How to Care for an Alaskan Malamute

A popular sled dog, the Alaskan malamute is known for its prey and pack instincts. Keep a vigilant eye on your malamute so that he doesn't go after small animals. Also, because of the breed's pack instincts, malamutes adore being with their human families and will form destructive habits such as chewing if they do not receive sufficient attention.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Dog Beds
• Dog Bones
• Dog Brushes
• Dog Dishes
• Dog Flea/tick Control Medication
• Dog Food
• Dog Leashes
• Dog Toys
• Dog Training Aids
• Dog Treats
• Dry Shampoo For Dogs
• High-quality Dog Food
• Nail Clippers For Dogs

1. Vaccinate your Alaskan malamute when you first get him or her and get yearly booster vaccinations to maintain the dog's immunity to diseases. Consult your veterinarian about flea-control products and worming your adult dog.

2. Give your malamute high-grade dog food. The first ingredient should be meat. Crude protein should be no less than 30 percent, and crude fat no less than 20 percent. The fiber content should be 4 percent or less.

3. Use dry shampoo (a powder that is used on the coat and then brushed out) to clean your dog no more than twice a year.

4. Brush your malamute's thick coat once a week when not shedding and daily when shedding. These dogs shed a lot and lose their undercoats twice a year. However, because of this heavy shedding, the malamute's coat quickly rids itself of dirt.

5. Trim your malamute's nails every week.

6. Exercise your malamute according to his or her personality. Some malamutes are very active, whereas others prefer little exercise. Keep your malamute on a leash when other dogs are present.

7. Socialize your malamute to be around small children, dogs and small animals from an early age. Many malamutes have a strong prey instinct and will hunt small animals. They also tend to exhibit same-sex aggression. They do well with cats if they are raised with them.

8. Train your malamute in obedience early on, beginning when he or she is about 8 weeks old. This breed tends to be stubborn and will need a lot of work to prevent destructive habits such as chewing and jumping on furniture. Adult malamutes can be difficult to control.

9. Learn about the health conditions most likely to affect malamutes. Eye problems such as day blindness, juvenile and adult cataracts, and Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada syndrome are becoming more common, as are thyroid problems. Giant malamutes may be prone to hip dysplasia because of their size.

10. Prepare to enjoy 12 to 15 years with your malamute (8 to 9 years for giant malamutes), as this is the Alaskan malamute's average life expectancy.

Tips & Warnings

• Contact the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals for more information about hip dysplasia.
• Provide fences at least 6 feet high and placed well beneath the ground. Malamutes sometimes dig when bored and may try to dig under the fence.
• Allow your malamute to come indoors. Malamutes will find trouble if left alone outside for long, and they do well in a climate-controlled environment with their human families.
• Provide your malamute with a lot of chew toys. Malamutes are prone to chewing, especially if they are not given enough attention.
• Give your malamute plenty of water and shade in warmer weather as this breed is sensitive to heat and humidity.
• Although malamutes don't bark much, they do howl.
• Male malamutes can be very dominant.

[Vanessa22]

on 1/16/2009 I love malamutes! Thanks for the info. :)

[Kaya35]

on 3/26/2008 HELP! My new Alaskan Malamute; 11 week old male keeps biting me! I know he's just playing, and he's really a sweetheart but I can't seem to stop him. I take his snout firmly and say no but Prince just smiles & does it again..?

[Kaya35]

on 3/26/2008 I just got an 11 week old Alaskan Malamute and he's a sweetheart. But Prince has started to bite- and those teeth are razor sharp- what should I do? I take his snout in my hand firmly and say no but he just smiles and does it again. Help!

on 11/22/2005 We have one of the quite-running vacuum cleaners. This is what I use on my Alaskan Malamute. He loves to be vacuumed! He gets upset if I do one side and neglect doing the other. I guess it helps him to cool off faster.

on 11/22/2005 My Malamute loves to be near his family. He is very protective and shy. He sheds 2 times a year, and you can make a good sweater or a large jacket from all of his fur! He is very smart, but he likes to chase deer. He has his own napping area, and if our Husky goes in his space, he will chew on my shoes. I give him and our Husky bones to chew on (they go through a bone every 1 1/2 days). He loves to play, and loves to swim. He is attentive and sweet. He will howl if he hears a siren. Many times, this happens long before we can hear it.