Loripot

Nope he hasn't been checked, but he was at the vets recently, he got castrated about two weeks ago. Just had a thought, would that possibly be any cause for this problem? He never does it during the night, as he sleeps in a crate. He does it during the day when we're just sat on the couch in the same room, right in front of us. It's not like he does it behind our backs when he'd been left alone, it's usually when we're there with him. So I'm not too sure why he does it. :(

Our husky, Demon, is just over one year old now. In general, he is a brilliantly behaved dog, and we've never really had any problems with him destroying our house since he was a young pup, apart from the odd accident of course. But it seems that all of a sudden his behaviour has taken a turn for the worse. Recently he has been urinating in our home, for no seemingly apparent reason. He goes out plenty of times a day, and he knows to go to the door when he needs to go out. But it seems like now he just does it without warning. It's strange because he doesn't cock his leg, or make any kind of indication, he just walks out of his bed and does it? He knows it's wrong and he immediately runs off in shame, but it doesn't matter how many times we tell him off, he keeps doing it and it's getting really stressful. Today he crossed the line because we came downstairs to find he'd pee'd and pooped all over. He's never done this before so it was a big shock. We weren't out the house, he had just been outside and he was only alone for about twenty minutes tops. There doesn't seem to be any excuse for all his messes, so I'm thinking it may be a strange phase that I've heard of before. I've heard that dogs around this age sometimes experience what some people describe as 'going backward' in their training, so I'm wondering if this might be a similar thing. If it is, does anyone have any experience on this and is able to give us some advice? How long does it go on for, and is there anything we can do? We're in the middle of getting an extension built and our whole home is a mess, so this is just added stress that we don't need right now. I feel like he's ruining our new rooms before it's even finished. We usually trust him 100% out of his cage unsupervised, but now we're going to have to consider keeping him locked up so he doesn't keep doing this. The only problem there is he has bad separation anxiety, and screams the house down when he's locked up alone for too long. So I feel like we can't win here! Please, any help is appreciated, thanks!

Just thought of getting Demon a backpack as I recently heard that giving a dog a 'job' of carrying can give them both a sense of purpose, and can also calm them down and make them more relaxed, focused - whilst also burning more calories on the walk. Sounds just perfect. However, I have a few questions, so I thought I'd ask. How old would you recommend the dog to be before introducing a pack? I would've thought that carrying weight could be damaging to the bones and joints if the dog wasn't fully grown. Demon is currently only eight months, so am I right in thinking we should wait a while before getting one? Any specific type/brand to recommend? I've had a quick search but these are new to me so I'm not sure what's best, there seems to be an awful lot out there. But I did read somewhere that a lot of packs seem to be spread across the dog's back and that can be straining on the spine, so that worried me! Are there any packs that maybe hold the weight more around the shoulders instead? Anyone got experience/advice for the packs? I'd love to hear.

Our pup is seven months old now and has been on an all raw diet since the day we brought him home at eight weeks. I've heard the amount they eat can vary a lot from dog to dog, so it's really about finding what works best for you and your pup. It takes a while to get into the swing of things but you soon pick it up. You may need to adjust his intake and whatnot, depending on other factors (amount of exercise, how many treats he gets etc.) We had to cut our pup down quite a bit because he seemed to be putting on a bit too much weight - he was on just over 600g a day I believe, now down to around 500g - because he's been going through a lot of training so treats have been generous. There is a calculation you can do to find out the recommended weight of food to feed, but I can't for the life of me remember it, sorry! It was something like a 2%-3% percentage of your pup's body weight. But like I said, you may need to adjust, but it's a starting point. Hopefully someone else can give you more specific information. Sorry, I haven't been too helpful. As for what to feed, a big variety! Chicken is the obvious one, and probably is the best thing to both start on and give most frequently. Richer meats such as lamb can be a little harsher on the stomach, so too much can give your pup the runs and whatnot. Chicken is the safe route. Demon currently gets two chicken thighs daily and then mince of any kind, and then every now and again we throw in something different. This could be another kind of meat instead of chicken, or he has bits on the side, such as chunks of beef, or sardines, and whatever else! Of course don't forget the offal. Again, I'm no expert and I can't give you specific percentages, but raw-fed dogs need a certain amount of offal in their diet. Demon gets chicken liver with his meals every now and again, I'd say about once every ten days. Again you have to be careful not to feed too much, it can go right through them! Really it's all about finding the balance. Sounds gross, but you can discover what you need to feed your dog by the state of his poop! Too much bone can result in constipation, too little can result in diarrhea. If you feed your dog something new and he doesn't seem to be stomaching it well, it may be wise to feed less or whatnot. Like I said, chicken is the safe route in my opinion. Other meats should be more of a special addition, maybe give a different type of protein every few days. But to start off, I would definitely recommend chicken. Possibly wings or legs. As for mince, Demon gets whatever is going. He gets a lot of chicken, lamb, beef and tripe mince, and various combinations. If we manage to get hold of something a little more 'luxurious', such as rabbit or horse or whatever, he gets that too, and he loves it! Not too sure if any of that was helpful, if not, I apologise. I'm relatively new to this, Demon is my 'first' dog, so I've only been doing this for a while. I do what works for me, so I recommend you experiment yourself and see how you like to do it! I'm sure other people will be able to contribute and give better information, but for now, here's my snippet haha. Good luck! What do you currently feed your pup on? Oh, and Demon gets fed twice a day, around 250g per meal. But like I said, you can adjust depending on the amount of exercise your dog gets and how many treats he gets.

Don't really have any recent smiley pictures of Demon.. so here's one from Christmas time. Demon's entry! I LOVE CHRISTMAS!!1

Hahah, yeah he did all his rummaging and sniffing before the camera came out. It surprised us too how still he was, I suppose that's why it looked so funny

After bringing our shopping in, snapped some pictures that gave us a giggle. Yes, hello, would you mind helping me with these bags? Been a terribly busy day.

I have no idea what's going on with him either to be honest, haha. I've heard that pups tend to go through this kind of thing--not in particularly this but a bad phase--and Demon may just be going through this early. Sort of like puberty. The best way I can describe him would be to say it's like he's got a split personality disorder. One minute he's rolling around the floor with us, playing and having fun, the next he's all tensed up, glaring at us like he's terrified. It really is a strange phenomenon, not really one I can explain well in words. I just hope he gets through it well!

Been to the vets and he seemed pretty adamant that Demon was in no pain, and didn't have anything wrong with him physically. I suspected as much, but it was nice just to make sure for our peace of mind. He agreed that it may be hormonal/behavioural issues. He has been a bit better today which is great, but I wouldn't be surprised if this bad behaviour comes and goes at any time. Mood swings, just like a grumpy teenager. I'm just hoping that he will get through it without much hassle. At least now we feel better, knowing that this is normal and not anything more serious. We appreciate all the support, thanks everyone! Will keep you updated, see how he goes.

No, he doesn't bare his teeth. Though I'm a little worried that it may progress to that. Ah yes, we have worked on that with him since day one. He does really well with it actually. He knows to sit, lie down, paw, wait or anything whenever he's getting something: food, going outside, even play and getting attention. He is usually pretty obedient (well, mostly ) So yeah, I do feel like we've got that nailed down and he understands it well. With certain things he will automatically sit without us even asking, smart pup.

So the vets were entirely full up today, typical. The earliest we could get is 5pm tomorrow. Although we've kept a close eye on him and I've been chatting to my mum and we both find it hard to believe that he is in pain. My mum has two Boston Terriers who are Demon's best buds, and I took him to see them today. As usual, he was running crazy with them. I know dogs can be brilliant at masking their pain, and many still may find pleasure in their usual hobbies and whatnot, but I'm 99% sure he's not in any pain. Of course, I still want to get him checked out just of my peace of mind. Who knows? Anyway, after spending hours playing there, he usually just sleeps when he gets home because he's so exhausted. So far today, he doesn't seem to have been acting strangely. He's asleep right now so when he wakes up I shall keep an eye on him and test him again, see if his unusual behaviour returns. Sadly, I'm almost certain that it will. But I agree with Angela and Clare, I'm starting to think it may be more of a hormonal/behavioural issue. My mum has contacted a dog behaviourist who owns huskies herself, asking for advice, so currently waiting on that reply. She also suggested that maybe we should try find another behaviourist for Demon, since this woman isn't local. Does that seem like something we should do? Has anyone else experienced this kind of thing? Will keep you updated, thanks everyone. @Clare: When I say growls, I mean yes, actual growling. It's actually pretty unnerving. I wouldn't say it's an angry, vicious growl or anything, more like a quiet warning one. One that says 'I'm uncomfortable with this, leave me alone', but it's definitely more submissive than it is dominant. But it's still more than simply communicating. He does make lots of funny sounds when we're playing and whatnot, and this is definitely something else. Trust me, I understand the vocal side of dogs, I used to have a lovely Staffordshire Bull Terrier who made a low, growling sound in greeting, who to anyone else may have sounded aggressive, but I knew her better. So yeah unfortunately, I believe this is a bad growl.

Awwwh, he's so cute!!

My partner and I live in a rather small one bedroom flat with our boy. We've so far had no problems with space. I would always disagree with anyone who says dogs cannot live in apartments. Even huskies, a breed well known for their energy and whatnot. Believe it or not, they can actually be really lazy dogs, and are more than happy to flop down anywhere! (Granted they get the right exercise/stimulation of course) So limited space wouldn't be an issue, although it sounds like you have a lot more space than us. Although, as previously stated, I would say the noise side of it would be your biggest concern. You may be lucky and have a quiet husky, but we've had some bad noise complaints because our pup likes to howl and cry, especially when he's left alone. Of course this doesn't happen to every dog, but it would be a good idea to keep on your neighbour's good side and warn them beforehand about the noise! I'm sure most people would be understanding, we've just been unfortunate and landed with a bunch of grumpy idiots who cannot deal with even a minute of noise. Anyway, you sound like a really great owner and it's nice to hear you've done all your research and have plenty of time to dedicate to your fluffy pup. I'm sure everyone here will agree that your husky will have a good home. Best of luck, and make sure to introduce us when your dog gets here!

Thanks guys. Will get him to a vet asap. It's so strange because his behaviour just switches. One minute he's all happy and excited on a walk, next minute he's all weird again. He just voluntarily came for cuddles which was so great, two minutes later he's cowering again. :'(

He has just this minute growled at me an my partner when we went to stroke him. :'( He's just laying on the floor and we can't even walk past him without him immediately tensing up and bowing his head, giving us that guarding stance. Please, help!!