I have had 2 Siberian Huskies that lived together for the past 7 years. We got the second dog because our outdoor husky was obviously lonely. My wife (now but not at the time) owned this dog when we started dating. The people she lived with had several dogs and this one ran freely with the pack and seemed very happy. Then, we got married. Despite the very roomy kennel that I built in a very rural setting with a nice doghouse complete with amenities as well as the daily fitness walks that the dog accompanied me on, it was obvious that she needed a friend. Howling would start at daybreak and she was obviously lonely and getting depressed. We let this go for all of two weeks when I decided to educate myself on Huskies. I proceeded to buy another puppy. The howling stopped immediately and she began to mother. This relationship flowered into a tight bond…when walking together they walked side by side touching with one practically mirroring the others movements. She was obviously happy at this point.



Last week the youngest one died of kidney failure. The origional dog, now 8 ½ years old is exhibiting the exact same lonely behaviour as before and I am guessing experiencing grief from the loss. Although we still walk with the dog daily and pay it even more attention than before…we are realizing that our present jobs and the latest addition to the family (baby) is making it harder and harder to give the attention the dog needs and deserves….we are thinking that putting another puppy in with her may alleviate the loneliness and stop the howling (which puts my wife in tears). However, we are not thinking that we want to perpetuate our husky ownership by getting a puppy that will then lose its best friend within a few years requiring us to get yet another….etc. Our house is too small and frankly I do not believe that the dog would be happy if we tried to make it an indoor dog at this point…the last indoor visit was over in 20 minutes when both dogs waited at the front door to go back outside. So, it appears on the surface that we should find another dog as old as the she….and believe it or not we have even located 2 other spayed female Siberians about the same age at 2 different local shelters.



The question that I have is that I have read a lot about putting two adult dogs together and have somewhat educated myself as to how to ease them into their new relationship….but I am paranoid. The last thing I want is to be ignorant and end up with a fatal, serious, or frankly any dog fight at all. And even if we decided to get a puppy, I am not even sure that this dog would be the same motherly dog that she seemed to become naturally when we introduced the last pup 7 years ago. The dog will howl in loneliness yet again tonight and I am feeling compelled to do something about it asap but am not sure what to do. My wife will not allow me to find a good home for this dog despite my efforts to convince her (we live in a rural setting and have several dog lover friends that would take this dog in and give it the attention and company it deserves and needs) I would appreciate any advice you could give me. Thanks!

If your wife completely refuses to rehome the dog I think it would be a better idea to adopt an older male siberian. An adult female might or might NOT accept another adult female. At 8 your siberian is not a very old dog - they are a long lived breed (I have one that will be 16 in June, one that is approaching 15 and a couple over 10), so she has a lot of time left.
Check with a siberian rescue - older dogs always have a harder time finding homes as most people want yound dogs. Always breaks my heart to see an old dog without a home.