# malamutes and being off lead?



## sophieanne93 (Jul 4, 2012)

Sorry for the continuing posts but i find this forum very useful for gaining advice from other dog owners and hearing their experiences!

I have heard many mixed ideas about whether malamutes (and sibes) should be let off their leads?

the breeders we got our malamute from always walk their mal off her lead and she is absolutely fine. Doesnt stray or run off etc.

However, as mals have a strong prey drive i often worry about letting my mal off her lead. I have practised recall training with her and she is very responsive but i have only tried this in a field that is enclosed and rarely has many people in so there are less distractions and i am a bit anxious about letting her off her lead in more public areas such as our local play park. When we see other dogs when shes on lead, she will try and bolt so i usually walk her on a giant flexi lead so she can still have a run around and a bit more freedom. We have had a session of offlead work at her obedience training and she was very responsive but when she catches another dogs attention, she bolts!

any ideas about off lead work? or due to her breed, should she be kept on lead?


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## fluffybunny2001 (Feb 8, 2008)

as far as i`m aware,most repuatble breeders of mals and huskies never let theirs offlead,due to the their prey drive.


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

I have Mals and Siberians and I have never let mine off a lead except in safe enclosed areas. Both my Mal and my Mal/sibe cross were high achievers at training, but outside due to the running and hunting instincts its a whole different story, its not just other dogs but any form of prey, squirrels, even birds. Even though both were trained as soon as I got them and fully socialised with as many other breeds and sizes of dog I could possibly find, both the male and the female can take up or give a challenge to other same sex larger dogs too. Both were fine with all dogs until they become adolscent/young adults. its always same sex. My boy is fine with all females and both sexes of small dogs and occasionally some males but if entire especially he will challenge or take up a challenge and the girl is exactly the same except for larger females, so for that reason too Im careful.


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## sophieanne93 (Jul 4, 2012)

fluffybunny2001 said:


> as far as i`m aware,most repuatble breeders of mals and huskies never let theirs offlead,due to the their prey drive.


yes thats what i initially thought but so many people who i bump into when i am out for walks ask me why i keep her on her lead and assume she is an aggressive dog when that really isnt the case. i do not let her off her lead in public places or country parks, only in this field where i know she cannot escape and she responds to me when we are there so maybe i should stick to offlead walks only in the field!


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## sophieanne93 (Jul 4, 2012)

Sled dog hotel said:


> I have Mals and Siberians and I have never let mine off a lead except in safe enclosed areas. Both my Mal and my Mal/sibe cross were high achievers at training, but outside due to the running and hunting instincts its a whole different story, its not just other dogs but any form of prey, squirrels, even birds. Even though both were trained as soon as I got them and fully socialised with as many other breeds and sizes of dog I could possibly find, both the male and the female can take up or give a challenge to other same sex larger dogs too. Both were fine with all dogs until they become adolscent/young adults. its always same sex. My boy is fine with all females and both sexes of small dogs and occasionally some males but if entire especially he will challenge or take up a challenge and the girl is exactly the same except for larger females, so for that reason too Im careful.


I have often heard of mals having same-sex issues with dogs so thats something ive always kept an eye on just in case. indie is fantastic with other dogs, both male and female but as she is only 7 months and still into investigating everything, I do not fully trust her yet as this could change as she matures


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

sophieanne93 said:


> I have often heard of mals having same-sex issues with dogs so thats something ive always kept an eye on just in case. indie is fantastic with other dogs, both male and female but as she is only 7 months and still into investigating everything, I do not fully trust her yet as this could change as she matures


She could well be fine but they can change, My boy was around 10mths ish and the girl was fine for longer but changed in the 2nd year. Usually with Mals Ive found that the end of the first year/2nd year is the hardest. Mind you Sibes are the same between around 9mths to 18mths, 2 years as well.


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## fifemute (May 30, 2012)

I think probably 90% of Mal & Sibe owners will say NEVER let them off unless they are enclosed in some way. When I was researching the Mal breed before we got Mieko, I read that even though your dog has excellent recall never let them off lead as it can happen out of the blue. There were people that thought that their's was an exception, then found out that wasn't the case, either was lost or even worse.

I think most dog owners that we will meet will not understand how important it is to keep these breeds on lead.


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## PennyGC (Sep 24, 2011)

It's not really the 'prey drive' although this is an element, but the fact that these breeds are bred to run.. and not to do recall :-( Very few are ok off lead (one person had 3 dogs near me and one is allowed off lead) but it's very risky - most mals and sibes will simply run given the chance and they just don't stop.

I can't believe a reputable breeder will recommend you let one off lead....


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## smokeybear (Oct 19, 2011)

I agree as there are plenty of breeds with an extremely high prey drive who can safely be let off the lead (if trained of course).


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## Amberlilly (Mar 13, 2012)

I know a short time ago my dog was attacked by one and so was another a short time later, it was off lead, but the odd thing about it is, it was out of the blue and the dog was a family pet from a pup, in fact, met the other dogs on the walks regular, owners were quite upset by this and don't walk it in the same area, in fact Ive not seen her for a while. Maybe they don't make very good pets but are working dogs, I don't know enough about the breed to comment, it did however shake my little dog up big time! Thank god the owner was on the ball!! They are beautiful dogs.


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## sophieanne93 (Jul 4, 2012)

I have heard and read many horror stories about mals and sibes off lead so it does cause for some caution! They can make beautiful pets in the right hands with the proper care they need. My one is still a baby so I have years of potential disasters to come lol. I don't let her off lead in busy public areas purely cos I don't trust her! She's a big bounding puppy which intimidates many people who don't understand the breed but I know some people do walk them off lead and have no problems. I think after hearing other people's views and experiences it just depends on the individual dog but I would rather not risk it! My mal is wonderful with other dogs of any breed, shape and size and I think that's probably because I live in quite a small friendly neighbour hood with a lot of dogs so she was well socialised as a pup and even now but even still, its not unheard of for the most socialised mals to act up around dogs!


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## rona (Aug 18, 2011)

I meet a Mal quite often on my morning walks, he's always off lead, greets other dogs sensibly, chases the odd bunny but never goes far.

He must be an exception.


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## Sophie_xxx (Feb 21, 2009)

We have 2 sibes - Yuri is a 2 1/2 year old male, and Mishka 3 year old female. We have never let either of them off of the lead in an open space, we have long extendable leads so they can off and have a sniff but thats it.

There is a farmers field nearby to us which is completely safe and closed off where we let Yuri off - his recall is good and he's fairly lazy so doesnt go far! But Mishka unfortunatley cannot be trusted with small animals. She was a rescue dog and is the most gentle sibe, very petite and pretty but we have already had a couple of accidents with her even on the extendable lead - she still managed to grab a squirrel, a mole and a duck  Her prey drive is just too strong! Yuri has a thing with tiny dogs and we have to keep him on a tight lead if we see small dogs when out on a walk, we're not sure whether he wants to play....but we don't trust the look in his eyes 

Although mals are alot bigger, they still have the same high prey drive. My cousin owns 2 big mals who have escaped from the garden many times, and have been found later on in a field chasing deer.

I wouldnt risk letting your mal off the lead - no matter how well you think she's trained or much you trust her, their instinct can make them switch very quickly!


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## sophieanne93 (Jul 4, 2012)

Sophie_xxx said:


> We have 2 sibes - Yuri is a 2 1/2 year old male, and Mishka 3 year old female. We have never let either of them off of the lead in an open space, we have long extendable leads so they can off and have a sniff but thats it.
> 
> There is a farmers field nearby to us which is completely safe and closed off where we let Yuri off - his recall is good and he's fairly lazy so doesnt go far! But Mishka unfortunatley cannot be trusted with small animals. She was a rescue dog and is the most gentle sibe, very petite and pretty but we have already had a couple of accidents with her even on the extendable lead - she still managed to grab a squirrel, a mole and a duck  Her prey drive is just too strong! Yuri has a thing with tiny dogs and we have to keep him on a tight lead if we see small dogs when out on a walk, we're not sure whether he wants to play....but we don't trust the look in his eyes
> 
> ...


Yes I keep Indie on a long flexi lead so she can wander and sniff if we are in public, the only place I trust her off-lead is this enclosed field near me where she will run about, do her own thing, but generally stays close to where I am.

However, when she sees birds or rabbits she will bolt, but has never caught one - yet! But she always comes back to me after it has got away so I do see the prey drive taking over at times. This field is the perfect place really as no one really goes there so she has run of the field by herself with no complications but when there are other peopleI have to keep her on lead she she will sometimes sprint up to them and their dogs and sometimes she wont bat an eye lid at them so I agree that they can just switch!


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## scarter (Apr 26, 2009)

No experience of mals, but I understand where you are coming from as I have Beagles. Similar issues.

Ours got off-lead every day of their lives until the oldest reached about 18 months. With maturity their instincts became stronger. We worked so hard to keep them off-lead but to no avail. They're wonderfully obedient dogs - excellent recall, biddable, do lots of sports such as agility, trieball, htm. But when the urge takes them to bolt it happens in a split second with no warning. One minute they're by your side hanging on your every word, the next they are gone.

So many behaviourists, trainers etc have tried over the years to convince me that all dogs are the same - that the problem is in my mind. Just a matter of training. I think if anyone else says to me "Have you tried tasty treats or a ball" I'll scream :mad5::biggrin:

My take on it is this. No matter how well trained a dog is - of any breed - there are always moments when training goes out of the window and the dog reverts to type. In the case of most dogs it means it can take you a couple of minutes to catch your dog and get him on lead. Maybe you'll have to issue a command twice before they respond. With mals, beagles etc it can mean your dog is in another county (or under the wheels of a car a couple of miles away) before you can react!!

Some might well be unusually good at staying close (for the breed), but it only takes one slip. Just for one split second all those years of selective breeding overpower your training and you've lost your dog for good.

A lot comes down to risk tolerance. That's a very personal thing.

Good luck with however you decide to proceed. For a while we used Retrieva tracking collars to ensure we never lost our dogs, but it doesn't stop them from running into roads and getting into danger in other ways.


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