Pomsky

Pomskys are usually a better fit for a home with older kids or grown-ups. Expect a small dog that is high-energy, sheds heavily and needs professional grooming on a cycle. The big catch is running cost — this is one of the pricier dogs to keep well.

Pomsky is a cross, not a standardised breed, so there is no official standard for it. The figures above are the American Kennel Club standards for its two parent breeds — Pomeranian and Siberian Husky — and an individual dog lands somewhere between them, varying by generation.

Look at the two parent rows above and the central problem is obvious: a three-to-seven-pound dog and a forty-five-to-sixty-pound dog, and the puppy lands somewhere in between with no reliable way to predict where. Adult size is a genuine gamble, and people who bought a "pocket husky" sometimes end up with a thirty-pound one. Because of the size difference the cross is generally produced by artificial insemination rather than natural mating. Temperamentally you get the Husky brain — vocal, stubborn, escape-prone, indifferent to recall — in a small, dense, heavily shedding package. Striking to look at, and one of the harder crosses to live with. Meet the parents and be realistic about how big yours may get.

Day to day. High-energy — this is a dog that needs a real outlet every single day, not a stroll. Skip that and you get chewing, barking and digging, which is not naughtiness, it is boredom. On noise, it is very vocal, so thin walls and close neighbours are worth thinking about.

The coat, honestly. This breed sheds heavily and needs professional grooming on a cycle. A brush a few times a week and the occasional tidy-up keeps it in good order.

Being left alone. Fine alone for a few hours. A few hours is fine; a full working day, every day, is asking a lot.

Training. Needs an experienced handler. That does not mean badly behaved — it means this breed thinks for itself, and it will not do something just because you asked. First-time owners often find it frustrating.

• Someone in the house genuinely wants to run, hike or train most days
• You are short on space and want a dog that fits your home

• Your daily walk is really a quick trip round the block
• Nobody has budgeted for a groomer every few weeks
• You cannot live with hair on the sofa, the car and your clothes
• You share walls with neighbours who need quiet
• You have toddlers, or children still learning to be gentle

Rough running cost: $$$ (one of the pricier dogs on our list) — because the coat needs a professional groom on a cycle, and that is the bill people forget.

Those are relative bands, not live prices. For real numbers across every pet we cover, see the pet cost study and the cost calculator.

Pomsky is a cross, not a standardised breed — two from different litters can differ in size, coat and shedding. Everything on this page is the typical middle of that range.

Rescues do have Pomskys and Pomsky crosses, usually adults whose size, coat and temperament you can see rather than guess at.