Information

Lupine has a minion!

Lark the Kaspian

Lupine
Legacy Name: Lupine

The

Chibi Telenine
Owner:

Faune

Age: 17 years, 6 months, 3 weeks

Born: August 23rd, 2008

Adopted: 1 year, 2 months, 1 week ago

Adopted: January 3rd, 2025

This pet has been nominated for the Pet Spotlight!

Statistics

Level: 76
Strength: 129
Defense: 22
Speed: 22
Health: 22
HP: 22/22
Intelligence: 107
Books Read: 96
Food Eaten: 0
Job: Professional Lab Cleaner

Wolf Dogs

What is a Wolfdog?
Though often used interchangeably, wolfdogs and wolf hybrids are not the same things. A wolf hybrid is the first generation offspring of the mating of a full dog and a full wolf. Their "wolf content" may vary, but will typically be around 50%. A wolfdog on the other hand is any wolf hybrid or later generation individual that has both domesticated dog DNA and wolf DNA. Their percentage or content (of wolf DNA) may vary anywhere from 1% to 99%. All wolf hybrids are wolfdogs, but not all wolfdogs are wolf hybrids!
The most common way to determine a wolfdog is by using a DNA test such as Embark. Phenotyping - hypothesizing breed based on appearance - is sometimes used to guesstimate if a dog is a wolfdog, but is not considered confirmation since there are many breeds that have wolf traits and that can be combined to create wolflike-looking offspring, especially northern breeds such as huskies and malamutes.

Why do Wolfdogs Exist?
It is rumored that traditional wolfdog breeding in the USA was born in Hollywood out of the need to create "wolves" for the silver screen. Wolves (and many wolfdogs) are instinctively wary of humans. This made wolves poor actors for films and TV shows. And many breeds, though having some similar appearances, didn't cut it when it came to selling the idea of a "wolf" to the audience. By breeding for the look of a wolf and the temperament of a dog, Hollywood's animal trainers could provide a workable solution that sold the story on the screen.
There are several recognized "breeds" of wolfdog based on location, such as the Czechoslovakian Wolfdog and the Saarloos Wolfdog. Both of which were developed by crossing German shepherds and wolves to combine the endurance of the wolf with the desired traits of the German shepherd, thus improving the working ability of the dogs.
Modern wolfdog breeding is almost exclusively based on popularity and thus demand - wolfdogs are beautiful and exotic and many people want them. Unfortunately, it is estimated that upwards of 65% of wolfdogs born in the US each year are surrendered, rehomed, or euthanized by the time they reach three years of age. The #1 reason for this staggering statistic is behavior.

Wolfdog Behavior
One of the key challenges wolfdogs and their guardians face is: wolfdogs are neither wolves nor dogs, and because of this they have complex combinations of behaviors that are adapted neither for the wild or for the human world. Some of the more common behavioral challenges experienced with wolfdogs are neophobia (fear of new things), separation anxiety, destructive behaviors, extreme fear of and avoidance of humans, intense resource guarding, same-sex or intraspecies aggression, and remarkable drive to escape and roam. Rehoming or euthanasia is a painfully common outcome because people often attain a wolfdog as a cute puppy and think "they have a great temperament" and "not THIS individual" while failing to accept that most undesired behaviors appear as the wolfdog hits key developmental stages between 6 months and 2 years. While this is also true for domesticated dogs, the behavioral shifts are more extreme in wolfdogs and the behaviors more resistant to change due to their genetic roots. What would be considered an unhealthy and maladaptive in domesticated dogs may be considered "to be expected" in a wolfdog thanks to their blended genetics. These challenges, along with the high physical, mental, emotional, and social needs make wolfdogs poorly suited for most homes.

Risks to Wolfdogs
Euthanasia and surrender to a shelter (wolfdogs traditionally do very poorly in shelters and are often euthanatized because of it) are not the only risks wolfdogs face. Wolfdogs are not legal to own in all places. Take the United States as an example; it is illegal in nine states to have a dog with any wolf content, and there are regulations around guardianship of these animals in seventeen more states. Unfortunately, this does not stop people from acquiring them. When reported, these animals are often confiscated and "destroyed" (euthanized). They lose their lives simply for existing somewhere people arbitrarily (in the grand scheme) decided they were not welcome. Wolfdogs are also often targets from disgruntled neighbors - especially in ranching areas - and improper containment plus their habit of escaping containment and roaming means they are at higher risk of being harmed that domesticated dogs.