Should I follow my dreams of owning a Wolf Dog or not?

[sarajeku]

I was also reading just because the state laws may allow you to own a Wolf Dog doesn't mean the County laws will and County Laws will always prevail over the state laws?

Yep, that's how it works..
And then be sure to check your city's laws as well.

[Laughing Hyena]

I was also reading just because the state laws may allow you to own a Wolf Dog doesn't mean the County laws will and County Laws will always prevail over the state laws?

Yep, that's how it works..
And then be sure to check your city's laws as well.

I see.. alot of work to own a Wolf Dog but I'm sure its well worth it in the end!

[Laughing Hyena]

Also I have another important question what do you feed Wolfdogs? Do you need to have a supply of Venison with you or chicken or steaks? I heard Wolfdogs are fine with high protein Dog Food like Blue Wilderness? Do I have to cook the food or feed it raw like a wolf would eat in the wild?

[Cindy23323]

Some people like to feed strictly raw. You do not cook it, cooking it will take out a lot of the vitamins in the meat and make bones brittle which can injure the animal. You feed it uncooked.

Some will feed kibble along with raw, which is how I feed mine. They get Diamond naturals extreme athlete in free feeders and I normally feed raw chicken quarters.

And some feed only kibble.

[TamanduaGirl]

Would you recommend starting out with a regular full bred Siberian Husky before taking the dive into a Wolf Hybrid?

I saw it was mentioned that huskies are difficult and still destructive. A friend has some and he even has to have metal furniture because they chewed up all the wood furniture(of course some more time training them might help too but still). They also take any opportunity to escape. They also will steal and eat anything remotely food related which can get them into big trouble.

But why I wanted to write wasn't to restate that but add that many landlords have huskies on their not allowed list, due to being destructive not dangerous. If a landlord does allow them he probably just doesn't really know about the breed enough yet. Even renting houses my friend would have to try and talk the landlord into allowing huskies for an extra deposit and promise of paying for anything they damaged.

[Juska]

I forgot to mention that in my earlier post, too. Akitas and Huskies are typically on the "no-no" list for apartments, and even some home insurance companies won't cover you because they're claimed to be "destructive and/or dangerous". While the "dangerous" part is almost never true...the destructive part can be.

And unlike that "Most Destructive Dog" list that's floating around the internet, Huskies are destructive because it's more part of their nature...whereas the #2 spot on that list is taken by the Chihuahua, which is probably a direct result of quite a few Chihuahua owners not setting any boundaries with their dogs (zero positive training and rewarding bad behavior, "Little Dog Syndrome"), rather than them being naturally destructive (or maybe I'm wrong).

[RabbleFox]

Huskies also have pretty high prey drives. They have been known to kill little dogs at dog parks simply because the little dog was running around and activated their prey drive. Similar to a wolf, I'd imagine. I would never own a Husky and let him play with smaller animals in an unsupervised area. And if I knew my Husky would kick into prey drive at a moments notice, he would never be allowed to access them, even smaller dogs. Its a dangerous situation that is easily avoided. Playmates of a similar size are best.

Akitas can be Dog Aggressive. Just a heads up on that. Its part of the breed and you don't really know if your puppy Akita will turn into a dog friendly adult or a non-dog friendly adult. With maturity comes temperament change, often. Dog aggressive doesn't mean people aggressive. They can be wonderful family pets and be very good with children whilst not really liking other dogs. Wolves and wolfdogs of higher content aren't really meant to be chilling with the neighborhood dogs really, anyhow.

Both dog breeds (and many others) should be crate trained. This will SIGNIFICANTLY lower the likelihood of destruction to furniture, door frames, and steel toed boots. They both need proper exercise which will also decrease the likelihood of destructive behaviors. Both can be really stubborn but respond well to positive reinforcement training. Both can be escape artists. Good fences and supervise when outside are needed! They can live in apartments but you must devote ample time to them and make sure your landlord is ok with them.

I think either is a good way to prep for a wolfdog though nothing but the real thing will be the true test!

[NoirIKnight]

You should bring your questions to this forum
http://www.wolfdogforum.com/.
The best thing you can do now as far as owning any type of wolf dog is educate yourself. I do agree that the closest dog you could find to emulate some wolfdog behavior would be a husky or malamute. In fact you may want to look into these breeds
http://alaskannoblecd.weebly.com/
http://www.bluebayshepherds.com/
2 breeds that have wolf blood in them.

[sarajeku]

I love the agouti ANCD! They're SO beautiful. She has a pretty long waiting list though, from what I hear.

[NoirIKnight]

You get what you pay for.

[Laughing Hyena]

I was doing more research and apparently Coyotes can breed with Dogs too and make a species called Coydogs or Dogotes? How different is owning a Coydog from a Wolfdog? Would you have to treat them both differently because I'm sure Coyote behavior is way different than a wolf's behavior and no I don't plan on getting a Coydog now instead I'm just curious about them.

[RabbleFox]

I was doing more research and apparently Coyotes can breed with Dogs too and make a species called Coydogs or Dogotes? How different is owning a Coydog from a Wolfdog? Would you have to treat them both differently because I'm sure Coyote behavior is way different than a wolf's behavior and no I don't plan on getting a Coydog now instead I'm just curious about them.

Coydogs are smaller and rarer. There aren't a lot of purposefully bred coydogs making them... random? I wouldn't purchase one unless I knew who the dog bit was and who the coyote bit was. Generally, from what I understand, the coydog pups are an oops litter when a bitch in heat is mounted by a dog coyote.

[sarajeku]

I do know of one coydog "breeder." The mother is a coyote and the father is usually a border collie.
http://www.mindstorm.ca/coydog/#coydogs2013

They don't all look much like a coyote (tipped ears, blue eyes, etc) .. though the brown ones could be agouti. There aren't many pictures or videos of them as adults. The video of Fenrix impresses me.
I want him.


I don't know as much about coydogs, although I have worked with one. She is incredibly friendly once she gets to know you. She has a VERY high prey drive, and although she doesn't mind a leash being on her, she doesn't really walk well on one. I'm sure with enough work, she'd be fine on leash though. She doesn't do well with other dog. AT ALL. And she would attack a wolfdog, given the chance (she's tried). I love how fluffy she gets in the winter. She's so poofy.
This video was taken in late winter/early spring I think.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTSNTaYf2kc

[Laughing Hyena]

I just want to say thanks all for giving me info but I think I'm just going to settle with a Siberian Husky or German shepherd later down the road instead.

[Ash]

Good luck. Whenever you get your little puppy (regardless of breed/species) be sure to post lots of pictures!