Dog/wolf crosses and your experiance with them

[Paige]

I have never been around dog/wolf crosses. I haven't been able to form a solid opinion on them because I've only ever met one. My neighbours have a pair. I am on the fence with the way I feel about people keeping them as pets. I hope you guys could educate me a little more on them.

The one I knew was named Max. Big lanky black lab wolf cross. He was wonderful. When I stayed with my friend who lives in the middle of no where (pretty much just the mountains, forest and the river where they live) and I'd take Max out every day. He was a monsterous dog in size but had the heart of a puppy. We'd walk to the river ever day then run down the dock and leap off it together and go swimming. Great dog. Amazing with children, a wonderful hiking companion and had great manners.

Max was great but I've heard some awful stories about wolf crosses. Whats your opinion on them?

 

[Tazwell]

All of them I've ever met have been wonderful, and well tempered. They certainly do have poorly suppressed instincts, and they are known to destroy things, and have very high prey drives. They need lots of care. That doesn't mean that they can't learn to be family pets, that just means that they're not like an ordinary dog. I'm sure it depends on how much wolf an individual has inherited, though

I don't want to be prejudice, but I guess that two wolf hybrids may be much more prone to that pack and hunt instinct that dogs get sometimes. You know, when they go "On the Attack?" I'd be nervous, too, if they are poorly controlled, not properly supervised, or not taken care of the way they should be.

 

[~Tucker&Me~]

I think people should leave wild animals alone. There are PLENTY of breed that look like wolves.

Most of them from what I have seen don't make good pets. Escape artists, aggression problems, VERY high prey drive, Need lots of excercise (this is no border collie either)...

~Tucker

 

[Doberluv]

I agree with Tucker. Wild animals should not be kept as pets. Maybe that Lab/wolf mix was more Lab than wolf. A lot of people say their animals are a certain percentage wolf but they don't know. They're probably more dog than wolf. And they don't know which animal, wolf or dog was more potent genetically. More often than not, there are problems. Wolves are inherently very shy of people and there are so many social behaviors that domestic dogs have which domestic dogs have that wolves do not....behaviors which come from domestication and evolution. In other words, dogs are hard wired to get along with humans. Wolves are not. And I'm sure there are exceptions here and there. There always are exceptions to things.

Wolves, even raised from extraordinarily young puppies, as young as 4 weeks old, even if raised and handled expertly do become more tolerant of people, but still......shy and extremely difficult to train, if not impossible. Dogs, raised with very little human contact from young puppies recognize many human social cues....inherent, not learned.

They are better at problem solving than dogs are when it is not of a social nature, for instance, getting out of locked pens. They are driven to escape. I think it's wrong morally and illogical, in fact to keep a wolf or wolf mix as a pet. Illogical for the simple reason that a dog makes the ultimate pet for humans. The relationship man has had with dogs, how dogs evolved TO live with humans, how being around humans was their ecological niche is phenomenal. Wolves are wild animals and should be left alone to live in THEIR ecological niche...the wild.

 

[blue]

I posted a local news story about raising and training wolves not to long back. Training the Wild.

Kryptos, a friends dog, was supposedly 75% wolf. He was one of the most forgiving gentle dog I can remember meeting, probably the exception to the wolf hybrids.

 

[Amalthea]

I have only met a few and one of mine is supposed to be part wolf, though I'd guess she's low in wolf content, I'm not 100% certain what the mix is with her. She does have a lot of wolf-like behaviors, and she will do tricks and obey some commands (especially when a food reward is involved), but she is very observant about everything and seems to always weigh in her mind if the best choice for her would be to listen to what I say, or to do what she wants She is not good around kids, and that's a big concern, especially considering her size and strength. She is wonderful with other dogs, large and small, and with most people though she takes her own sweet time getting to know a new person before she's comfortable. She's also very quiet and almost never barks. She did howl when we first got her as a puppy, but I haven't heard her do it since then. She can be very destructive, but someone is with her almost 24/7 and so I think that keeps her from going too crazy on the house, if she were left alone for long hours every day, I think she'd be impossible to keep indoors.

I'm kind of torn on the issue of whether they should be pets... on one hand, I do agree that like all irresponsible breeding, people shouldn't be creating wolf-cross puppies that are going to end up in shelters or put down because owners get them without knowing what they are in for... however, I also think that if a person loves their pet enough, they will do the best they can for it, and I see no reason why a wolfdog shouldn't have the chance to be happy and loved. After all, even if it is unethical to breed them, they are being bred, and people are their blessing and their curse... only we can really provide them with what they need. They can't be introduced into wild wolf populations, because they are not truly wild. Some of them will never be truly domestic either, though, and that's the problem. They're "stuck" between being seen as a dog and as a wild animal. It may not be right to create these wolfdogs, but once they're here, people have a responsibility to them. I think they should be carefully adopted by owners who will understand how difficult they can be, and I think wolfdogs have just as much right to be adopted and loved as other breeds that are considered 'dangerous'.

 

[mrose_s]

i don't think they shoudl be bred on purpose, for obvious reasons. I can only hope that the hybrids don't fall to the wrong hands.

The pure bred dingo population here is tiny because wild dogs keep inter breeding with them.
There was a pure (or what looked much like it) dingo in a shelter down south a while back. yes i was tempted. lol, i think if i had the chance to take on a dingo or dingo X then i'd consider it as long as i knew enough, their amazing animals

 

[Boo1129]

I took in a wolfdog as a rescue to avoid him being put down...Do i think they should be pets??? Well....I think he makes a wonderful pet in my family...I love him very much...Do I think just anyone should own one?? Do I think they should be bred?? Absolutely not!!!! He is not a normal "dog" He gets out of enclosures because he is cunning and strong...He doesn't train the same way as a dog would...Don't like to be growled at?? don't get one....Don't like to be pulled through a fence?? don't get one...Don't like to be used as a chew toy for 8 months?? don't get one ....I could go on and on LOL
Now as far as aggression....Kuruk has a fear of people...anyone that isn't in his own house...but he flees instead of fights....I don't know for sure if someone cornered him what would happen...He hasn't allowed anyone nor would I....He hasn't shown any attack modes or anything like that on us ever..However...I am the only one who can get something away from him he wants...I don't even let the kids try..It's not worth the risk of a bite from his power...
Training?? Well....it all depends I think on how devoted you are to it...and how much trust they have...Kuruk when seeing me even reach for the leash runs to the door and sits waiting....He knows to nuzzle the door knob when he has to go..he knows sit, down, paw,come(however he doesn't have a recall at all outside) He does much better than my husky mutt
Feeding? They need lots of meat...lots of bones to chew to keep them entertained as so he won't chew your house apart I get lots of deer in the fall from friends..
No ordinary person should own a wolfdog....but if anyone wants to rescue one it can be done It takes changing your whole life around for him...
I wish they weren't bred...I wish there weren't so many being put down for fear issues...I wish more people would think before getting one how much work they are!!

 

[Doberluv]

Some of them will never be truly domestic either,

None of them will be domestic, truly or otherwise. Wolves are not domestic. They can not be made domestic. They can not do what thousands and thousands of years of evolution have done to cause an isolated group of them to domesticate themselves and turn into dogs. They're wild animals and do not make good pets and should be left in the wild where they belong, where their natural, eccological niche is. If any do make good pets, I'd bet my bottom dollar that their make-up is vastly domestic dog and not wolf.

Great post Boo. Thanks for sharing.

 

[bubbatd]

I think they are beautiful . My folks 1st dog was 1/2 Shepherd 1/2 wolf and he was a great , lovable dog with us kids . HOWEVER .....I would never take the chance .

 

[oc_spirit]

Carrie, how many generation would it take for a wolf-dog to become a dog again?? I ask this because it is commonly said (and I say it too) that all dog breeds are not wolves (obviously) and no one dog breed is closer genetically to wolves than another. So basically a Poodle is as close to a wolf as a Hsky (genetically). HOWEVER there are breeds that even recently (as in these days) commonly outcross to wolves to improve the lines (at least that is their reasoning for the outcross).

 

[Gempress]

O.C., I saw a show a few years ago about a breeding experiment. They were trying to domesticate a certain species of fox for fur farming. The domestication process actually took fewer generations than expected, but the show I saw didn't say exactly how long that was.

This is what I found most interesting. The resulting foxes were unusable as fur-producers. That's because domestication in canines is all about breeding animals that permanently retain their puppy characteristics--loving, accepting of strange people/animals, eager to please, more submissive to a leader. The foxes domesticated by this project, along with retaining their "puppy" attitudes, also tended to retain their puppy coats well into their adult years. Perhaps the "permanent immaturity" genes were linked, who knows? But the coats were unsuitable for the fur trade, and the project was scrapped.

That's the whole problem with wolfdogs. Many wolfdogs are absolutely fine as puppies and can seem just like a dog---because dogs are basically immature wolves. But once wolfdogs mature around 1-3 years, they can get the full adult wolf temperament: shy, suspicious, very alpha oriented/dominant, high hunting drive, intolerance of strangers, food aggression, etc.

That's what happened to me. My Odin wasn't a very high percentage of wolf, but he got the wolf temperament in spades. He was a brilliant, wonderful puppy. I gave him lots of socialization and training. But at about 10 months old, the problems started. He became skittish and leery of strange people, to the point where he'd be terrified by strangers getting too close. His wolfy dominance came out in full---you had to watch every move you made around him. You couldn't once seem to lack confidence or be submissive around him, or he would take advantage of it completely. Then he bit Hubby one day, for trying to take a bone from him.

I had to have him PTS. It was so hard. I considered Odin to be my heart dog, and still do. He was just never meant to be a pet.

I don't think people should be breeding wolfdogs. Are there some good wolfdogs out there? Yes. But there are also many like my Odin. And from what I've read on many wolfdog information sites, Odin's type seem to be in the majority. Even pro-wolfdog organizations tend to recommend they be kept similar to wolves at a zoo....not as a common housepet.

In my opinion, it's just not fair to produce so many truly wild animals simply to get a few that can make good pets.

 

[Squishy22]

I do not believe in breeding or owning wolf hybrids. Rescue would be fine, but you have to know what you are getting yourself into. I think its cruel to own wolf dogs. Its not fair to them to be kept in someones back yard when they are wild animals. My grandmother had two but had to get rid of them. They were very shy, aggressive, and extremely territorial.

 

[ToscasMom]

Very interesting, Boo and Gem.

 

[verderben]

I fostered one once for a rescue and would NEVER do it again and would NEVER reccommend one as a pet.

 

[verderben]

this is him:

 

[verderben]

 

[verderben]

 

[verderben]

 

[ToscasMom]

Ver he was sure handsome though.