangerous to have around children. Lots of this stigma comes from the wolf-like features that huskies have.
Luckily these impressions or ideas are wrong. While I can’t say that there has never been a mean husky before it is extremely uncommon and happens very rarely.
Huskies are actually known in the dog world for their overly friendly personalities. Huskies will take attention from anybody at any time. This makes them great family pets but leads to being a crappy guard dog.
I mean your husky might jump on and knock over a stranger sneaking into your house, but it would probably be so that they could lick them and not to incapacitate them.
Huskies are great with kids and seem to have a gift for being gentle and sweet. Although they are quite needy, so it may just feel like you have an extra kid instead of a pet.
Because of their heritage as sled dogs huskies need a lot of exercise to be happy, and I mean a lot. It is wise to walk them with a weighted vest so that they feel like they are working and release more energy.
Huskies get in trouble. Huskies are well-known to be escape artists. Why? Because they were bred to go long-distance. They’re not bred to be in the backyard and just look beautiful because they have blue eyes.
Cesar Millan
There was a kid on my campus who would ride his longboard and have his husky pull him around. They did this like every day for an hour. It was pretty impressive. So, you can try new and unique ways to help your husky exercise.
Huskies are known for “escaping” which means that they will climb, jump, dig, swim, and do pretty much everything that they can to get out of a backyard.
They love to explore and run free, so you have to make sure that your husky is getting proper exercise and proper time outside of your back yard. If you do your husky is more likely to stay put.
Another charming quality of the husky is their stubbornness to train. A lot of people say that their husky will be the top of its behavior training class only to come home and refuse to do anything they learned.
If you want a husky you have to focus on being consistent in everything you do and between everyone in your family. If you don’t want your husky to beg for table scrapes but one person feeds them scrapes you are not going to train out that behavior.
They are super lovable animals and from all the videos on YouTube, it is plain to see just why dog lovers around the world hold a spot for huskies in their hearts.
But we also have to remember that they are animals and that they need to be taught boundaries and rules. My brother and sister had a husky that just recently passed away and although he was well trained if you didn’t entice him he probably wasn’t going to respond.
Unless he respected you. He always listened to my sister-in-law and a
And if he knew that you had food it was game over for you. He would push you with his nose and practically crawl into your lap just to get a bite. He was a typical husky. And we loved him for it.
Related Questions:
Can Huskies be inside dogs?
Huskies come with a lot of fur and shedding, but if you are up for the task these dogs can definitely be great inside dogs. Normally once huskies are a couple of years old they calm down which makes it easier to keep them inside the house. Although, keeping a husky locked up in an apartment may not be the best thing for their physical and mental health.
Are Huskies loyal dogs?
Huskies are extremely loyal dogs. They become very attached to their families and their lives become linked to the lives of their human family. Sometimes huskies get a bad rap for being disloyal because of their love for other people, but really huskies are just very social dogs.
Can I leave my husky outside?
Huskies love to be outside and have coats that work well in most weather. That being said they do like open spaces and have been known to escape by jumping fences or digging beneath them so that they can have free roaming space. This should be taken into consideration before leaving a husky alone outside.
