I’m having a bit of a problem with Svenn, my 2-year-old Husky. He’s always been lovely and playful with people. He’s never shown any signs of aggression towards them, whether they're adults or children, no matter the situation.
With other dogs around his own size, let’s just say he can be a bit selective. He gets on well with all females. With males, he’s sometimes aggressive (more on the offensive in my opinion, he just growls a bit), sometimes playful, or more rarely, he’s just not interested in a greeting.
The problem, however, is small dogs.
When I come across one, whether it’s on a lead or not, Svenn becomes uncontrollable. He growls really loudly and looks like he wants to kill them. He HATES small dogs.
Last time, he spotted a small dog while my girlfriend was holding him on his lead. He ran so fast and with so much power that she couldn't hold onto him, and because of the tension, she ended up dropping the lead. My dog then attacked the small dog very violently, even though the little one hadn't even barked. It ended up with injuries and puncture wounds all over its body and had to go to the vet for observation.
I think this behaviour is partly explained by the fact that he’s had quite a lot of trouble with small dogs since he was a puppy. He’s been attacked four times by yappy little dogs.
These reactions are still very worrying though, and I wouldn’t want my dog to become ultra-aggressive and antisocial with other dogs just because of a few bad encounters.
I’m going to book an appointment with a behaviourist and I’ve already started putting a muzzle on him while we wait to address this bad behaviour.
In the meantime, does anyone have any advice or things I could look into to find a solution to my problem? Has anyone else been in this situation and how did they resolve the issue?
Thanks in advance for your replies! :)
Translated from French
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In canicross, it's actually the other way round: the bungee section tells them "go for it", and when you switch back to the static part, that's when they should stop pulling. To be honest, it’s something most dogs do quite naturally, so I’m not sure a bungee lead is a great idea. Mind you, a harness doesn’t teach them to pull any more than a collar does... unless for a Husky, the harness is just in their genes 😜.
We don't do canicross, but Ben has understood that he needs to come back to us when he gets to the bungee part. I guess it depends on what you teach them? If you don't say anything, they’ll naturally tend to pull to keep charging ahead, especially if they’ve built up speed or have a goal in mind—like "prey"—but if you teach them that’s the limit, they get it. Well, I think so, anyway.
Just to clarify for anyone who's a bit confused by Patou’s constant trolling: I’m definitely not recommending a choke chain to give the dog repeated 'corrections' or to 'subdue' them. It’s strictly for safety, just to make sure you can actually hold the dog back if they suddenly lunge.
That being said, for sudden lunges, I agree with Caroline—a NO-PULL harness (not just a standard one) with a front ring is much better than a choke chain. I see a slip lead more as a makeshift backup, as they're easy to make with a bit of rope, a slip knot, and a stopper. When a dog lunges in that kind of harness, if you keep a firm grip on the lead, they end up spinning 180° back towards you.
I was only talking about safety here, not teaching them how to walk on a lead. That’s a completely different story.
I taught my own dogs to walk on a lead without pulling using a basic harness with a back ring, so I’m the last person to push a choke chain or even an anti-pull harness on you. Learning to walk nicely on a lead depends much more on the owner than the gear. A choke chain can technically help, but you have to know exactly how to use it properly, and very few owners actually do.
Anyway, that’s not what I was getting at (lead training) since I didn't even realise your dog had a tendency to pull (even if that's pretty standard for a Husky). I was only talking about giving you the physical means to hold your dog if they lunge, and making sure they can't hurt anyone if you can't hold them back (a muzzle). That seems like the priority to me, long before we start talking about (re)training.
A bungee lead or shock absorber might be a good idea too.
However, with this type of dog, I’d absolutely avoid retractable leads. They're dangerous if the dog pulls suddenly—if the handle slips out of your hand, it can fly back and hit the dog in the head, or bash into a parked car, etc.
With canicross, it’s actually the other way around; the bungee section tells them to go for it, and when you switch back to a standard lead, that’s their cue to stop pulling. Honestly, most dogs pick this up quite naturally, so I’m not sure a bungee lead is such a great idea.
On the other hand, a harness doesn’t encourage them to pull any more than a collar does... unless you’re dealing with a Husky and the harness is just in their DNA 😜.
For your own comfort as well as your dog’s, you can get leads with an elasticated section (not the whole lead, just a part of it) which cushions any jolts or shocks. When the lead goes taut, the bungee bit stretches 'gently', slowing the dog down gradually. Over time, they start to realise that this 'braking' sensation is the limit they shouldn't cross, so it’s far less jarring than a standard lead in the end.
Combining this with a harness should make things much more comfortable for everyone, helping you keep him under control without hurting yourself as much. It won’t fix everything on its own, but it’ll definitely help, even if it just puts you both in a better frame of mind for training. It can only be a good thing!
That’s why I’ve also bought a standard flat collar to get back to basics (as a harness isn’t really the answer to stop a dog from pulling).
A dog that pulls hard will be more stressed by the jerks to their neck, whether they’re doing it to themselves or you’re the one giving the lead a tug, whereas a harness is much more comfortable for them. It’s down to you to train them not to pull.
If they’re properly muzzle-trained, it doesn’t have to feel like a burden for them. I use one on both my dogs when we're on public transport and I've had no issues at all, even though Iago struggled a bit at first.
Besides, being a 'primitive' breed doesn’t necessarily dictate a dog's behaviour; breeds like the Canaan Dog, Basenji, or even Creole dogs haven't been anywhere near as selectively bred as the Husky. Some of them still live in the wild. The traits of any breed, even primitive ones, are the result of selective breeding. Dogs in the wild haven't been bred to pull loads all day or have such intense activity levels. Having spent time around street dogs whose lineage goes back 500 years—and owning one myself—I can tell you her needs are clearly much less intense than a Husky's. Border Collies and Malinois are the absolute peak of selective breeding, yet for a beginner, I’d actually recommend an Icelandic Sheepdog, which is a much older breed at the end of the day.
Patou, stop twisting my words: I didn’t mention a choke chain! And perhaps re-read the post before getting so worked up (it was definitely the girlfriend who let go of the lead). Anyway, the OP hasn’t been back, so I’ll leave you to it (I do have a life outside of the forum...).
