The Wolf in the Living Room

Do wolfdogs make good pets? By Martha Schindler Connors The Wolf in the Living Room For centuries, wolves — incredibly It’s both understandable and sur- As with many things, reality is not charismatic, highly social and extremely prising that people want to take a bit of so simple. Wolfdogs are perhaps the intelligent — have held a special place that wildness home in the shape of a most misunderstood — and, many in our consciousness, starring in as wolf/dog mix — or “wolfdog” — which would argue, mismanaged — animals in many nightmares as they have in paint- some consider to represent the best of America. Advocates say they can be ings and pop songs. With their bigger both worlds: a dog’s friendly compan- wonderful pets, while opponents argue brains, stronger muscles, and teeth and ionship paired with a wolf’s good looks that they’re unpredictable, untrainable jaws many times more powerful than and untamed nature. Buy a wolfdog, and inherently dangerous. They’re per- any dog’s, they’re also quite dangerous, the thinking goes, and live out your mitted in some places, forbidden in capable of killing an elk, a moose, even Jack London fantasies, even if you’re in others and are showing up on breed- a bison. Akron rather than Anchorage. ban lists, along with Pits and other 52 Bark Nov/Dec 2010 Continued: THE WOLF ® NEW so-called “dangerous breeds.” “dangerous animal” permit — the same What’s more, there’s no approved type needed to keep a lion. rabies vaccination for wolfdogs. While And, legal or not, wolfdogs pose the federal government officially sees significant behavioral challenges for them as domestic pets (and leaves owners, many of whom are unable or by muddy paws their regulation to individual states and unwilling to meet them, thus creating municipalities), they’re treated as wild a large population of unwanted ani- the Cargo Cape animals when it comes to rabies. Thus, mals who wind up chained in back- the wolfdog who bites a person can be yards, abandoned or euthanized. considered a rabies risk — even if he’s “These are beautiful animals, and a been vaccinated — because the USDA, lot of people are attracted to something which regulates veterinary medicines, that’s exotic and different,” says Nicole does not extend approval for use of the Wilde, a wolfdog expert and author of standard rabies vaccine with “hybrids” Wolfdogs: A–Z (nicolewilde.com). “They (the vaccine is approved for use in dogs, want to own a piece of the wild, and cats, ferrets and horses). Euthanasia is they often say that the wolf is their necessary, the USDA says, because the spiritual sign or totem animal. Unfor- only reliable test for rabies requires an tunately, they don’t realize that it’s not Machine examination of the animal’s brain. really the same thing as having a wolf washable Wolfdog owners are encouraged to in their living room.” Waterproof fabric vaccinate their animals, but to do so, Like Pit Bulls and pornography, Bumper Guard • Split back they have to make a tough choice: lie wolfdogs can be tough to identify, to their veterinarian about the ani- regardless of laws passed to limit them. mal’s lineage or sign a waiver stating Several years ago, the USDA released a that they understand that the vaccine report estimating that there were about is being used “off-label” on a hybrid 300,000 wolfdogs in the US; how they animal and thus cannot be relied came to this metric is unclear, as the upon to deliver full protection against numbers are impossible to nail down. rabies, and that their animal can be Some people deny their pets’ heritage, impounded and put down if it bites while others claim their 100 percent someone — a high-stakes gamble, and dogs are part wolf. In fact, experts say one for which the wolfdog could pay that the vast majority of animals sold with his life. (or bragged about) as wolfdogs actu- When it comes to their legal status, ally possess very low wolf content, or the regulations are literally all over the none at all. map. At the time of this article’s pub- Part of the problem is that there’s lication, it’s illegal to keep one as a pet no clear definition of what a wolfdog in Alaska, Connecticut, the District is, says Nancy Brown, director of Full of Columbia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Moon Farm (fullmoonfarm.org), a wolf- Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, dog rescue and sanctuary in Black Michigan, North Dakota and Rhode Mountain, N.C. Most experts use the Island. However, in some of these term to describe an animal with a pure states — Alaska, Michigan and North wolf in its family, no more than four Dakota — a wolfdog can be “grandfa- or five generations back. But there’s no thered” in. Other states — Minnesota, way of proving any animal’s pedigree, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Texas as there is no breed registry (and no and Utah — don’t regulate ownership such thing as “papers” for a wolf or on a state level, instead leaving it up to wolfdog, no matter what those who individual counties. Among the states breed them contend). Genetic testing that allow wolfdogs, many require the is theoretically possible but, as it is owner to obtain a permit, or mandate reserved for wildlife management and registration and/or confinement in spe- law-enforcement agencies, is essen- cific kinds of cages. In some states (New tially unavailable to individuals. Phe- York, for example), that means getting a notyping — having an expert evaluate 54 Bark Nov/Dec 2010 “A dog is like a 12-year-old child, and a wolf is like a 35-year-old man. The dog will generally do what you want it to, but the wolf will do what you want only The Natural Answer if he wants to do it himself.” for internal health and balance an animal’s physical and behavioral cross. But in subsequent generations, characteristics — remains the most you’ll get a random assortment of red accessible way to identify a wolfdog. and blue from each parent. So the indi- Use our pure herbal Unfortunately, few are trained in phe- vidual offspring of two F1, 50/50 wolf- supplements for: notyping wolfdogs and, as a result, dogs (an F2 cross, a generation removed many dogs are erroneously labeled. from full wolf) could have anywhere • Stress or anxiety Even if you could draw its family from three-quarters wolf genes and • Show nerves tree, there’s no way to predict an ani- one-quarter dog genes to three-quar- mal’s “wolfiness,” says Stephen L. Zawis- ters dog and one-quarter wolf — yet all • Calming towski, PhD, executive vice president will be considered one-half wolf. Thus, • Rescue’s or re-home’s and science advisor for the ASPCA. he says, you can see enormous varia- • Breeding bitches “I’ve seen ads for animals that are ‘98 tions among wolfdogs, even those who Whelping and nursing percent pure wolf,’ but these are bogus come from the same litter. • numbers,” he says. “These claims are Knowing an individual animal’s filial based on the misguided belief that number — the number of generations it Order today at genes blend like food coloring: if you is removed from a pure wolf — is prob- www.hiltonherbsusa.com take half red and half blue, you get a ably the best way to speculate about its using code BA03 for nice, even purple.” In reality, he says, future behavior and potential prob- FREE - shipping, gift and genes “blend” more like marbles. Say lems, says Kim Miles, vice president of comprehensive catalogue you have a dog, represented by 20 red the Florida Lupine Association (florida marbles, and a wolf, represented by 20 lupine.org), a wolfdog advocacy group. blue ones. If you breed the two, you’ll “Wolfdogs aren’t easily pegged because get 10 marbles from each parent, so they’re essentially a combination of wild Now available at you’ll have half of each color; this is and domesticated animals.” According MudBay stores, WA. an F1 (Filial 1, or first filial generation) to Miles, the biggest difference between Nov/Dec 2010 Bark 55 a wild and a domestic animal is its idea of owning a fearsome predator as Wilde, discourage people from breed- tractability, or the ease with which it well as those with a misguided nature ing wolfdogs, or buying wolfdog pups can be managed or controlled. “A dog fetish often don’t understand what from breeders. is like a 12-year-old child, and a wolf is they’re getting into. In many cases, a “The average dog owner won’t deal like a 35-year-old man. The dog will person will think he has had experience with their Beagle, and can’t handle generally do what you want it to, but with wolfdogs in the past — maybe an ordinary dog’s behavior problems,” the wolf will do what you want only if he had or knew an animal who he says Wilde, who rescued a wolf and he wants to do it himself.” thought was a hybrid but was, in fact, two wolfdogs several years ago. She Experts agree that the vast majority all dog — and decides to get a wolfdog can personally attest to the challenges of wolfdog breeders are selling dogs puppy. “Only this time, he gets the real of keeping these beautiful canines. “I with little or no wolf content, despite thing,” Collings says. “And by the time worked with them to the point that I the fact that the animals fetch as much the pup is five or six months old, [she’s] could look between their paw pads and as $2,500 apiece.

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