Have you ever seen Turner and Hooch? Granted this is not one of Tom Hank’s best films, but in our family, it’s always been sort of a cult classic. There are some really funny moments in this film: images of Hooch running in slow-mo with jaws (and spit) flapping in the wind, lectures of “this is not your room” to an oblivious and ugly dog, and of course the famous Tom Hanks rapid eye blinking moment as his perfect and orderly world crashes with the arrival of Hooch. These are the stuff of legend around here – frequently done bits in our family, long before we became the family of Ky.
Our Siberian Husky (SH) is nearly 6 months old now and has been living with us for almost 4 of those months. I love this pup, I really do, BUT holy cow this is a TON of work! I used to roll my eyes (internally of course) when people would tell me how their new puppy was like a new baby. Thinking to myself, um okayyyyy – sure it is! Somewhere in the middle of that first week when I was patting A DOG to sleep in the middle of the night I realized we were wrong. We had just added child #6 to Starkacres…drawn like a moth to the flame.
There was a lot of research that went into finding “Michael’s Dog”.[1] We needed to find a good fit for our family, including an environment with lots of kids, my allergies, and the size of our property. We didn’t make our decision even a little bit from any of the adorable videos of SH puppies, or the way they “talk” to owners, or for heaven’s sake choose this breed because of the blue eyes. Seriously, choose a dog because of eye color? Ok, we choose a SH puppy because of the blue eyes.
In all fairness, we did read all of the comparison charts on the various breeds. But, like most first-time “parents” we focused on the positives and downplayed the negatives. Sort of like reading through What to Expect When You’re Expecting while simultaneously drafting a birth plan. We humans tend to parse data like this:
This is a good and positive attribute (I will accept this truth)
This is a bad and negative attribute (It will not happen to me)
Words like “SH are escape artist” and “they shed buckets of hair” and “don’t leave them alone too long or they will be destructive” are cast aside in a sea of fantasies about blue-eyed puppies with adorable black masks. My biggest A-HA moment should’ve been when the dog trainer told me “good luck”, but in defense of my yet-to-come-home-bundle-of-fluff I discarded her comments as rude. Amazing how reality quickly realigns our fantasy. Several months into raising #OurPuppyKy [2] the descriptions written about SH’s take on a whole meaning. Like putting on a new pair of glasses, I can now clearly see the hidden words (negative attributes) originally buried in the text. Eyes are wide open now! Ky may not drool like Hooch, but the first time I caught myself lecturing, “this is not your room!” I couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
“Siberian Huskies are loving, gentle, playful, happy-go-lucky dogs that are fond of their families. Keen, docile, social, relaxed and rather casual, this is a high-energy dog, especially when young.” “Good with children and friendly with strangers, they are not watchdogs, for they bark little and love everyone.” “First-time dog owners or timid people should consider other breeds. Huskies fit best with confident, experienced dog owners who set rules and deliver consistency.” “Huskies are very intelligent and trainable, but they will only obey a command if they see the human is stronger minded than themselves. If you are not this dog’s 100% firm, confident, consistent pack leader, he will take advantage, becoming willful and mischievous.” “These are extremely energetic dogs who can’t resist chasing small animals; they need secure running room (a fenced-in yard or dog park), and walking them off-leash is risky.” “Huskies may be difficult to housebreak.” “This breed likes to howl and gets bored easily.
This breed likes to roam.”“Does not do well if left alone for a long period of time without a great deal of exercise beforehand. A lonely Husky, or a Husky that does not get enough mental and physical exercise can be very destructive.”
[1] Ky is technically Michael’s dog. Michael reminds us of that fact all the time. I make note of this detail because although I paid for him, take care of him, train him, pull things out of his rear end such as 2-feet of fiberfill, play ball with him, and nag Michael to walk him daily, Ky is not my dog.
[2] Yes, I created a unique hashtag for Ky. I am that person.
