I echo all of what Glacier said. That's the textbook Malamute for you.

However, I am lucky enough to own a Malamute-that-thinks-he's-a-Labrador. He comes with typical Malamute traits (he's increasingly dog aggressive as he gets older, which is something I absolutely do not like or tolerate... ) but he's rather *soft* for a Malamute.

If you're seriously looking into getting one and it is your first dog, I do not recommend going to rescue (as I'm sure most people on this board will/would do) *unless* you're going to get a very stable, older (and matured) dog.

It takes a lot of moxie to live with a Malamute, imho. They are hard to train (though definitely not impossible). My boy was trained in formal obedience and has his first real trial this weekend. We had no difficulty training any of the commands except "down." I brought a training tool called a clicker into the mix and he actually finally understood what was asked of him.

Getting along with other dogs has a lot to do with both socialization and whether or not the dog is intact. Even if the dog is altered, if it was not altered at an early age (before the first heat for females, around 6-8 months for males) the dogs I have come into contact with still have the tendancy to be dog aggressive without a lot of training and general WORK. I have no problem with dogs that are most decidedly in Rien's "pack" (his girlfriend, CoCoa who lives with him 24/7 as well as my aunt's little dogs who visit often). New dogs are... a challenge that we're working on.

As for destroying things... Rien's a typical boy, he likes to take things apart. He's not as destructive as I've heard Malamutes can be. He hoards socks and he finds pens to take apart, but other than that he's a good boy. However, he gets a good amount of exercise and lots of mental activity -- a tired Malamute is a happy Malamute, and a bored Malamute is a destructive Malamute.

This breed is most definitely not for everyone -- I can't express that enough. I would like to echo Glacier's statements about "giant Malamute" breeders. These dogs are more prone to health conditions and usually their "breeders" are in it for the profit. A good, healthy Malamute with drive and ability to pull a sled should be around 26"

My boy is definitely the best thing in my life. He puts a smile on my face every day and wakes me up with gusto. I don't know what life will be like without his woo-woos. But it took a lot of blood, sweat, and tears to get to the point where he is my sweetheart companion and he's still not the perfect family Labrador.