You'll get plenty of good advice (and some blunt criticism too) from long-time dog folks here, most of whom don't have Siberian Huskies, but STILL know that breed is world-famous for killing cats (!!!) running away, destroying furniture, digging their way to China, howling like a banshee, shedding worse than you could ever imagine, being very difficult to obedience train, along with NOT being recommended for inexperienced owners <:-O

That's talking about Siberians who have stable GOOD sound temperaments, and obviously, people who are devoted to them wouldn't want any other breed <:-) However, you describe your new pup as being rather shy & nervous, which will compound all the other hard-wired "handful" traits she has 100 times over again <:-(

This doesn't mean your puppy will be impossible to manage, but doing right by her WILL require a fulltime commitment from the whole family, which includes a crash course in becoming pretty dog-savvy in general & very Siberian-savvy in particular, FAST...

So, if you AND your husband (in addition to your daughter) are all truly dedicated to this 10-15 year commitment that means BIG changes in your lifestyle, then I would join a few SH chat-boards immediately & become very active in your local Siberian Husky club ASAP, because right now there's a TON of homework to do before you'll be up to speed.

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Is the prong collar ok to use on a nervous dog? I would get in touch with a local trainer but I don't know which ones know what they are talking about. The prong collar is on the way here.

Hi, I'm not the expert, but I did not want this question to get lost...my guess is that experts here would strongly advise against the use of a prong collar on a pup in that situation, particularly one eight weeks old. I might suggest getting a few opinions here, elsewhere, and in real life before you go that route.

I'm not against prongs, I use them myself, but you have a lot of environmental and behavioral stuff going on with this pup that make me doubt this would be high on the list of effective solutions. But I'll defer to the experts. Good luck.

I would also suggest getting your 12-year-old out of the training picture until you figure things out. But again, get opinions from experts, these two things just seem like huge red flags to a n00b like me.

We had Keeshonds when I was a kid, if the Siberian breed is anything like Kees then you will certainly have a handful <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> But after the brushing is done <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" /> and the training <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />they are alot of fun <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Ummm, except for all that coat-blowing (shedding!) the average Keeshond & SH don't have very much in common, IMHO.

Michelle, I thought your name sounded somewhat familiar, so I searched for your previous posts & now I have a couple of questions:

1) Do you still NOT have a secure fence, or at least an escape-proof kennel installed in your yard? -- I only ask this because Siberians are absolutely notorious for breaking out, running away & getting killed by a car <:-(

2) Exactly where did your husband find this pup? -- And I'm only asking this because if she came from a pet-shop that sells sadly inferior puppy-mill stock, or from some clueless BYB (backyard breeder) producing poor quality pups, then I'm afraid you may quite possibly have bitten off more than you can chew, once again <:-(

Honestly, the best time to do all your research on various breeds & decide which one you want is BEFORE bringing home the puppy -- I know my remarks probably sound much too rude, but you seem to be repeating many of the same unfortunate mistakes over & over, Michelle <:-(

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..... I know my remarks probably sound much too rude, but you seem to be repeating many of the same unfortunate mistakes over & over, Michelle <:-(

I don't think you sound rude. I think you sound like someone who is thinking of the dogs.

I'm extremely concerned for this poor Siberian puppy (not to mention the cats!) and also for Michelle as well, but especially for her young daughter, if yet another pet ends up having to be re-homed simply because their family is ill-equipped to maintain and/or train it properly <:-(

The puppy was in horrible living conditions. We are putting in a fence in the next couple of weeks.

But from what you've said, this puppy was probably NOT well-bred, or well-fed, or well-housed, or well-socialized, OR well cared for in any other way & most likely her parents were NOT given good veterinary care OR health screenings either <:-(

Even if the poor little thing were FREE, you still would have "over-paid" for an animal with all these strikes against her before she was even 8 weeks old -- This doesn't mean that your pup could never become a great dog, but it does mean the deck is heavily stacked against you right from the get-go, Michelle <:-(

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Is the prong collar ok to use on a nervous dog? I would get in touch with a local trainer but I don't know which ones know what they are talking about. The prong collar is on the way here.

A prong collar can be carefully used on a nervous dog. You must be careful that the correction is predictable to the dog.

However, I don't believe it to be appropriate for use on such a young puppy (I'm sure others will disagree.)