The wonderful (and sometimes frustrating) Siberian Husky

Today CNN is running a story about a sled team in the shadow of an Alaskan volcano which has sparked me to make my first posing about the dogs my family and I are in love with.

Volcano looms over Iditarod dogs, read the story...

There are a some good web resources on the Siberian; there is a lot of junk also. The American Kennel Club gives reliable information but not a lot of detail. The k9web has much more detailed information and is pretty accurate and well balanced.

The Wikipedia article is also pretty good but sounds like the author was a bit frustrated by his/her experience with the bread. I take great exception to the quotation of Stanley Coren's "The Intelligence of Dogs" ranking used in this article.

Coren’s methodology is flawed. Coren used “understanding commands” and “obey first command” as standards of intelligence. First of all, assessing what is going on in a dogs head, whether they “understand” a command is a very difficult proposition. Identifying and accurately interpreting the signs of understanding would require a full blown study in and of itself. Secondly, a dogs compliance (or obedience) the first time a command is given - is more a measure of their desire to please the trainer than a measure of intelligence. Many working dogs need to have the ability to judge when following a command is actually the wrong thing to do. I will illiterate this with an example from the working reality of the Siberian Husky.

When Siberian sled teams pulled loads as real work, rather than as racing teams, it was not at all uncommon for the team to include 25 or even 50 dogs. The number depended on the weight that needed to be transported. The person running the team used only verbal commands to control the team, no reigns or other devises (this is still the practice today). When you are standing at the back of a sled, which is behind a long string of dogs, you cannot possibly see the trail ahead of you. Your lead dog must be smart enough to disobey your command (right, left, etc.) if the trail is not safe for some reason. That dog must also be independent enough to sit there until you come and survey the situation for your self. This is why I take exception to Coren’s methodology. There is much more to a dog’s intelligence than simply jumping when a command is given.

I will write much more about Siberians in the future, for now let me just say that they are wonderful dogs that do have their demanding idiosyncrasies. They are not for every one but if you are able to deal with their unique traits, they will gladly return the devotion.















In this photo, my wife is training Sport (our first Sibe.) on an agility course. This challenge is simply called the A-frame. Sibes are great athletes and love to work.
















In this next photo, Spirit and Sophy are resting after a romp. Though they can play ruff, Sibes are great house dogs. They deeply love, and need, social time.