#SHARETHEFETCH Is a semi-regular profile series where we interview dogs and their humans about the many different ways we, ahem, N-GAGE (see what we did there).
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Attention all Husky lovers! This week we caught up with Krisandra who runs the Instagram account @naturalstatehuskies. She shares with us what life is like living with two Huskies as well as how she furthers her love for photography through curation of the account.
N-Gage: What does the everyday routine look like for you and the crew?
Krisandra: My day usually starts by waking up to Olive sitting beside me in bed hovering her face close to mine. I’m starting to wonder if I wake up when I do because I can feel her staring at me, haha, because she is watching me closely, waiting for my eyes to open. Zuki sleeps in and doesn’t move a muscle until my feet hit the floor. Zuki & Olive do biiiiig stretches for a minute as we leave the bedroom and make our way to the door to go potty. After their morning potty, I usually turn on the T.V. to keep them occupied while I get ready and do things to start my day. Huskies are happier and behave better when well exercised so that is usually how I prefer to start my day if/when possible. If their needs have been met, my day goes much smoother!
Once I’ve completed my morning routine and some to dos, we either get in the car and go bye bye to release some energy outdoors, likely at one of the lake trails close to home, OR what we have been doing the most nowadays: we shut the gates to our property and let the dogs free roam acres of land. They run, sunbathe, swim in their kiddie pool and enjoy the freedom for a few hours.
After they have gotten some fresh air and exercise in, we head back into the house where they eat lunch and relax. While they are napping, I am usually doing chores around the house and browsing social media or completing any tasks that I need to get done. If time permits, we get outside again together. Then my boyfriend gets home from work and it’s dinner time!
After that, I like to do a little training session with the dogs and we lounge around the house until bedtime. Zuki & Olive have grown to love bed time and have started to tell us when it’s time for bed by standing in the door frame of our room because they know they get a treat before bed.
NG: Huskies are quite active - how do you keep them stimulated?
K: Some days are better than others! Before getting COVID about a year ago, we loved visiting new places and hiking with Zuki. Since then, we haven’t done much hiking or traveling with the dogs because of COVID. Rather than doing what Zuki was used to and traveling to meet up/hike with friends and their dogs, we opted to take the dogs to trails closer to home. With people being bored from quarantining and wanting to get out and explore, the trails that used to be lightly trafficked have become increasingly crowded.
There has also been a great increase in off leash dogs on trails that we visit, which are in most cases, trails that require dogs to be on a leash. So, our default lately has been to let Zuki & Olive run our land that has several fenced in acres. We still get out and enjoy trails and outdoor areas close to home, just not as much as I would like. These days, it’s all about finding ways to compromise. Indoor toys and mental stimulation puzzles along with training can also go a long way with them.
NG: What makes Huskies so great? How long have you had Huskies in your family?
K: Everything about them! Yes, everything. Especially including the shedding. Husky hair is an accessory that I have learned to wear with pride. My favorite thing about them is probably their constant enthusiasm and happiness as well as their drive to explore and learn new things. Although they are a lot of work, and require lots of time and attention, Huskies are very sweet and make perfect companions. I also love how vocal they are. The fact that they require so much physical activity has also helped me be more active, too, so I can’t complain there. Zuki & Olive are our first dogs (as adults). Zuki is almost three years old and Olive just turned a year old.
NG: What is your favorite thing to do with your Huskies?
K: My favorite thing to do with my Huskies is spend time together outdoors!
NG: What made you want to start this Instagram account? How long have you had it?
K: I was inspired to create this account because I was following a lot of dog accounts on Instagram through my personal account before we got Zuki. Seeing their photos and personalities of all of the dogs as well as the people running the accounts brought me a lot of joy. So I thought it would be a great idea to do the same thing myself! I have always had a passion for photography and I wanted to share cute photos of my dog, plus improve my photography skills and connect with other dog lovers in the process! The main goal of my account has always been to spread happiness to others through our dogs and the content that we create together.
NG: What else should we know about Zuki & Olive?
K: Zuki is more of a shy, sweet and snuggly Husky while Olive is very vocal, full of energy and LOVES her personal space. They are so different yet so alike, and they share a very close bond. They are both so intelligent and strong in communication. They amaze me every day! I love talking to them and oftentimes they talk back to me!
NG: Do you run this account full time? What's it like being an influencer for dogs?
K: I run this account part time! It is a lot of fun and it makes us very proud being an influencer for dogs. It is important to us to support companies and products that we truly believe in. It feels nice to recommend products on our account that I would tell friends about in real life anyway!
As of a few months ago, I work from home as a photographer. This works out perfectly for the dogs, although sometimes it’s a lot easier to balance than others!
