Hi all, Hope you can help, I'm considering taking on my first NI but before embarking on what could turn out to be a fantastic experience and friendship I have a few questions about the breed. 1. Are NI's ever trained to a high level of obedience. 2. What are NI's like with other animals (especially sheep)? 3. Are NI's prone to wandering when off the lead, and is recall training problematical?
Hi Northstar welcome to dogsey! In awnser to your questions: 1. Yes NIs can be trained to a high level of obedience if you have the time & patience to do so. Many NI have achieved bronze, silver and a few have even managed gold Kennel club good citizens awards. We also have an NI that has been trained by the RAF for search & rescue & I would imagine that requires a high level of obedience. 2. NIs are usually very good with other animals but like most breeds it will also depend on if they are brought up around or socialised with them from an early age. NIs can have a relitively high prey drive & do love to chase so as far as sheep (livestock) are concearned it would again depend on whether the dog in question is brought up around them & whether it was socialised with them from an early age. I wouldn't trust my 2 around them but we don't live near any, many NI owners live on farms & such like & because their dogs were brought up with livestock & various other animals from day 1 they generally don't have a problem. 3. Training an NI to reacall basically goes back to your first question of how trainable NI are. Yes they can be trained to recall with time & patience, my bitch has fantastic recall, my dog not so great (he still needs a bit more work).
Just to add to my point 1, there are also a few NI that have qualified as PAT dogs which again needs good obedience, but like I said its all down to time & patience as these dogs can be pretty stubborn!
Thanks angelmist, The info is much appreciated. I'll do a bit more research about the breed and its back ground; incidentally I saw my first NI about 6 years ago and sent a few emails to organisations representing various other spitz breeds to try to find out more. At the time their responses were not positive, the two I remember most said that NI's were Wolf hybrids and one group had taken offence at the name Inuit being used for these dogs.
There's not an ounce of wolf in the Inuit as we all know. Training an Inuit can be great fun They are eager to please, but, they can be stubborn Keeping thier attention is probably one of the hardest things to master. Loads of play training and if you get a dog that has a high food drive, then you've cracked it I wouldn't trust Luca with sheep, or anything that's likely to run, but as angelmist has posted, it depends on whether the dog has been raised with these animals.
Going back 6 years & even earlier there was a lot of bad press about NI but in more recent years they have started to become more widely accepted, we're getting their slowly and they are becoming more & more popular by the day.
It's because of the confusion over the name really...NI are a worthy breed as we know but they are new and not an ancient breed...Some of the 'spitz' breed clubs you were contacting don't take to kindly to these 'new comers' with the word 'Inuit' in the name. I can kinda see why but not at the same time if that makes sense. If the word 'Inuit' had never been used in the name I personally believe most of these people would have nothing bad to say I think many believed the ancient Northern breeds were being taken and used for these new fangled things and rubbishing their name...But that as we know is not the case and things have moved on thankfully since 6yrs ago. In hind sight it would have probably been for the best if the NI had of been called something different cuz even as an owner I don't like people thinking I am referring to something my dogs are not as most people think you mean 'Canadian Inuit' when you say what they are called or I get alot of 'oh Eskimo dogs'...which then means I have to talk to much Besides that most all of what 'they' (the spitz breed groups) had to say about the NI was wrong I do think it was just the name not going down well as they had probably never even met or wanted to meet an NI for themselves to base their opinion on.
Wasn't there one particular women who seemed to really have it in for the NI on the Internet? I remember mailing her and she was really unpleasant about the dogs. All hear-say and rubbish as we know - the NI is a wonderful breed ... I can't understand the snobbery in the dog world at all.
I know when we were looking for info about NI's before we got one we found a couple of web pages that really do have a go at NI's. But we did manage, especially after reading the actual breeders positive pages, to put it down to snobbery and an unwillingness to accept this breed. As for your questions, our NI came to us at 5 months and was extremely well behaved and trained. Very very eager to please and knows the routines in the house so well. For example, after being let out last thing at night, you don't need to mention 'bedtime biscuit' and she's in her basket waiting. So often she pre-empts your commands. As for other animals.... we have 2 cats who Inca would love to mother, but they weren't used to dogs so that just a dream for her. She did live happily with a cat before we got her. We have 2 guinea pigs, who if left to run around, Inca again will protect and mother and not let our Jack Russell near them. Inca met 2 hedgehogs in the garden for the first time the other day and tried to mother those too! She's fine with horses, cattle, sheep, but obviously we keep her on lead near those beacuse she does have a strong chase instinct and even though she has always obeyed being told to leave, you just never know. With other dogs she is ok but if let off will want to play and play and play. Which is ok with those who know her but not with those who don't, so I keep her on lead if there are smaller toy dogs around or ones she doesn't know. Our jack russell is used to being bowled over. As for recall, she does, but sometimes its when she's ready, and again if she sees something and has it in her mind to chase then no, she'll come back eventually. So, more work needed there. Inca is a wonderful family pet. Loves everyone and everything. However has no guarding instincts at all, very rarely barks (last time was when surprised by hedghogs in the garden!). Is very pack orientated so doesn't like being alone, but is fine whilst we are out at work as has terrier for company, though whines if he is out for a walk on his own. NI's love to be involved and are very nosey. I'll admit she's not as bright as our terrier, and that is partly why she'll always do what she's told as she never questions why. I was never a fan of big dogs before we got Inca, but she's lovely. A great big, hairy hearth rug of a dog, always 'smiling', always happy to see you, very gentle with children. Just my opinion, but hope that helps.
spitz noun spitz 1. A breed of dog with a thick coat, a pointed foxy face, pricked ears and a tail that curls up over its back. Just to clarify Also, speaking from a personal POV and not as a representative of anyone else....at the moment, MY breed is being plagued by so called 'Huskamutes' where people are crossbreeding Huskys and Malamutes and then making up breed standards for them .....we have had this for a few years but it has exploded over the past year This is one of the reasons that people may appear to be snobbish about an unrecognised breed that contains the word Inuit and see it is yet another way of making money Please note, I am not saying that is what is happening but it may go some way to explain possibly?
yep, yep agree they are not Spitz but there are people out there new to all breeds and if someone gets their info confused and contacts the wrong people by mistake there is no need for any group to put down any breed just because it doesn't fit their catergory. Alot of the organizations that said bad things about the NI didn't seem to concentrate on being protective of their own breed but tried put across that NI were dangerous and vicious and possibly child killers all unfounded claims that were scare mongering and nothing more. Were a result of cross breeding
Yes, of course, we are protective of our breeds, they would no longer exist if people were not interested in safeguarding established breeds and information of their history. Was not commenting on people who cross breed, that is up to them, but what they breed are not members of ancient and established breeds and groups. Not that honest people indulging in this type of breeding would dream of suggesting that what they produce is anything but the result of crossbreeding.
Yeah I agree with you NI are not and arn't ever said to be an ancient breed which is why I personally would prefer the word 'Inuit' not to be in the name, it causes to much confusion and argument and like I said, makes me have to talk to much when people ask what they are called because I never let people walk away thinking they are something they are not. But what's done is done and it's all a name that doesn't alter the temprament of the dogs...Which we all know can't be faulted...So I've got no problem if people want to discuss the breed name but temprement and false claims should have been in fairness left out of it. Still it's all in the past now.
