Swedish Elkhound Breed Club​
About Them,
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Best known for its curious and adventurous behavior, the Swedish Elkhound is full of character. These dogs thrive on strong and dependable relationships with humans, and they often look to their owner for guidance and support. This breed is very bright, yet stubborn and overly confident, creating difficulty in training. As a pet, the Swedish Elkhound is loyal, loving, and affectionate. These dogs are not suited for full-time indoor or apartment living, as they enjoy spending time outdoors, taking long walks, and having plenty of room to roam, run, and play.
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Train-ability
Due to its stubborn and overly confident attitude, the Swedish Elkhound can prove somewhat challenging to train. This breed is known for growing bored and even annoyed with repetitive exercises and tasks, as it especially hard to housebreak.
Establishing immediate dominance, trust, and respect is key to successfully training the Swedish Elkhound. These dogs require an experienced, confident, and serious handler with a stern yet gentle approach to repetitive exercises and tasks.
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Benefits and Disadvantages of the Breed
There are many benefits to owning a Swedish Elkhound. This active breed is always on the go, and often quite amusing and entertaining to watch while at play. When properly socialized from a young age, the Swedish Elkhound gets along well with small children and other pets, often making friends quickly due to its need to belong to a pack. These dogs are alert and aware of their surroundings, making effective watch dogs by announcing the arrival of guests and unwanted visitors, and serving as a deterrent to would-be intruders. The Swedish Elkhound is loyal, loving, and affectionate, making an excellent hunting dog, family pet, and companion alike.
Unfortunately, there are also disadvantages to owning a Swedish Elkhound. These active and adventurous dogs require large amounts of daily exercise and room to run and play outdoors. Anyone wishing to purchase this breed lacking the adequate amount of time and space to dedicate to the dog is strongly advised against doing so. A Swedish Elkhound not receiving the proper amount of exercise and space will often act out by destroying property, chewing, barking, whining, and ignoring basic training such as housebreaking.
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The Swedish Elkhound has a strong instinct to hunt and will occasionally indulge in a good chase. When on the run, these dogs are surprisingly quick, and may pose a threat to other animals, neighborhood pets, and small woodland creatures. The Swedish Elkhound must be leashed or properly secured at all times when outdoors.
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Like most Spitz breeds, the Swedish Elkhound's thick and beautiful coat requires almost constant attention such as brushing and grooming in order to prevent matting and maintain its attractive appearance.
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As previously mentioned, the Swedish Elkhound remains rather rare outside of its native Sweden and can prove difficult to obtain. Individuals seeking to purchase this breed often encounter such challenges as inability to locate a breeder, high prices, and being placed on long waiting lists.
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Common Health Concerns
While the Swedish Elkhound is typically known as a healthy and hearty breed, they do suffer from a few health problems, including: hip dysplasia, elbow dysplasia, arthritis, liver disease, chronic ear infection, skin allergies and sensitivity, distichiasis - ingrown eye lashes, hearing problems - sometimes leading to complete deafness, obesity, and bloat.
Now that you know all about the breed, do you think you are ready to own a Swedish Elkhound? Remember, purchasing a pet is a big decision and should be discussed thoroughly and seriously with your entire family.
