Caught on a game camera in British Columbia

Wolfdogs aren’t cute.

We don’t need to cross a wild animal with one that’s already been domesticated from it.

Even if its amount of wolf content is low, it still has genes from a wild animal and still has potential to pose danger to humans.

Wolfdogs aren’t legal everywhere. In many places where wolfdogs do happen to be legal, if a wolfdog bites someone—even if she’s just playing—she may be required to be euthanized.

We already have dog breeds that resemble wolves without being crossed with them.

Wolfdogs aren’t ethical.

I have personally owned several wolfdogs (low, mid and HIGH 75%) as a licenced rehabber, and I'm here to tell you

It Fucking Sucked.

Wolves and Wolfdogs are highly dangerous, skittish, aggressive, and territorial animals that are insanely hard to manage let alone train.

They can almost never be house broken, require speciality veterinary and nutritional care, and are illegal in most of the united states!

They pose a danger to anyone who steps foot on your property because to them that is Home and they will protect Home with their lives.

Over 90% of all wolf deaths in the wild are caused by territorial fights between other packs.

They are highly highly dangerous and have no business being in captivity.

The only reason I had the ones that I did was that I was their last resort. We had no zoos or refuges that were willing to take in such highly strung aggressive animals, and I was the only one with the land, permits, and expertise that was willing to take them.

It was expensive, dangerous, and mostly heartbreaking.

Each one lived half of its natural life span because they were bred by backyard breeders who didn't give a rats ass about the genetics of the breeding stock and they had to be put down due to hereditary ailments.

Breeding wolfdogs is incredibly unethical and continuing to support them is lowering the genetic diversity if wild wolves. Where do you think the wolf blood comes from? From wolves poached from the wild.

Stop breeding and supporting the breeding of wolfdogs.

THANK YOU!!!

Years ago we got a puppy from some people who bred malamutes locally. This particular litter was a ‘surprise’ due to the fact that a black lab jumped an impressively high fence to access the female malamute when she was in heat. So, chubby little black and tan puppy, very cute, we have a farm with lots of space for a high energy dog . . ok? Not ok. At the age of 6 he went almost overnight from a very typical-labrador friendly personality to outbursts of bizarre, senseless aggression. We worked with our vet to try to save him, but he rapidly because a danger even to us. When my husband contacted the breeder (because they had asked to get him back if we ever couldn’t keep him) they admitted that they had bred actual wolves into their malamute line. And also that they had had to euthanize his mother at the age of six for massive health problems. It was incredibly shady both that they did that and that they didn’t disclose it when we adopted. I was a whisker away from getting my face torn off (literally) by this dog at one point. He was well-socialized, neutered, and friendly as anything - up until the moment that he wasn’t anymore.

There's a reason that our ancestors spent years dometicating dogs without the need for us to fuck with it by reintroducing the same fucking genes that where intentionally bred out. A wolf belongs with it's pack, as does most any dog with appreciable wolf genetics, and you're a complete dickwad if you're trying to keep one fenced in a backyard. Get a Husky. They look the part and are already hard enough to deal with without the need for wolf social dynamics butting in. Or get a Samoyed if you want a small extra fuzzy polar bear without the whole danger of mauling thing.

I understand petting the big dangerous thing is fun and exciting, and if there's anyone that enjoys petting the big dangerous animal, it's me. But it is a bad idea to try and bring one home with you, like there's a reason a tiger won't use a fucking litter box.

Or a Tamaskan. They look the part even more than huskies but still are 0% wolf :)

FYI tamaskans are generally low-mid content. There are some tam breeders specifically focusing on producing no content dogs but the content is extremely variable in most of these dogs. Tams, blue bays, bourbon shepherds, etc are all wolfdogs. A tam’s pedigree needs to be studied very carefully if someone is specifically looking for a no content dog, because they are very much considered wolfdogs legally. It doesn’t matter if they have a breed name. They’re a very new and still developing breed with open stud books and they still actively outcross to wolfdogs. I believe the code of ethics allows something like 40% total as a sum between the two parents for breeding. Some litters I’ve seen were Embark tested so the exact breakdown of breeds (and wolf content) was known, but like I said there’s lots of variability. There’s sooooo much outcrossing going on in that breed right now I absolutely would not assume any tam has no content until it is proven. Some tams even got into trouble recently and got wolfdogs (and tams specifically) banned from competing at certain events because they were not behaving well.

I kind of want to address some of the other comments here cuz there’s honestly a lot of misinformation about wolf/wolfdog behavior. I’m not trying to start shit, or say that hurr durr wolf is good pet BUT this kind of sweeping generalization about wolfdogs being unpredictably aggressive and two seconds away from snapping isn’t accurate or helpful. And that matters to me because I just brought home my “wolf-a-like” dog (a CsV), and people will 100% think she’s a wolf, wolfdog, or even a coyote. ffs her breeder had a complaint called on her right before I picked Raava up because she was “mistreating her wolf”...by crating her dog. Yeah. People have no clue what actual wolfdogs or wolves look like. So I get kind of touchy about saying all wolfdogs are dangerous/unstable/vicious because that mentality makes it harder on dogs like Raava, who just look the part. Even husky or malamute mixes get incorrectly labeled as wolfdogs. And it’s the fear of wolves/wolfdogs that leads to banning them, and banning them leads to mislabeled dogs getting seized.

Honesty, the biggest problem with wolfdogs is the variability. Not even of content, but of health and temperament. The people above certainly have some striking examples of backyard bred wolfdogs, and I’ve heard some horror stories myself. Just like any shitty breeder, these byb wolfdogs are bred for the coolness factor and to make money, not for health or temperament. And honestly, a good portion of the byb dogs labeled as a wolfdog have little to no content. So regardless of content, you’ve already got people breeding with no regard for the actual stability of the animal or its suitability as a pet. Strike one. Now add in wolf content and that’s a whole extra mess. But content is not as easy as simple punnett square math from biology class. An F1 wolf x dog is easy; 50%. They get half their genes from the wolf parent, and half their genes from the dog parent. But after that? More complicated. Crossing a 50% wolfdog back to a full wolf does not mean you get 75% wolf content. That’s just the average mathematical calculation! An individual from that pairing could get only “dog genes” from the wolfdog, which would also put them at 50% content thanks to all “wolf genes” from the other parent. So all of that can make it really difficult to predict how a wolfdog will look and behave. Even littermates can have different content levels. Of course there are wolfdog breeders that health test, study pedigrees, and carefully select the dogs that they breed, but there’s also way too many that don’t. So there are all these shitty bybs breeding not only unstable dogs, but adding in unknown amounts of wolf content. Plus a lot of them sell low/no content dogs as high content, which is why you get the dummies who say “I had a 99% pure arctic timber wolf with piercing blue eyes that was the best family pet ever!”

Also it is important to note that actively crossing 100% wolves with dogs is actually quite rare. Even the “a wolf hopped my fence and bred my dog!” stories are usually bs. For one, wolves only come into heat once per year, during their breeding season (late winter). Most dog breeds come into heat twice yearly, and it’s not seasonal like it is with wolves. So they won’t necessarily line up. And also, while their behavior is similar, it’s not completely the same. Wolves are extremely territorial toward other canids and will kill other wolves, coyotes, foxes, or even dogs. So there has to be both behavioral and biological compatibility. Wolves really aren’t taken from the wild to breed to dogs, at least not in any kind of well-known or significant numbers (hunting and habitat loss, however, are huge threats to their survival). Wolfdogs are bred to dogs or other wolfdogs and a captive bred (probably “pet”) wolf is going to be much more accessible than a wild caught wolf. There really is far less active addition of 100% pure wolf than shitty breeders would like their buyers to think (again, that 99% “wolfdog” can be sold for a lot more than a husky/GSD mix) and most wolfdogs are quite a few generations removed from actual wolves. While bybs are doing A LOT wrong, it’s really not this picture of snatching wolves from the wild and making them breed with a dog to get a 50/50 cross.

Wolves are also extremely skittish and neophobic. A cornered wolf is absolutely dangerous, but it is extremely rare for them to actually attack humans. Like, crazy rare. As I said, wolves are extremely territorial toward other canids though. They’re obviously also very predatory toward small animals. But I wouldn’t really call them naturally “aggressive”. Their entire social hierarchy depends on NOT hurting their packmates. The snarling and growling displays that make for good TV are called ritualized aggression. It looks scary but the whole point is to avoid serious conflict and injury, because that’s a good way to die in the wild.

Again, you can’t predict which “wolfy” or which “doggy” traits a wolfdog will get. But in general, wolfdogs tend to be prone to small animal aggression, dog aggression (particularly same-sex aggression), and fear related behavior. Most aggressive behavior is rooted in fear, but fear is also avoidance, flight, wariness of strangers, etc. Wolfdogs actually make horrible guard dogs because they tend to be so skittish and flighty. People think of the “big bad wolf” but they’re honestly quite shy animals. Wolfdogs tend to be mouthy, destructive, and incredible escape artists. They may experience “winter wolf syndrome”, which is a period of naturally increased aggressive behavior that happens during the breeding season for wolves (and may or may not occur in wolfdogs). They are more independent than most dogs and very good at problem solving and getting into trouble. Depending on the content and the behavior, they may also need secure outdoor housing constructed. Veterinary care is really the same as a dog, BUT rabies vaccines provide no LEGAL protection for wolfdogs. That means a bite from a wolfdog is potential rabies exposure and the dog could be seized and euthanized for testing. But in terms of actual medical stuff? We treat them like dogs. Actually one of my favorite patients is a low-mid content wolfdog (yes actual wolfdog) and he’s a gem to work with. My coworker also just recently found out that her husky mix does in fact have wolf content (confirmed through DNA testing) and he does not need any changes to his medical care with that discovery. So many wolfdogs end up abandoned because people don’t do their research and/or get scammed on the behavior/content of their animal and aren’t prepared to handle them. Wolfdogs are not easy animals.

The IWC has a good page on wolfdogs.

I’m pro hunting of OVERPOPULATED and invasive species, but trapping.... is literally so fucking unnecessarily cruel. Serial killer behavior.

There’s nothing cruel about well-regulated trapping

Modern day leg-hold traps are designed to hold the animal without harming them. Modern traps have padded and/or off-set jaws that create a firm hold but reduce the pressure so that the animal isn’t injured or in pain. Even more importantly, traps have swivel chains that allow the animal to move freely so that they cannot cause injury or broken bones. Here’s a trapper sticking his hand in his own trap to demonstrate that they don’t hurt the animal;

Many trappers leave remote cameras in front of their traps to record how the animal behaves. After an initial struggle, most animals settle down and it’s not uncommon for animals to fall asleep while in the trap. Good trappers check their traps every day, sometimes twice a day, to ensure the animal isn’t left in the trap too long. Also if the wrong animal gets caught they can easily be released without harm. I’ve even seen footage of deer accidentally getting trapped and being released unharmed. Given how fragile deer legs are it really shows how harmless these traps are. Here’s a wolf being released unharmed;

Traps are useful as many of the species target by trappers are very elusive or may be in habitats where shooting isn’t possible or less effective. Trapping also isn’t easy and it takes a lot of skill to set a trap correctly so that the animal will get caught. Wild animals are smart and will easily avoid traps if they’re not set right. These traps are even used by biologists to capture study animals as they’re considered very humane.

Fur trapping is particularly beneficial to species traditionally seen as pests, such as coyotes and foxes. When an animal is treated as a pest it’s ruthlessly killed by farmers and landowners who don’t want it around. When that animal is given value as a furbearer it gives landowners a reason to be more tolerant and keep them around. Regulated fur trapping benefits wildlife hugely. 

I would legitimately love to see some studies on the ethics/welfare of trapping. Cortisol levels, incidence of capture myopathy, etc. Not a jab at either side, I’m legitimately curious. I honestly don’t like the idea of trapping; I imagine an animal stuck and unable to flee is incredibly stressed. But I don’t have data to support any kind of arguments for or against trapping. Obvs not ok with the kind that damage feet, and I have 0 issue with trapping for research purposes. Not sure if such studies exist but definitely something to look into.

Woolly wolf spotted in Nepal is likely a new species

April 28, 2016 - By analyzing the animal’s poop, scientists provide more evidence it’s not a subspecies of the gray wolf.

Pausing at a clearing, a sudden streak of black against the carpet of white snow moved in the corner of Madhu Chetri’s eye.

It was 2004, and Chetri, now a Ph.D. student at Norway’s Hedmark University College, was trekking through the roof of the world: Nepal’s Annapurna Conservation Area.

Looking up, he caught the gaze of a wolf, who regarded him with curiosity.

“I was struck by these golden yellow eyes. They were so bright. I was so excited,” says Chetri, who was exploring the Upper Mustang region as part of his conservation work. 

The area had plenty of feral dogs, but Chetri knew right away that this big, woolly creature was no dog.

It was the Himalayan wolf, which had never before been seen in Nepal.

Searching for Scat

Scientists first identified the Himalayan wolf (Canis lupus chanco), thought to be a subspecies of the gray wolf, about 200 years ago.

It was known to live in India and Tibet, but never Nepal.

Not long after Chetri saw his wolf, two studies came out that challenged the idea that the Himalayan wolf was a subspecies. At the DNA level, the studies claimed, the wolf was so different that it deserved its own species name.

Chetri already had a feeling this was the case: The animal he saw was smaller and much leaner than gray wolves, which live in Europe and North America. It also had white patches on its chest and throat, which are not seen in gray wolves.

And he’d always wanted to know more about the beautiful canine that had so captivated him 10 years earlier.

So Chetri began to search for its most accessible DNA source: poop. He returned to Nepal and looked for wolf scat between May and September, when weather was the driest and the feces would be best preserved. 

Lone Wolf

He managed to collect a total of six samples and could extract DNA from five of them. One of his samples was from a feral dog, leaving him with four specimens.

To be consistent with the two previous studies published in 2004 and 2006, Chetri sequenced the specimens’ mitochondrial DNA, which is inherited from an animal’s mother.

Working with a group of scientists from India and Nepal, Chetri extracted and sequenced the DNA in the lab. His work confirmed the two earlier studies: The Himalayan wolf was significantly different from any other wolves and is likely a distinct species.

In fact, the genetic data revealed that Himalayan wolves have been distinct from other wolves for at least 800,000 years, according to the results, which were published April 21 in the journal ZooKeys.

Chetri and colleagues propose that the animal be named the Himalayan wolf, although they haven’t yet proposed a formal species name.

He also hopes it brings attention to the plight of the critically endangered species, which is thought to number fewer than 350 individuals.

“I hope that this work will create more attention for this wolf, since there are lots of conflicts with local farmers and livestock,” Chetri says. “If farmers can help see the value of this wolf, they might be less inclined to kill it.”

Surprisingly Diverse

Klaus-Peter Koepfli, a conservation biologist at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, says the study is important for two major reasons.

The first is the growing evidence of the Himalayan wolf as a unique species, says Koepfli, who was not involved with the research. 

The other is establishing that these wolves live in the Upper Mustang region. “It provides solid evidence of living wolves in the area. Even if it’s just one individual, it’s important because they’re there,” he says.

“There’s a lot more biodiversity than we thought there was.”

Source