Looking for a pup to take home? Visit Snowden Alaskan Malamutes on Facebook to see pictures of current puppy litters and available pups. Or call Ray at (503) 366-0155.
Snowden Malamutes live a long time, and any long-lived animal is slower to mature. Snowden puppies will put on a pound a day at the time they are weaned and can take as long as four to seven years to fully mature. It is important that they are fed a high quality food, but equally important that they are kept slim and trim. Letting a dog become obese by overfeeding it can cut several years off its life. Puppies need calcium for proper bone growth but over-supplementation of calcium can lead to serious problems with uneven bone development.
In over forty years of breeding, Snowden Kennels has received only one report of HD. This is not an accident. In the early days we screened all our breeding stock and any animal with HD was removed from the breeding program.
Contrary to popular belief, there is no more HD in the Malamute breed than in any other breed of dog. The occurance of HD will be greatly reduced if breeders do a better job of removing any carriers from their breeding program. We can also reduce HD by feeding brood bitches a more rounded diet and keeping puppies slim and well-exercised. Trying to force a puppy to mature faster by over-supplementing calcium is one of the main factors contributing to HD.
