From the original article:
Discussions of wolf hybrids often become heated emotional exchanges between opposing parties, each with their own sets of data, statistics, and information... Whatever opinion one has, the presence of wolf hybrids has forced more and more communities to become embroiled in the controversy that continues to surround these animals.
Getting back to wolf crosses..The fact remainds-- these crosses dont make good pets... do some research and then tell me you want one in the backyard next to your kids.
Speaking from experience, or simply what you have read?
Much to that first line quoted above being represented here methinks...
Just thought I'd toss in my two peso's from a rather experienced perspective:
I have enjoyed the Companionship of 3 generations of wolf hybrids, in all likelihood soon to be 4. In my case I was exposed to this breeding before I made the decision to do so, so very much knew what I was getting into. Not some sort of "
machismo" thing for me, but a sincere love of the animal, and the understanding of just what type of
Companion they could be.
The first was a tested 50% female, acquired from a known Friend and breeder. Crossed with Alaskan Malamute, Sheba eventually grew to staggering proportions at 140 pounds. Extremely intelligent, much more so than any other breed or mix I had run across. And I was (and am) quite familiar with many. She tried, as most of these are likely to, to test my role in the dominance issue... Once, and
Once only. From that moment on, she was extremely loyal, extremely loving, and well knew her place between the two of us. However, even with the best training (I have a strong family history regarding training of large dogs - Shepherds, Pointers, Setters, etc) loads of attention, and a huge fenced acreage to roam, unfortunately she was also extremely defensive of both myself and what she considered
our property. This meant that I had to keep an eye on her all of the time, and no, no children were ever allowed near unsupervised (although she never did anything untoward in this regard, simply precautionary on my part). I recall thinking at that time that perhaps 50% was just a tad too much of the wild influence.
One day I came home from work to find an extremely determined Airedale had somehow managed to tunnel into Sheba's over-sized chain-link enclosure (even though the fencing was buried 2.5 feet around the enclosure) when she was in heat.
Ouch! Too Late!
I allowed the litter to be brought into the world, and with the mother's untimely passing, kept one of the pups (now 25% wolf) and gave the other 3 to rancher Buddies. In all cases, these proved to be some of the best dogs both my Friends and I ever ran into. The 3 that went to the ranches swiftly became working dogs in every sense of the word. Herding cattle, tending sheep, and watching after the ranch yards. None strayed, none were aggressive except in pursuit of their chosen tasks, and all lived incidence-free long and healthy lives. In every case, their owners noted their extreme intelligence, willingness and speed at picking up training desires.
Ceasar, the blond male I kept was in the same league. At that time I lived in Southern Alberta, attending to education, and spending all my time not engaged in that pursuing hunting and/or fishing activities.
At just shy of a year, I decided to attempt to turn this hybrid into a pheasant dog. I could go on in volumes as to how that turned out, but suffice it to say he was the envy of all my family and buddies - folks who owned German Shorthairs, English Pointers, and Springer Spaniels. Without exception, he showed the "
professional" breeds up, yet managed to work very well right alongside them. Never an incidence of untoward behaviour nor aggression for his entire lengthy span. One of the very best, and I recall thinking that by accident, I had gotten the mix about right.
As the
Old Boy approached 14 years, I desperately wanted to keep his line going. Living in the Arctic at that point, it wasn't tough to find another female for him. This time an Alaskan Husky that had been crossed back to wolf 2 generations back.
Siqu (See-Coo -
Blue Ice for her vivid blue eyes) was her name, and true to some of the husky related working dogs, she wasn't as brilliant as I had become used to for the mix. But, her and the
Old Boy raised a very fine litter, one of which was a blond, blued-eyed male which exhibited a lot of his Pa's characteristics. That one I named
Munuqsii (Mun-Uck-See:
Camp Watcher) and he became my constant companion. Unfortunately we lost his father shortly following his entry to the world, so were pleased to keep something of him with us. I was immediately happy to see confirmed the intelligence factor (never know what would develop with mom's status in that regard), and we roamed the vast and great outdoors on the Arctic with abandon. Munuq-
Matt is what my Buddies suggested should have been his name, and over me he is still extremely watchful. My
Early Distant Warning system he has met with grizzlies, black bears and cougars, each time handling the situation with almost unbelievable calm and insight, never aggression. Both he and his father before him could
absolutely be trusted with livestock, with other dogs, with humans and children. Never an incident, never a need to wonder.
Munuqsii at 13 years old:
Now, Munuqsii is fast approaching 15 years, and slowing down a fair bit. Still wanders the rivers with me, and is still amongst the first I consult when considering doing that. But once again, the writing is on the wall - the bane of all who decide to embrace these wonderful creatures, to bring them into our lives, with the understanding that eventually one day, we will be saddened as we part ways. Simply the way of it. Tough, but understood.
The spring past Munuqsii's mother Siqu left us in exactly that fashion. She had a wonderful life, and it was devastating - especially to my Wife whom the hound had bonded to. Even more so for Munuqsii, who had her around his entire life for canine companionship. Witnessing him withdraw from life, become extremely despondent and appear to be giving it all up, we decided to acquire a new companion both for him and ourselves. The choice this time was again a 50% Arctic Wolf, 25% Shepherd and 25% Lab cross.
Asiulu (Ah-See-Loo:
Probably) is now 10 months. Again, very
very intelligent. Standoffish at times,
aloof perhaps a better word. Initial training was both good and bad, as she very quickly understood what was requested, but often decided only to comply when
she wished to. Months of constant handling, months of training complete with professional aid (as much for the Missus as it is the the hound) have paid off, and she is turning into a well disciplined, well behaved and drop dead gorgeous animal! The complete
antithesis of aggressive, she is far more likely to mug someone in her exuberance to be friendly! She is just finishing her first precocious heat (much to the denied
Old One's chagrin), and indicated no problem behaviour even when in the racks of hormone inflexion this brings. I very much suspect she will make a fantastic companion for both our human, as well as canine Family. And, suspect strongly she will throw some excellent offspring when allowed to eventually breed with our male.
Asiulu at 3 months:
Asiulu at 7 months:
In my wandering life I have met a great many wolf mixes. They
ARE high maintenance. They are extremely intelligent. They absolutely require a
lot of room, even more exercise, and even more than that -
attention. The vast majority of those I have run across that exhibited problem behaviour were denied some, or even all of that. Those who owned them would likely have had serious problems whatever breed they decided to acquire, and especially so when in the case of a demanding breed, such as the wolf hybrid definitely is. IMO, the problems were exactly due to the owners. As in the case of parents, not all are cut out to do so.
All that said, I have loved these animals as
Family. Will continue to seek their companionship for as long as I live. By far, the most loyal, the most intelligent, and the finest companions imaginable.
They obviously aren't for everyone, as they do come with some seriously high demands. But to suggest they "
don't make good pets" is in error IMHO. No more so than many other breeds of larger dogs. It
IS very much all in what
YOU are prepared to bring to the table.
Cheers,
Nog
Author
Topic: Dangerous dog breed discussion (Read 26649 times)