I owned a low content wolf hybrid and I would like to share my experience with everyone and talk about them a little bit. Wolf dogs are not for everyone, especially if you rescue one, they will come with a lot of behavioral problems, just like dogs. Getting a wolfdog was not an out of the blue decision for me. I had just lost my father in 2011 and I always admired wolves. I was also looking for maybe a German shepherd to add to our family.
We had a golden retriever and I wanted a companion for him. I always liked white wolf the most. So anyway, while living in Florence, Oregon at the time, I looked on Craigslist. By pure coincidence, there was an ad for a white wolf looking for a new home… My husband and I talked about it a lot and decided to go see him, to see how it would go.
When we got there, Khuno was living loose on the 1 acre property the lady had. He was very wild. His family decided to rehome him because the wife was pregnant.. When I saw Khuno I immediately felt excited. He was looking at me from afar, studying me with his head lowered. I got down on my knees and extended my hand out.
According to the foster lady, I was the first one that Khuno got close to. He sniffed my fingers, then moved back and trotted back behind the trees. We could not catch him because he would not come close to anyone and it would have taken a long time to get him close enough to get a hold of him. The lady told us to come back the next weekend, that she would coax him with canned food. The next weekend she told us she managed to get a hold of him and asked us if we wanted to come pick him up. Which we did. Khuno was very underweight. He had very bad diarrhea and we could see his bones through his coat. I think the depression from his family rehoming him was too much for him.
He was a shy dog and got along well with Shiva. He was very smart, had a lot of energy. He was young and had a lot of energy to burn so he would often slip through my hands when it was time to put him outside (We didn’t have a fully fenced backyard) then would bolt in the forest behind our house to go run a marathon, then would come back with a big smile on his face, panting.
He scared me so much when he did that and he made me cry a lot too, thinking we lost him, every time he would do that. Honestly he was a really smart animal and he just needed mental stimulation. He taught me a lot about wolfdogs. He was the perfect addition to our family at that time, I did not work and had all the time to take care of him. He also took my mind off of thinking about my dad since I was very busy trying to make this work with him.
We moved a while after, to Salem. I started getting more social on Facebook to try to learn more about wolfdog. I wanted to do my best to make him happy. I joined some facebook groups like “wolfdog for beginners” which was not the best experience. I thought I could ask questions to learn more about the difference between a dog and a wolfdog, but was met with people who laughed at my questions, making fun of me. Of course I got offended and was met with criticism for defending myself and not liking being made fun of. So I left.
They seemed to be a clique of people not liking outsiders. I met more people and stumbled about a person who was in rescue for a wolfdog. She talked to me and taught me a lot, even when at some point, I thought I was in way over my head with Khuno’s behaviors, until she told me that patience and understanding is the key with wolfdogs. That is because they are very sensitive animals and she was right ! From that moment, everything changed. I took Khuno and Shiva to the dog park to socialize them and Khuno was much more well behaved. A tired dog is a good dog !
Another person I met in Salem helped me with Khuno, but she thought I had gotten him just because I like wolves… which couldn’t be further from the truth, as you all read. Years passed, Khuno matured and was starting to look more and more wolfy in appearance. We took him to many different places to hike. I brought him to the dog park every day and he loved seeing his doggy friends there. He was always excited when he would see them, acting like an excited young pup. He would bark sometimes but mostly would howl. He never barked very much, he was a very quiet animal for the most part.
How to give a wolfdog medication
The easiest way for us to give him his medication was to hide it in his favorite treat. Sometimes he would know that it was hidden in it so we would trick him by throwing a treat in the air, so he wouldn’t have time to think and just swallow it, followed by another piece of treat WITH the medication in it. That was what worked best for us.
Where are wolfdog legal
Low, mid, high content wolfdog
Low content : While the specific ranges of what is considered to be high-content, mid-content, and low-content vary dependent on the source, low-content animals are typically considered to be those individuals whose genome contains less than 50% wolf DNA.
Mid Content :
Between 50%–75%
High Content :
Above 75% wolf content.
Honestly, if you truly want to know what content your wolfdog is, just do the Embark test. Don’t rely on sites giving you descriptions of what such content should or shouldn’t look like, unless your animal comes from a VERY reputable breeder. There are only a handful of them that can actually be trusted. Every individual is different, depending on which genes were activated. Your animal might look very wolfy while only being a low content wolfdog, vice versa. This can be true for low and mid content wolfdogs. A high content wolfdog will, and always will look like an almost pure wolf.
Don’t encourage puppy mills please ! If the breeder bred their females more than once a year or even every year, then usually it is what we call a puppy mill. Breeding takes a very hard toll on a female’s health. Once they bred them a lot, the breeder will usually get rid of the breeding pair and just keep on breeding the puppies from the breeding pair he got rid of. A good breeder should also take back their pup for a partial refund.
Best DNA test
The best DNA test for dogs and wolfdog is Embark, no doubt about it. As more people submit their test every year, the database grows larger, the more accurate it gets. The cost is about 140$ dollar. It’s pricey but can give you that piece of mind and it also lets you know of some health problems your animal might have or get in the future.
Wolfdog dont travel good
A lot of wolfdogs don’t travel well because they don’t like changes. They get anxiety and that is really bad for their health. If you must travel with your animal, make sure you sedate them before traveling. That will keep your animal calm during travel.
Are wolf dogs more aggressive than dogs? My honest answer is NO. It all depends how you raise your animal and how much socialization you did from a very early age. While i would not bring a high content wolfdog do the dog park, lower content can actually do well and enjoy playing with other dogs. It’s not true that they are more likely to bite, be super aggressive or dominant or alpha. In fact, if you observe their playstyle you will notice that wolfdog play a lot more like cats than dogs.
They are extremely good at giving warnings to other dogs, if something bothers them, telling them that they don’t appreciate what the dog is doing or to simply correct a ill mannered dog. They will snap, growl, bare their teeth and try anything they can before they bite a dog. My wolfdog NEVER bite another dog, but my golden retriever did, plenty of times. Wolfdog are predictable, dogs are not. You have to be observant and watch for body language.
When i brought Khuno to the dog park, especially in his young years, he would be very dominant, especially towards very large dogs. It would look super aggressive to anyone who don’t know anything about wolfdog. He looked like he was biting the other dog aggressively while he was trying to dominate them because he was young. He never bite down to the skin, drew blood or injured another animals. This is not just wolfdogs, it’s ANY dogs in general if you have ever seen dog fights at the dog park.
Usually dogs WILL bite each other and one will end up having to go to the vet. I’m not saying wolf dogs can’t bite, but they are less likely to, than a dog. Khuno trying to dominate bigger dogs than him, looked awful. I often had to intervene even if i didn’t want to, because i knew he would never truly hurt another dog. Often times, people start screaming, pulling their dogs off, instead of letting the animals figure it out. Dogs and wolfdogs are very good, better than us, at figuring out their doggy thing in the canine world. They have for thousands of years, without our help.
At first, when something with another dog would happen, I would get annoyed at the other owner for being mad at Khuno and would try to defend him, so I was called overprotective, when in reality, I just wish people would let their animals be just that, animals. Nowadays it seems that we cannot let our dogs be dogs. Maybe it’s the misconception people
Do wolfdog shed a lot ? They shed twice a year, just like dogs. No more, no less.
Can you train a wolfdog ? Yes, they are extremely intelligent, but also very stubborn. Wolfdog do not live to please you, unlike dogs.
Are wolfdog good with kids ? Just like with dogs, never leave a wolfdog with young kids, unsupervised. Always teach your kids to ask to pet an animal first. Some animal do not like being reach out to by strangers, and some animal just do not tolerate younger kids. Wolfdogs are more mature than dogs in general and might views kids as “unsubordinated puppies”, therefore are less tolerant of kids. I never had a problem with Khuno being around very calm kids.
How long to they live ? They have the same lifespan as dogs, except usually shorter in the wild.
Are wolfdog good with other animals ? If raised around other animals from a young age, yes. Their prey drive is the same as a dog, not more or less. It depends on each individual animal.
Wolfdog diet Same as dogs. Victor dogs food or taste of the wild are good kibbles. Raw meat is fine too. DO NOT cook the meat ! It will destroy the dog’s natural enzyme to break down food and will eventually destroy your animal’s enamel and rot their teeth. Trust me, i know from experience.
Should you vaccinate a wolfdog ? Yes, give them the same vaccination as dogs.
Are wolfdog more sensitive to anesthesia ? No. Dogs can be as well. If you do the embark test it can let you know before you neuter or spay your animals, if they have anesthesia sensitivity. While it is really rare, they can have it, just like dogs.
Are wolfdog good guard dog ? Absolutely not. They are very timid around strangers and will most likely hide.
Are wolfdog okay in a house Yes but most prefer to be outside, especially when we heat our house in the winter, with their thick coat, they prefer the outdoor.
Can a wolfdog be housebroken Yes but it’s much more difficult than a dog. They are very stubborn animals.
