Wolfdog

The wolfdog is seen by most people as a cross between a wolf and a dog. An animal with the wolf's characteristics, living as a domesticated dog. Some of the more common breeds of dog crossed with wolves are the German shepherd , Siberian Husky, Alaskan malamute, samoyed, and Eskimo dog.

When one of these breeds mate with a wolf, the off spring are not automatically half wolf and half dog. The characteristics of the animal depend on the number of genes it inherits from each of it's parents.

Having a wolfdog as a pet

Wolfdogs do not make good pets. They need total dedication and a great understanding of the behaviour and needs of a wolf. A couple of walks a day and a pat on the head are completely useless to an animal like this and unless you are thoroughly committed to bringing up one of these animals, don't even go there or you'll be tearing your hair out and evicting your wolfdog in no time.

Many wolfdogs end up abandoned because their owners cannot cope with them once they grow into mature animals at two or three years old. Wolfdogs can be very destructive if left alone. They can destroy furniture with their powerful jaws and dig their way out of just about any contained yard. House training may become impossible as he leaves his scent through urine and faeces all over the place.

Can you tell a Wolfdog when you see one?

In a word,no. There is no way to tell a wolfdog from his looks or behaviour. Indeed there does not seem to be any test to distinguish between a dog or a wolfdog. The only chance you may have is through his pedigree.

Safety and the wolfdog

Dogs in general bite an estimated 4.7 million people a year in the US. Wolfdog owners claim their wolfdogs must be handled sensibly and are no more antagonistic to people than breeds like pit bulls or rottweilers, who have the worst reputations for aggressive tendancies toward people.

Wolfdogs do not act quite like the normal domestic dog. They tend to be more independent-minded and less submissive to authority and training. So there is always a risk that a big wolfdog could do harm to a small child, a running child may even stimulate a predatory response in the wolfdog.

The Law regarding the wolfdog

The U.S. probably has the largest population of wolfdogs, perhaps up to half a million. Laws relating to wolfdogs vary from state to state, from no regulation, to allowing wolfdogs under permit, to outright prohibition. Wolfdogs are classified either as domesticated, wild, or native animals, partly depending on their wolf to dog percentage.

What's all the fuss

The cross breeding of wolves and dogs produces fertile offspring. This is strong confirmation that wolves and dogs are the same species. However, some experts maintain that wolves and dogs are sufficiently different to classify them as separate species, respectively Canis lupus and Canis familiaris.

Other experts say that differences are negligible and consequently dogs should be classified as a subspecies of wolf, namely Canis lupus familiaris. In fact, genetic scrutiny shows that wolves and dogs are 99.8% genetically identical.

Whichever argument you agree with will affect your idea of the wolfdog. For if all wolves are dogs, and all dogs are wolves, then the existance of a wolfdog means nothing at all.

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