If you're thinking of getting a Husky, you may want to think again!
When I first got Juno 6 months ago, I used the furminator brush on her and exactly three hairs came out. I prided myself on having the only husky who didn't shed. Holy mountains of fur, was I wrong. Juno's been "blowing her coat" for two weeks now and I've been furminating her three times a week and the house is still under siege. The Dyson Animal vacuum is on the brink of its own breakdown and Loki celebrates that he isn't a husky every time the furminator comes out.
I’ve filled 5 office-sized garbage cans. Saturday, I furminated her two times (poor thing) and then put her in the shower for a bath. She cried as if I was driving a steak knife through her heart the entire time in the bath. Yah, because torturing huskies by bathing is my favorite thing to do on Saturday afternoons.
Poor Juno. It isn't easy for a husky living with a clean freak. Juno happily walks around with big clumps of fur just hanging off of her ready to fall. I'm not far behind her with my fingers, ready to pluck the husky. I get as much satisfaction plucking the husky as I do exfoliating my skin, cleaning my fridge or vacuuming. Those clumps of hair are just so darn tempting-- like a zit ready to pop. You just can't ignore it. Husky-plucking is an addiction. And she gets so darn pretty every time I pluck her.
Let's compare Formosan GSD fur removal to Husky fur removal:
You tell me Internet, which dog is higher maintenance? Let's just say, Juno's super high scores in the personality department make up for her low scores in shedding.
After six months with us, Juno still flees from Mr. Wild Dingo and eyes him as the evil-doer of all huskies. She's obviously protecting her gumdrop nose, a valuable husky commodity. When Mr. Wild Dingo's home she walks around as if she's a guest in the house, depressed. Her groans and unferocious growls as he pets her are becoming comical. It must really suck getting a free massage.
When Mr. Wild Dingo's gone, she's bold, confident and playful. In fact, she challenges Loki for the alpha throne daily, pushing him out of the way to compete for my attention.
Just the other day, she tested the waters of the throne. Loki's been taught to ignore Juno when she's eating or has a bone. He'll leave the room or sit by me. Juno was eating a bone in my office while Loki took his usual position in the hallway outside my office, half asleep, never even looking at Juno. Juno got up, left her bone and walked into the hall way. Next thing I heard was blood curdling barks and cries. Most likely Loki got up to investigate the abandoned bone and Juno, being four feet away from the bone attacked. When Loki is truly "naughty" and he feels righteous, he'll generally avoid me, but instead, after I broke them up, he immediately became submissive, ears back and laid down, just completely confused. He'd done his job, ignoring Juno and since an abandoned bone has always been fair game in the house, he had no idea what happened. Juno baited him, set him up for the fall off the mighty alpha throne. But Loki's no slouch and instead, Juno got served. She walked away with the war wound.
Still, she's my princess and is treated as such by all three of us, including the bad boy himself, who's learning to behave nicely to her. I could not have picked a worse playmate for either dog. Though they get along fairly well, they are polar opposites. But she's in our lives now and no matter how much fur she drops in the house, how many things she chews and destroys or how many times she groans and growls at Mr. Wild Dingo, we love her, just as she is.
Happy 6-month anniversary Juno!
We're so happy to have you in our lives. We love you, and your gumdrop nose, just as you are.
Ahh the joys of plucking Huskies, I know it well 🙂 All husky owners just can't resist plucking that errant fur ball, even if it isn't their Husky. Just watch them
at the dog park, you can always tell a Husky owner.
Why Juno no like Scott? Minnie used to
do the "I'm not looking" thing at Mars. The obvious give away for him was
the ear ears pointed directly in her direction.
my mother says she should pluck her terrier too...but she doesn't.
Happy birthday Juno! You look stunning in your post-plucked coat (and you're not bad pre-plucked, either). I learned that Sugar has hair (not fur) and is practically hypoallergenic. She did shed some hair in December during the Northeast snow storms; but she has never filled a comb and her belly is usually naked. I think it's a Formosan thing...
I have a husky who just turned a year old and is blowing his coat for the first time. I came to your site because I was googling about my dog, he likes to pluck his own fur out and then he tries eating it. I was hoping there wasnt anything serious that was going to happen to him if he ate too much. You all are right, I can't help but pluck him!
That is great!! I don't think our huskies realize that those Saturday bathing torture sessions are even less fun for us than for them. They sure get loud about their dislike for baths and yet will swim in a nasty muddy pond all day!! Bent on destroying us there are!
Dear Juno's owner:
Remember when you said:
"She cried as if I was driving a steak knife through her heart the entire time in the bath"?
I've got a question..
"Did you brush Juno 'before' you bathed her?"
Because if you did, the shampoo (especially Prell), and even water, would burn her tender (freshly brushed) skin.
Just a thought....