If there’s one thing you should know about the Husky Coonhound mix, it’s that they are very demanding dogs.
Both parents have a working background and a high demand for exercise. Husky Coonhound mixes do best when they have a role to fulfill and a family to meet their challenging needs.
If you’re up to the task, you’ll be rewarded with an affectionate and loyal dog that will form a close bond with you and the rest of the family. Stay tuned to learn all about this rare mix, from the expected temperament to tips for success and much more.
Contents
Quick Overview
Here’s a quick rundown of the top facts about the Husky Coonhound Mix:
- Average Lifespan: 10 to 15 years
- Average Height: 20 to 25 inches
- Average Weight: 35 to 70 lbs
- Coat appearance: Short to medium and single or double coated, lots of colors possible
- Grooming Frequency: Low to moderate grooming needs
- Typical Temperament: Highly energetic, hardworking, affectionate
- Daily Food Consumption: Moderate to high
- New Owner Friendly: Not suited at all due to high demand for work and exercise
- Suitable to live with children? Usually great with children and babies but requires lots of socialization and supervision
- Suitable to live with other dogs? Need to be socialized with small dogs from a young age due to prey drive
- Suitable to live with cats? Need to be socialized with cats from a young age due to prey drive
Appearance
Husky Coonhound mixes are quite large but always have a slender build, which helps them maintain their athletic nature.
The ears are large and can be floppy like the Coonhound or alert like the Huskies. The coat usually takes after the Coonhound and is short and dense and can either be single or double-coated, with many different color combinations possible.
Husky Coonhound mixes are very rare, and their appearance has a lot of variance. To give you a better idea of how they might look, I’ve included as many pictures as possible in this article.
Siberian Husky Appearance & Background
Siberian Huskies have a classic wolf-like appearance, with several Spitz-type features, including erect ears, a thick double coat, and curled tails.
Huskies come in many colors and patterns, including all white, red and white, Agouti, and many more.
Their piercing eyes can also come in various colors, from blue to brown and everything in between.
Huskies were originally domesticated by the Chukchi people of Siberia and used as sled dogs capable of pulling light sled loads for miles at a time.
Due to this, they have a slender build and are very energetic.
Coonhound Appearance & Background
Coonhounds are the oldest sporting dog breed in the US and were developed from English Foxhounds imported in the 1650s and later years.
There are many different types of Coonhound, ranging from the American English Coonhound to the Bluetick. For the sake of this guide, we’ll refer to Coonhounds generally, as they have similar traits, and if you want more information about the different types, you can read this article here.
There are several types of Coonhound, and the only real size difference is between the black and tan Coonhound and the rest.
Black and tan Coonhounds are slightly taller, with an average height of 23 to 27 inches, while the rest sit around 21 to 26 inches and are often lighter in weight.
Coonhounds excel at tracking prey and are still used for this purpose to this day. They’re often found as working dogs and do best when allowed to work rather than being kept as family pets.
Average Size
Husky Coonhound Mixes are medium in size, weighing 35 to 70 lbs and reaching 20 to 25 inches in height, depending on the parents, especially the type of Coonhound.
They always have every athletic build, though, with little to no excess weight.
Coat Appearance
The coat is often short and dense with a double coat, although it can also be single-coated.
Many different color combinations are possible; Huskies are known for their coat color variations, and given how many types of Coonhound there are, it’s no surprise that it’s hard to predict the color of a Husky Coonhound mix.
Grooming Guide
If a Husky Coonhound Mix inherits a shorter coat from the Coonhound side, they only need to be quickly brushed a few times per week at most to get rid of any loose or dead hairs and mats.
In the rare case that this mix has a longer, thicker coat, it’ll need to be groomed a few times per week properly to target both layers of the coat, and the details for this process can be found here.
In both cases, they will shed more often twice yearly when they blow their coat and transition into their summer coat. During this time, you’ll have to groom them more frequently.
Bathing
Husky Coonhound Mixes don’t need to be bathed often, but they can handle more regular bathing if they inherit a shorter coat rather than a medium-length, fluffy coat.
Once every six weeks should be ideal in the case of a shorter coat, and the longer coat can be left for longer periods as regular bathing is detrimental. You can learn why this is the case here.
Temperament
Temperament should always be one of the first things you consider when looking at any new dog, especially a mix where it can vary greatly.
Let’s look at some things you can expect from a Husky Coonhound mix in terms of temperament to see whether they’re suited for you.
Affectionate
Husky Coonhound mixes will always be very affectionate to their family and form close bonds with family members as well.
Huskies and Coonhounds are known for their affectionate and social nature, so this trait is guaranteed with a well-socialized Husky Coonhound mix.
Stubborn
Coonhounds were bred to hunt mainly on their own, which means they can be very independent and not always listen to you.
Like many Spitz-type dog breeds, Huskies are naturally very stubborn and often refuse to listen to commands.
This means that the Husky Coonhound mix is prone to stubbornness and not listening to you. Experience with stubborn dog breeds is very beneficial as this can be challenging if you are used to dogs that are more eager to please.
Very Active
It’s important not to gloss over this point.
Huskly Coonhound mixes are incredibly active, needing at least 2 hours of exercise daily. Ideally, they should also have a working role to fulfill or be given activities to mimic this each day as well.
For example, letting them search out items to mimic hunting or letting them pull you around on a bike or sled to mimic pulling.
They will quickly become bored and potentially destructive if they aren’t given enough exercise.
High Prey Drive
Husky Coonhound mixes have a very high prey drive, much higher than most other dogs.
Huskies have a high prey drive by nature, but Coonhounds are bred specifically for hunting and using their keen sense of smell to track animals like raccoons.
It’s quite common for Coonhounds to go completely off trail in pursuit of prey, so it’s very important to use a leash at all times unless you’ve trained them to recall (which takes a lot of skill).
Prone To Separation Anxiety
Active dogs like the Husky Coonhound Mix are not designed to be left alone for long periods.
This is detrimental to their well-being and can lead to separation anxiety quickly, where they can display destructive behaviors like excessive howling or chewing if they are left alone for long periods.
Intelligent
There’s no denying the intelligence of the Husky Coonhound mix.
Both breeds come from a working background and can work their roles with minimal human input. This means that they are pretty stubborn and independent at times, as mentioned before, but it also means that they are above average in intelligence.
Husky Coonhound mixes might not always listen to you, but they’ll understand what you’re saying.
Is The Husky Coonhound Mix A Good Family Dog?
The Husky Coonhound Mix can make a great family dog, but they really do need to be fulfilling a working role or part of a highly active family that can meet their needs.
For most families, they are too much work and too highly strung because of how much exercise and purpose they need.
However, for families that can meet their demanding needs, Husky Coonhound Mixes are incredibly rewarding and actually quite laid-back when indoors.
Requires Lots Of Socialization
Socialization is essential for a happy and confident Husky Coonhound mix, just as it is with every dog.
Given how energetic and social they are, socialization is going to help them massively in terms of containing their excitement around new people and building confidence as well.
How Much Do They Cost?
The parent breeds of the Husky Coonhound Mix are pretty expensive, as shown below, but given how rare this mix is, you are much more likely to find them in shelters.
- Huskies cost anywhere from $800 to $1,500 on average
- Coonhounds cost anywhere from $500 to over $2,000, depending on the bloodline
Rescue Husky Coonhound Mix can be even more work if they haven’t been socialized correctly or if they were mistreated from a young age, so keep that in mind.
In Summary
Husky Coonhound mixes are an incredibly demanding dog to own. They need a lot of exercise and, ideally, a role to fulfill; otherwise, you’ll end up with a destructive and unhappy pup.
If you can meet the needs of this demanding breed, you’ll be rewarded with an incredibly affectionate and friendly dog that will form a very close bond with you and the rest of the family.
If you’re interested in learning about more Husky mixes, you can check out some of our recent articles below:
