Sakutama

Ah yes, you are right! I don't know if i'll even see a Husky at any of the nearby dog shelters here in Japan, but i'll certainly give it a try. But if the dogs they have aren't great with small dogs, or they aren't sure, I might go with a puppy as a back up plan. I'll just have to see how it works out best. As much as I believe in adopting from a shelter, I also have to think what will bring the best chance of harmony for my family. No guarentees of course, but we can only do our best right? If it was easy to bring a dog over from America to Japan, I bet I could be matched with an absolutely perfect Husky from a shelter. Sometimes I wish I was rich just so I could!

Thank you for chiming in everyone! That's what I was really hoping to hear! I was originally planning on rescuing a Husky, but it does sound like raising a Husky pup around small dogs make a wonderful difference. It'll be a handful having a Husky puppy as a first-time Husky owner i'm sure, but hopefully i'll be up to it. Maybe i'll wait until we have children and they're a bit older, that way i'll have the energy for a Husky puppy. I'm sure it'll be well worth the wait, and they can enjoy the Maltese in the mean time. Of course this depends on when we get a house, and goodness it looks impossible right now. But I won't give up as long as the possability is still there.

I know this has probably been discussed several times so I apologize for adding to the pile. I think I discussed this several months ago but I can't remember the discussion very well. In short (because I tend to write a lot!)... My husband is a Maltese man I'm a Husky woman Obviously if we ever get out this apartment and into a house, and money allowing, we'll want to adopt dogs. I'm trying to be realistic and sensible about this, and i'm wonder if it'll ever work out to have the two breeds co-exist. The logic I can remember putting together to make it possible are: * Never let the dogs be together unsupervised * Keep the dogs crated when we can't supervise them (and obviously crate train both of them!) * Possibly adopt the Maltese first, and when it's fully grown adopt the Husky as a puppy to create the possibility of the Maltese being above the Husky respect wise, although i'm not sure how possible that is with this breed. I don't think dogs care a lot about size, seeing how bossy those Chihuahuas can be! * Obviously be firm and never tolerate any rough playing between the two dogs, cut it off before they get carried away But what's running though my mind is, am I setting myself up for disaster here? I would feel so horrible and guilty if "my" dog hurt or even killed "my husbands" dog. And it's my responsibility as the more knowledgeable one about the breed to make the right decision. I've even considered giving up on getting a Husky so my husband can be happy. Thoughts? Feel free to chime in with your experience and opinions!

Aww wow, so many of you remember me! Thank you for being so understanding! You're such a nice bunch! Funny enough it was Zebras that finally got me on here. I was watching some really amazing videos of a woman who has trained Zebras to where she can ride them, have them pull a cart, just like normal horses. Amazing stuff, seeing such a beautiful animal i've always loved doing something I normally see regular horses do...like a bit of the wild at home...then it hit me...oh my goodness I love Huskies! They're kind of like having a bit the wild in your home (wolf version) the good and the bad, hold on a second, I really should get back in touch with the folks at Husky Owners! This is the closest I can come to having Huskies in my life for now!

Wow has it been several months? I'm not sure if anyone remembers, but I sure do! I was making Husky Plushies, and I had a huge list of requests. I even had one made, then suddenly life got crazy!! It's still crazy, i'm working two jobs now, and it's been so hard to bring myself back here to appologise, I feel terrible. It's taken all my energy just to get things done at home, extra projects have been a stuggle, even ones for myself. I'd really like to get back into the crafty artistic stuff, but I think i'd better not until I know I won't get drained too fast like the last time. Randomly I might find the energy to do a small project, but i'm certainly not reliable at the least and I do tend to drop things until I have the mental energy to try again. I hope you can understand! I'm really sorry! As as update, I still don't have a husky and honestly wonder if it'll ever happen the way things are these days. But I won't give up, just see if destiny allows it. In the mean time i'm making small tweaks in any decision making in the future to make sure if we did get a Husky it would be as smooth an adoption as possible (for example, definetly flooring that is Husky friendly - I can't imagine these Tatami floors would survive a husky!) Thank you so much, and to those who remember, i'm sorry again!

I'm so sorry!!! I got so sidetracked with stuff what went on after Golden Week! I am full of excuses, i'm so sorry. The Boomer plushy is fine, he's been floating around our apartment where I can keep him safe. He still needs kanji because I have been debating whether to use felt or acrylic paint. I think I finally settled on paint, so i've been trying to plan a trip to get that. I am also having trouble finding the thread colors I need, so I might have to make due with black, white and a brown thread. I hope that's alright! I'm so sorry for all the delays. On top of that I have some other projects I want to start, but I want to get these done first. It's hard having your mind on a million things, I don't remember having so much going on when I started making the plushies. I hope you guys can forgive me.

Update: Currently trapped in the "Golden Week" phenomenon in Japan, meaning we have chunk of time off work, which means hubby wants to get out and do something almost everyday while we have a chance. Enjoying it, but feel terrible the plushies ended up on the back burner. Will get back to the plushies as soon as possible. We have an odd Golden Week this year so we do have work today and tomorrow, so I might be able to get a bit done today and/or tomorrow. But things won't go back to normal until sometime next week. I am so sorry for all the suddenly delayed and excuses! I honestly kind of forgot about Golden Week when I started the plushies, otherwise I might have waited until after. It's not like we get a national week off in the USA or anything.

I'll definitely be in touch closer to the time, I really appreciate it! It's good I have a lot of time to think it over. I'm so glad to know someone at least familiar with it! I am not sure I could consider it as much as I am now if I didn't know someone who at least has a clue about it. It helps to have someone point you in the right direction with these sort of things! I understand what you mean. Maybe in the future we will be able to fly there in person, but even if we did, we wouldn't be able to pass a "home visit" because we would be going back home to Japan. I wouldn't want to lie to anyone either, and besides i'm sure they do follow up visits. The other problem would be if I have any willing family members or friends in the USA to help me house the Husky until we could go back to Japan. I guess we will know closer to the time. Actually that's a good point. Unless they are fine with a video tour, that could be one loop I can't jump for some rescues. But you know, adopting a retired dog from a kennel/breeder is also a great idea. If they ever ship their puppies overseas as I am sure some breeders do, they would at least know the process and could offer some reassurance maybe. And I am sure if they are a reputable breeder, their dogs would be very healthy too. It's not quite the same as rescuing from a shelter, but in a way it's still a dog who needs a home, right?

Oh my goodness! They are using a Husky (maybe) in the picture examples...how cute! Destiny? http://www.maff.go.jp/aqs/english/animal/dog/import-other.html

Hey Jack! Thank you so much!!! I have oogles of time so I don't see why I couldn't at least look into it. On one website I checked a person said it cost them about $1000 to bring one dog into Japan including the flight, shots, paperwork, etc. Buying a pure bred puppy costs more then that here! Did you have to hire someone to help you through the red tape, or was it just a matter of going through a checklist of steps in what order they need to be done, and to not miss a detail? For example, I read the micro chip needs to come before the rabies shot. I wonder if there is a Husky rescue in the USA somewhere who would be willing to help me? I likely won't have anyone I know in the USA (family or friend) able to help me. Maybe I should wait a little longer before I make inquiries with different groups sense I have years before it can happen, but at least I have an idea of how much money to save up in the mean time Only part that scares me is if there is one mistake in the paperwork, I might be forced to have the Husky quarantined upon arrival in Japan and I am assuming that is expensive. I hope I am not getting into something I can't handle with this idea, but it seems so worth it to rescue from the USA if I can just get through this import/export stuff. I mean, to have a rescue group match me with my perfect dog who also happens to really need a home...to me that is just beautiful. As a side note, there could be a Husky rescue in Japan but I honestly have not seen nor heard of one, and neither has the ARK group, which to my knowledge is the biggest and leading group for rescuing pets in Japan. They are kind of the pioneers for that sort of thing here. I think Japan just has a lot of growing to do when it comes to pet rescues.

I hope the bully rescue pulls through for you, that must be so hard! But hang in there, things happen for a reason so maybe this is just Diesel's next step in life. I hope his new family will keep in touch with you and let you know how he is doing. Wishing all the best for your family!

I was thinking today... There are SO many Huskies in the USA who need homes, sometimes I look at them on Pet Finder. Many of them are just amazing and so beautiful. I wish I could adopt one of them (when we can adopt) but...being in Japan is a problem. But I wonder... If the right shelter or group were to come along, and they had just the right dog for me, and hopefully some experience with exporting dogs if I am lucky, IS is possible to adopt from the USA? Can I even afford to get past the red tape? From my research so far, it would involve the Husky being quarantined for 6 months in his/her home country. I am not sure if quarantine means a cold, boring facility or just a registered or qualified kennel/shelter though (I would only consider the latter of course). But from my understanding, if the paperwork proves the dog has been properly immunized for all the basics, and it can be proved the dog has no rabies by going through a 6 month "quarantine" then as long as the paperwork is fine, once the dog arrives in Tokyo, it's just 12 hours before he/she is free to go home! But I have also heard that one small mistake means 6 months of quarantine in Japan. Even something as small as not putting a USDA raised seal on every document page. I have also heard of a sort of "Pet Passport" system, where you have the dog tested for rabies 6 months before the planned travel date. Then, just before travel, to have the dog re-tested. If the test is negative, then your good to go without the terrible quarantine facility. I am not sure if this is recognized in Japan though. I'm not sure if I am looking at this realistically, but wouldn't it be fantastic to rescue a Husky from my home country? I've been asking around about Huskies in the Japanese shelters, but I am being told they are somewhat rare. I guess it makes sense, sense the little dogs are more common. I think more Huskies, sadly, are captured by the local health department thingie and put down (all pets captured by the HD are kept a week and then put down automatically ). So what do you guys think? Completely nutty idea or maybe...something to look into? Does anyone have any experience with this sort of thing?

Hey everyone! Sorry I have been so quiet. I went to the store yesterday to find matching thread, and couldn't find any. :-( I know another store that might have the thread I need, but I won't be able to go there until this weekend. In the mean time hopefully I can get Kate's Boomer mailed this weekend of all goes well. Sorry Kate, I know I still need to send you PayPal details! I am on my 2nd week of my new part time job so Tuesday-Thursday just zonks me out. I just wanted to let you know I am on it and haven't forgotten. In other news though...I finally got that bag finished! Well almost, I am going to add some word to it, maybe something like "I love Siberian Huskies" but I want to focus on your plushies first. One of coworkers saw my work bag and said "Hasuki?" meaning Husky? and I was like yeah! I was so happy she could guess it was a Husky so easily. I wonder if I really need to put words on it or not now.

Aww they're precious! Thank you so much for sharing!

I can't remember! I'm sure it started with Google though, most of my internet adventures start with Google.