They are the people who need to understand the positive side of these animals. There is also another reason I will continue to use the words “Wolf Hybrid” although its not quite correct, since dogs and wolves have the same genetic makeup. Since I’ve been around these animals for over 10 years now, I cannot count on one hand the people who have “wolfdogs” that even know, or care what the dog is in their animal. They only want to talk about the “wolf” in the dog. Its unfair to the dog, and its unfair to the “wolfdog.”
Anytime anyone mixes dog with wolf it is of utmost importance to know the complete background of the dog. If people are going to take a perfect animal such is the wolf, and add dog to it without knowing if the dog has genetic defects or any other problems in its background, they are going to ruin the wolf. Captive raised wolves did not start out with genetic defects until people started adding dogs.
The more wolf bred into the canine, the more wolf behavior and wolf looks it will exhibit. Wolf hybrids can range from 1% to 99% wolf in them. The lower the wolf content, the more dog like it will look and act. Wolves are shy by nature and are afraid of man. Feral dogs running at large are more dangerous than a wolf, since they are not afraid of man.
Wolf hybrids can be a challenge to own for the first time dog owner. I would suggest getting a northern breed dog first before a low content wolf hybrid. People who jump in and purchase a wolf hybrid without knowing anything about them get frustrated and many times the dog ends up being a throw away. There are too many groups, web sites and other places that portray a wolf hybrid as a pet.
Wolf hybrids are not pets. They are a wonderful canine with the right kind of owner. They can be a catastrophe for the wrong type of owner. If you are interested in owning a wolf hybrid, I suggest you do a couple years of research before you try one out for yourself. You should visit other wolf hybrid owners with wolf hybrids that are verifiable.
There are too many owners and breeders who have shepherd/malamute/husky mixes that don’t even have any wolf content in them at all. But they will sell the pups as wolf hybrids to try to tack on an additional few hundred bucks to sell them to anyone who will believe they are wolf hybrids.
Continued: The Misrepresentation of Wolf Hybrids and Responsible Breeding
