AboutPatti Expertise To date, I've owned 7 dogs, all of which have lived into old age.
Having cared for them in all stages of life, I feel I can offer sound advice to other pet owners, and people considering getting a dog.
I am knowledgeable about the AKC (American Kennel Club) dog breeds, training and exercise, caring for sick and elderly pets, feeding, as well as many holistic treatments pets can benefit from.
My only request is that you write me using standard English and punctuation.
Experience My life experience in this field is more like "on the job training" rather than an actual degree in animal welfare. You may benefit from my experiences over the past 30 years.
Aside from the dogs I've owned, I'm also involved in "breed rescue" and have fostered several dogs, all of which have been adopted to wonderful "forever homes".
I find helping people who want a dog very rewarding.
Question I have done a lot of research on the Siberian Huskey and come to the conclusion that it is the dog that will be right for me. It is not one that I want but three, two males and one female. I was wondering should I get them all from the same breeder as brothers and sister or should I look for multipule breeders? One more question i have is should I spade the female and nuder the males or just spade the female or the other way around? I most definatly do not want any puppies and because I am not a professional breeder not to mention the health risks!! Will it make them gain unwanted weight?
Answer Hi Scott,
Even though you've done a lot of research in selecting the Siberian Husky breed, you didn't say if you've ever owned multiple dogs before. Having three dogs at once can be a different experience than owning a single dog.
You are correct that you should have the female dog spayed, not just to avoid an unwanted litter, but for the health benefits. The time to spay a female is before the onset of her first heat cycle, sometime between 5-7 months old, though many vets preform the surgery on puppies as young as 3 months.
You should also have the male dogs neutered. Dogs are usually neutered before puberty, that's generally 6 months of age.
By neutering a male dog, the procedure eliminates the possibility of the animal developing testicular cancer and other testicular diseases. It also significantly reduces the chance of the animal ever developing prostate gland disease such as hypertrophy (enlargement), infection, cysts, or cancer. Neutering virtually eliminates unwanted "male behaviors" including marking territory (urinating) in the house and decreasing aggression. Neutering decreases the animal’s tendency to escape from the yard and wander off. Male dogs can sense a female dog in heat from great distances and will do anything to find her. Animals that get loose frequently get injured or killed fighting with other dogs, by being hit by a car.
Preventing negative behavioral aspects, and disease prevention is all that spaying and neutering do. Having your dogs "fixed" does nothing to alter a dog's personality or temperament, or make it fat or lazy.
As far as getting the puppies from a single breeder, or different breeders, it's all a matter of your personal preference of color, size, and temperament, because you aren't breeding these dogs. It makes no difference as to how the dogs will get along if they are from the same litter or not.
You should research the health history of the breeding stock from whichever breeder you are considering. Huskies are genetically prone to develop hip dysplasia, and the following eye diseases. These are hereditary or juvenile cataracts, corneal dystrophy, and progressive retinal atrophy. Each disorder is present in a different portion of the eye, and will occur in any eye color. Eye defects in the Siberian Husky are serious and should not be understated or overlooked.
Having three puppies at the same time is a huge undertaking, and expense. It's not something I would ever recommend. You run the risk of having the pups bond to each other, more strongly than they bond to you. If you are not an incredibly experienced dog owner, I would caution you against this.
