Husky Obedience Training And Perfection

This husky obedience training article is written by Sprint Musher Lynn Orbison. You can read more of Lynn's Article by clicking on the Learn To Mush button on your left.

My first bit of advice for you is to buy the book: So Your Dog' s Not Lassie It's a page turner and a really good read. It's a wonderfully informative book and it's written for those of us who choose to spend our lives with dogs that are not natural people pleasers. (Read that: Alaskan Huskies!)

Another book I really appreciate is Suzanne Clothier's Bones Would Rain from the Sky. It is not really a husky obedience training book, it's more about relationships...which is what good training is all about.

In addition to Alaskan Huskies, I have three basset hounds living in my house. The eldest has a Companion Dog Certificate from the American Kennel Club. She might have gotten a CDX, but we both failed on that ear pinching thing, and I lost my enthusiasm for the game. She is 14 years old now and deaf besides, and I don't think she's going to be doing any high jumps so the dream is officially out of reach. Oh well.

In the process of training many dogs, I discovered that I didn't need or want total compliance (obedience). When I only had one dog (and a golden retriever at that) I wanted everything to be perfect, and I worked hard to make it so. There are many books that can help you do that.

What I'd like to do instead is ask you a few questions and maybe help you figure out what you want and need from your dog, and then maybe I can help you get there, or maybe just steer you in the right direction, or away from some of the bigger pitfalls. Either way, husky obedience training is not always about perfection.

Why do you have a dog?

What is your biggest gripe about your dog?

If your dog were perfect, how would he be different from the way he is?

Okay, those are the basic three questions. Answer them for yourself and see where that takes you.

Then ask yourself the last question: What is it worth for me to have a perfect dog?

I have found that a lot of my dogs are already perfect enough. The bottom line is that I know what it would take to achieve perfection in the realm of husky obedience training. It is just not worth it to me to make every beast around my house perfect. Basset hounds and Alaskan huskies are NOT breeds for those who are striving for perfection, unless of course you want to win sled dog races. Even then, the culling required to achieve that goal is beyond my means as well.

I think each dog on this planet is perfect for somebody. The trick is making the connections and building the awareness. Husky obedience training, or any sort of training, is how I help that happen. I don't do much obedience training anymore, I do life training. I work with each of my dogs every day to help build a bond of trust and communication that goes both ways. I customize my husky obedience training to suit the individual. I expand the lessons as my schedule and the attention span of the dog allows.

Here are some life training things that I teach my dogs.

Come (to me...often pulling on their tie out, although I try to be gentle about it and it is easier to teach with kibble or biscuits.)

Those who have perfected the COME to the point where they mug me before I even get to them, get the lesson Hup (as in up on your house). A dog that is all over you at the end of their tie out is not very pleasant to deal with. So I teach them to jump on their dog house and then I can control our contact a little bit more. Caution: Old dogs or dog with medical issues may not be able to jump on their house...do not force it.

I am working to teach a (non mushing) foster dog to sit, but I don't generally teach my sled dogs this. I'm not sure why not, but I guess maybe because I never ask them to do it as part of my mushing activity. In fact, sitting down while mushing is generally a bad thing!

The cow, the pony and the dogs all learn the command Gimme this foot - this is for trimming nails as well as putting on harnesses or medicating feet.

All these creatures also know the command Kennel which is what I say when I want them to load into something, the horse trailer, the dog box, a crate in the living room. (Yes, the livestock people think it's funny that I ask my cow to kennel, but I find the fewer words I have to remember the better off I am when dealing with my creatures. And the dog show people were quite offended when I told my show golden to Whoa - oh well.)

The older sled dogs that can be trusted off lead all know the cue Stay by me, and if they do not know this trick they can not be trusted off lead!

There are probably dozens of other cues I teach my dogs, but they don't fall under the realm of husky obedience training per se.

The tidbit I really want to leave you with is that this husky obedience training thing is a two-way street. You can not just COMMAND expect compliance! I don't know about you, but when somebody bosses me I get stubborn and become even less apt to comply. But, if somebody whispers a challenge, or compliments me and then asks me to help them, or offers me food or money for my help, well, now these are motivations that work for me.

You need to discover what motivates your dog. This requires that YOU pay attention to your dog...don't expect it to only work the other way around! Your dog has probably had a lot more practice paying attention to you, so you have got some catching up to do.

Hint: Food is a good motivator.

If you are the bringer of the dinner, you are partly God. Please use this status to improve the trust and communication between you and your dog. When you are carrying the dinner dish you likely have your dog's undivided attention. Use this moment to get to know them better. Read their body language. Ask them to think and to give you a specific behavior. You can teach them to sit, you can teach them to be quiet, you can teach them to wait. But don't just slop the food down and walk away. It's a waste of a perfect husky obedience training moment that you just can't get back.

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