Norwegian Elkhound: Guidance for Raising as a Family Pet? General Chat

Discussion in 'Norwegian Elkhound' started by elky, Dec 28, 2009.

  1. elky

    elky New Member

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    Ash

    Norwegian Elkhound: Guidance for Raising as a Family Pet?

    Hello All,

    I have done alot of reading over the last month about the norweigen elkhound and have really become attached to the idea of having one as a family pet.

    We have a suburban property with a medium sized yard with close proximity to parks and bush trails.

    The main concern I have at the moment is really for our neighbours (read: barking). Can anyone provide any insight into what our expectation should be here? Can the elkhound be trained to remain quiet enough not to be a nuisance to our neighbours? How exactly do we go about this (from what I gather most people seem to advice that you just say "quiet" to them when they are pups and they should learn...)?

    Furthermore I would greatly appreciate any detailed resources you can point me towards regarding diet, training, etc.

    Also, this might be an odd question... are elkhounds known to play frisbee? I know they are not retrievers...

    I just really like frisbee myself :grin:

    Regards,
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  3. Loki's mum

    Loki's mum Member

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    Gill
    Hi, I've owned an Elkhound and they are lovely pets. The barking can be a nuisance but we trained our to be 'quiet'. If he barked whilst in the garden we brought him inside straight away. He soon caught on that barking outside was a no no. Praise for stopping barking too! As far as frisbee goes, mine loved to chase the frisbee, but wouldn't retrieve and soon got bored of the game. They are not dogs that will repeat the same activity over and over. He was so food focused though that we could teach him all sorts and he learned loads of tricks. They don't cope well with heat however, so that's something to consider, as is the amount of hair they shed! Get one that's well bred and parents kidney tested. Ours died of kidney failure at 2 years because we hadn't done our homework with regards to health testing. They really are cracking dogs though and very beautiful! Good luck.:)
  4. JoedeeUK

    JoedeeUK Member

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    Deejay
    Have a look at this site, although it's a UK site the breeder is a very experienced Elkhound person & I'm sure will be able to give you advice in-depth
  5. elky

    elky New Member

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    Ash
    thank you so much for the replies :)
  6. Labman

    Labman New Member

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    Ted
    Yes I have found bringing the dog in at the first bark highly effective in preventing barking problems. When I am not around, my dogs are safe inside the house in their crate. Of course, I never leave them more than 4=5 hours at a time.

    One way to be sure a dog adjusts to being a pet, or to any other life, is to bring it into the home at 7-8 weeks. It will come to accept children, noise, whatever your family's lifestyle is, other pets, etc.
  7. cava14una

    cava14una New Member

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    Anne
    Beat me to it Dyane:lol:
  8. JoedeeUK

    JoedeeUK Member

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    Deejay
    LOLOLOLOL

    I do love Barbara's dogs
  9. Loki's mum

    Loki's mum Member

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    Gill
    They are IMO they best Elkies in the UK. Sadly I couldn't face another...:-(
  10. Brainless

    Brainless New Member

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    Barbara
    Hey guys what lovely things to say, have just linked to this old post by someone following your link, I am blushing all over!

    Since this post I have sadly lost our Kizi at nearly 14 in August 2011, but we now have a youngster Safi nearly a year old so still 5, though we were 6 for 6 months.

    So the Barbelka inmates of the Asylum are Jozi age 12, Lexi 8 1/2, Myka 5, Inka 3 1/2, and Safi nearly 1.

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