Originally Posted by sid&kira

im glad it worked well for you, but please remember that she is part husky, and you could be playing a very dangerous game letting her off the lead. huskies have very high prey drive and when they see something and decide to chase you will be VERY lucky to get them back...

i have a husky and have let her off twice, 1st time she was a young pup and with another dog, who was older and had good recall. being a pup she followed him everywhere and it was fine, so we decided to try it without him ther a month or so later, she had grown up a bit and we now had no power over her, even tho we had been doing well with recall in the house. she saw a rabbit and chased it onto the train tracks (we thought the fence was secure... looks like some kids damaged it ) we managed to get her back but not thru recall.
she is now never offlead, and never will be. it is in her instincts, her prey drive is in her blood, its not something we can train out of her.

some people can let their huskies off lead, however you never know when they might decide not to listen to you. i recently heard from someone who had his sibe off lead for her whole life, thought she was 100% reliable, then one day something clicked and she ran, over a road and got hit by a car. she was PTS

i dont wanna put a dampener on this thread but please take into account the breed you have, it is in a husky's blood to run (for miles without stopping) and to hunt. do you want to risk her life??

Originally Posted by juleszoemay

Hi

I know I need to be careful with the whole off lead thing, I am practising 'Tala come' in the house, garden, off lead etc. I dont want to risk her life of course not.

If she is never to be let off lead, how will she expend her energy? Hubby and I both work full time, she goes to work with hubby and walks around the workshop following him all day, but she still has energy, we dont have time to walk her 5 miles a day, obviously we walk her in the morning before work, around midday, then after tea, but they are only 30 mins walk each time. Weekends we could walk more, but in the week its just not possible.

I'm hoping the German Shep part of her outweighs the Husky with regard to recall!!

Time will tell i guess, but I will be careful and watch if she gets more confident with it.

Thanks for all the advice though

Julie x

Originally Posted by sid&kira

she doesnt need to be offlead to get a run around, you can get 50-100ft long leads on ebay for about £13, which is fine for fields, im thinking of getting kira one, so much safer

and just a warning... you wont be able to tell when shes getting more confident... one day it will just happen, and by the time you notice and get your sausages out of your pocket she could be under a car (on on the train tracks like kira )

like i said i dont wanna upset you or anyone else i just cant see the benifits of doing this with the breed you have, a husky is not an offlead dog im afraid, so many people dont realise this or think theirs will be different....

sorry i just dont see why you would want to risk it, when you could jog round the block a few times or something, or have her run alongside you while you ride a bike. there are so many other options...

Originally Posted by Blitz

why would you NOT want to let your dog off the lead. I am currently having to keep a dog on the lead. The first one in 40 years of multiple dog ownership and I do not like doing it but needs must. She gets plenty of off lead in enclosed places and her recall is 100 percent but I cant trust her in the open. But if you have a clingy dog that is not going to run off why ever would you keep it on the lead. I HATE seeing dogs on the lead when they could be running loose.

Originally Posted by sid&kira

do either of you have huskies??

are either of your dogs bred to run, and run, and run, and run... and then run some more for miles, with little food or rest??

have either of your breeds been bred for years to know how to hunt their own food and food for their trainers??

do either of your breeds have a digestive system developed so that they do not need to eat a large amount, or can go for days without eating and still run for miles??

are either of your breeds EXTREMELY stubborn, strong willed and independant.

MY dog is a husky, and the OPs dogs is a cross of this breed, which is bred for all of the above. I know why a husky is bred, and how close it still is in every way to the huskies bred by the tribes who used them.

a husky is NOT an offlead dog. end of. if you are telling me that im neglecting my dog of something and that she should be offlead, i will send you the vet bills when she is hit by a car, a train or another speeding vehicle.