Husky Bites

[mrbrycel]

I could never understand why Huskies were on the list of dogs turned down by homeowners insurance companies, because everything I read about huskies says how friendly they are and unlikely to bite a human.

But when I looked up dog bite statistics, I was surprised to see husky on the list, and that they had even more biting incidents than dobermans.

http://www.dogsbite.org/bite-study-deaths-maimings.htm

[Tamz]

thats bizzare..........i dont think i have ever heard of any vicious husky attacks over here in the UK??? it doesnt say which type of husky though does it- it could mean alaskan husky??

i dont think shiloh would ever bite anyone- i mean he bites himself all the time coz he is a werido but he doesnt have an ounce of aggression in him- which is a good thing as i have a little girl who will be 3 in march

[Kirbysowner]

According to statistics, people who smoke are far less likely to suffer from an age-related illness............

[HuskyCouture]

it's because people think that huskies look vicious, keep them as guard dogs as they do with almost all the other breeds on that list. stupid irresponsible owners giving these dogs a bad.

i know mine wouldn't intentionally harm someone, i would never trust him around an infant, he was around one once and wouldn't stop freaking out and barking at it. and he isn't fond of men, so i think if they teased or did something to him he might bite one.

[RoseWillow&Dexter]

i remember reading a detailed report on dog bites in the US for a year and it had explained that the majority of the husky bites were from huskies living right up north in Alaska in semi wild conditions with very little human contact pretty much fending for themselves. But because they are still Siberian Huskys they are included in the report

EDIT: if you click the report at the end of the page it says the following

Huskies appear to be a special case, in that even though they are common in the U.S., the life-threatening attacks involving them have virtually all occured in Alaska, the Northwest Territories, the Yukon, Labrador, and the northernmost parts of Quebec. In these regions, huskies are frequently kept in packs, in semi-natural conditions, and in some cases are even allowed to spend summers without regular human supervision. Thus many of the husky attack cases might be viewed more as attacks by feral animals, even though they technically qualified for this log because they were identified as owned and trained animals, who were supposed to know that they were not to attack.

[Rich & Kody]

Reading through the links at the bottom which detail each incident, you an see a clear pattern with the Husky. I didnt see any Husky "victims"

under 10 years old. Most in fact were new born babies left unattended with the Dog :/

[BladesBird]

I'm very surprised at this, it makes me wonder where the information comes from (properly a pen pusher who doesn't know a Dash hound from a St Bernard.

The term "Huskies" is a class of dogs, not a breed. Reports are not doubt written by people who don't even own dogs and in my opion this reflect their ignorance. The term Husky refers to Siberian Huskies, Alaskan Malamutes, Samoyeds, and other Northern type breeds which may or may not even be pure bred.

Are they talking about Siberian Huskies?

If so, then why don't they specify that breed? Or are they talking about all "northern" breeds?

How ridiculous!!!

But thanks for sharing....rant over,lol!!!

[PolarStorm]

Storm is friendly to everyone-just today while I had her in my arms walking back to the car I was stopped by a pensioner in which Storm proceeded to lick this womans nose!! lmao however Storm is still at the biting stage so I wouldnt trust her around infants because she would most likely bite them (its not a vicious bite or anything, shes still teething etc!) But my guess is that this report is written as BladesBird says by some pen pusher who wouldnt know his backside from his elbow!!

[HeatherZeman]

i remember reading a detailed report on dog bites in the US for a year and it had explained that the majority of the husky bites were from huskies living right up north in Alaska in semi wild conditions with very little human contact pretty much fending for themselves. But because they are still Siberian Huskys they are included in the report

EDIT: if you click the report at the end of the page it says the following

Huskies appear to be a special case, in that even though they are common in the U.S., the life-threatening attacks involving them have virtually all occured in Alaska, the Northwest Territories, the Yukon, Labrador, and the northernmost parts of Quebec. In these regions, huskies are frequently kept in packs, in semi-natural conditions, and in some cases are even allowed to spend summers without regular human supervision. Thus many of the husky attack cases might be viewed more as attacks by feral animals, even though they technically qualified for this log because they were identified as owned and trained animals, who were supposed to know that they were not to attack.

Good call on reading the footnotes!

99% of statistics are made up on the spot, just like this one. Statistical data is easily manipulated to achieve desired results, so I take all statistical data with a grain of salt. Also, it doesn't reveal how many of the "attacks" were human-provoked (I'm guessing a good majority of them! Especially with the pits. ).

All huskies I've ever met would rather lick someone to death than bite them, and they would only bite when threatened. I think people also mistake huskies for biting when they're doing their "hand holding" instinct.

Only one time has Lily ever really nipped someone, and it was cuz some guy at the dog park was trying to play rough-house with her and batting at her head. What do you expect dude?!

*sigh*

[BingBlaze n Skyla]

alot of these reports tend to call them husky TYPE dogs too, which can mean crosses also - i dont think ive ever met a husky i was scared of - that i thought was going to bite

[mrbrycel]

Rose_Willow, thanks for pointing that out! That definitely explains a lot.

I wonder if insurance companies would be willing to make an exception if presented the details of these statistics. I'm sure they just saw huskies on the chart and immediately decided they were dangerous.

[Active Dog]

I have wondered why so many places don't allow huskies too. Though after I got Miko I think I can understand why. When I got him he was completely untrained. He climbed up on the counters, bolted through doors, was scared of stairs (we live on 3rd floor), peed/pooped inside, chewed things, has mild separation anxiety, isn't fond of other dogs, and loves to make his husky noises. Now after a month and a half most of those problems have disappeared and he howls only during appropriate times (like getting ready for a walk ect). But most owners don't bother to do any kind of training let alone take them out on walks, so I can see where a untrained and unexercised husky could cause a lot of havoc. In the US there are a lot of huskies in shelters because they were strays, which means they were likely thrown out in the backyard when they became too big, energetic, or not as cute and escaped. I am not sure what its like in the UK but that is my closest guess as to why its restricted in the US.

As to the statistics; I have seen a lot of cases where huskies were involved in bites or killings, but usually they were child fatalities in which the owners left the dog and child alone. In these cases I feel that it doesn't matter what breed it is, its the fault of the owners/parents.

[Woodsman]

A Siberian that is phyiscally-abused will bite. When I first came home with Niko from the shelter, he attacked me so badly that he put me in the hospital. They have a tremendously hard bite and, once they commit to an attack, they go for it completely. Unforuntately, not all huskies are as well loved as the ones here are.

Now, four years later, Niko is a great dog and loves everybody. I believe any dog can be rehabiltiated. Richard.

[mrs_aggie]

According to statistics' date=' people who smoke are far less likely to suffer from an age-related illness............[/quote']

Probably because we're statistically less likely to reach old age (and incase anyone takes the hump, I'm a smoker so not being judgemental lol) x

[mrs_aggie]

Both of my dogs were on that list, husky and german shepard mix, I think its more down to the way the dog is raised/trained than the breed themselves in most cases. Staffy's have been classed as a dangerous breed yet my sisters dogs are so soft its unreal.

[SarahNukka&Shadow]

hhhmmm this report also lists "Bullmastiff (Presa canario)" as if they are the same breed which they are most deffinatly NOT! So you have to think, just how accurate is this information when they dont even know that bullmastifis and presa's are not the same breed!?

Then you have to take into account that most victims of dogs bites couldnt tell their ar$e from their elbow after they've just been attacked so really how are they going to accurately idetify the EXACT breed that bit them? SOme people honestly beleive anything with blue eyes is a husky so really how can you give any definate statistic in that case!?

[Roxy1]

One other thing to point out- Look at the % of population - which = # of dogs.

The % of Population for the Husky is .081 - 10 times that of the lowest (Doberman)

Do the math and that means that the Husky is the bottom of the list in Bite per dog

[Andy]

If there are 2 huskies in an area and one bites (in self defence, as we owners who know the breed would assume)

then statistics say that there is a 50% chance of a husky biting you.

If there are 100 pitbulls in an area and 10 of them bite, then that equates to only a 10% chance of being bitten.

Despite there being 10 times more bitings by pitbulls, in the same area.

It's this kind of statistical nonsense that gets Huskies on the Dangerous dogs list.