Cutting Away the Wide Net of Wolfdog Misinformation

For those considering a new wolfdog,or even for people just curious about wolfdogs, proper research can be perplexing as a result copious amounts of misinformation, conflicting information, opinions from people who have no significant wolfdog experience and even malicious or misleading information set forth by professionals and government officials. Getting down to the truth is no small feat and requires understanding of how misinformation is being promoted and,most importantly, how to spot misinformation. Whether the false information is spread from ignorance, irresponsibility or malice, this article will show you how to ask the right questions and get real answers.

There are millions of people online who have opinions about wolfdogs; your objective is to separate those with extensive, first hand experience from those who do not have extensive, first hand experience.I would recommend gathering research information ONLY from those who have owned wolfdogs themselves. There is no substitute for the experience of living with wolfdogs in your home. No degree or job can provide an individual with the knowledge and experience that comes from living with them everyday. This brings to mind an article I recently read about wolfdogs with quotes from a licensed veterinarian from Virginia Tech Animal hospital, Dr. Mark Freeman. The article states that Dr. Freeman has studied ( wolf) hybrids “for years.” The use of the term “wolf hybrid” initially caught my attention because the animals in question were wolfdogs, not wolf hybrids. I was suspicious about how a veterinarian who has studied wolfdogs for years could be confused about basic, day 1 terminology. A wolf hybrid is an animal that has one pure wolf parent and one dog parent,known as an F1 wolf hybrid. These animals are exceedingly rare and almost impossible to find. If the animal does not have a pure wolf parent, it is a wolfdog. The U.S. has an abundance of wolfdogs, not wolf hybrids.The improper terminology was my first clue. I went to work researching Dr. Freeman. I found his biography, no mention of wolfdogs. His LinkedIn profile lists his research interests, wolfdogs were not listed among them.The colleges he attended do not have any research or courses pertaining to wolfdogs. I found no evidence of Dr. Freeman studying “wolf hybrids” anywhere.Playing devils advocate, perhaps he meant that he had read books about them? I wondered if he owned wolfdogs. No, he owns 15 small breed dogs that he describes by saying “all 15 of them together wouldn’t make one labrador.” Despite being a licensed veterinarian, I found no credible evidence suggesting that he would qualify to give expert advice on wolfdogs. His next comments descended further into mythology.

“Confining them is nearly impossible. Creating containment that will keep them contained is incredibly challenging.” Take notice of the vague and subjective language that was used. Nearly impossible? MILLIONS of American wolfdog owners keep their wolfdogs properly contained every day of the year. Wolfdog escapes are so uncommon that it typically makes the news when one escapes. Then Dr.Freeman goes on to say “If these animals have been raised with a human and they perceive that human being as a pack mate, when they reach maturity, they may start challenging the human.” Now I’m certain, the good doctor doesn’t appear to know anything about wolfdogs.Wolfdogs do allow humans into their social circle, and they will follow our leadership, but they do not see humans as their packmate. Wolfdogs and domestic dogs do have the aptitude to differentiate between a human and a dog. If they saw humans as a packmate,they would play with us the same way they do with other dogs in the home, but they don’t because they know we are human and they can’t bite and drag us around the yard like they do with each other. Living in a multi dog home, it is clear that they have their own rank structure, apart from us,and we are not included in that rank structure.They allow us to lead because we have the food,but don’t mistake this for being a part of a canine pack.You are a human,not a canine.

What is Dr. Freeman referring to when he mentions mature adult wolfdogs challenging their owner? He is observing two very common canine behaviors that are present in both wolfdogs and domestic dogs. The first is reproductive aggression,which is prominent in all members of the canine family. It happens when the animal has entered the reproductive part of their season. They are mature adults who are experiencing hormonal shifts,exposure to the pheromones of a female in heat and they are acting on the very canine instinct to protect their breeding rights from interlopers and interference. The second contributing factor to a mature adult dog, of any breed, challenging their owner is that they have been allowed to “rule the roost” their whole life. Now the owner doesn’t see the behavior as “cute puppy behavior” and they attempt to correct the behavior.The unruly dog who has not had to learn proper behavior is in rebellion against authority because that authority has never been present prior to this event. There is an absence of respect for the owners leadership because there has not been any proper leadership all along. This is what Dr. Freeman is erroneously attempting to describe.This is not said to cast aspersions at Dr. Freeman;he is a veterinarian and a teacher and, by all accounts, he is an exceptional veterinarian and a well regarded teacher. He is not, however, a wolfdog expert. However innocently he did proceed, the information was simply not accurate.

This is a classic example of wolfdog misinformation being shared in the media by someone who has no significant experience with the subject matter in which he is speaking. Many people would see that he is a doctor and just assume that the information is true and accurate due to his unrelated credentials. When you are researching wolfdogs, make sure the information comes from a source that would be considered a wolfdog expert. A person who has never owned or lived with a wolfdog can never be considered an expert.

Not all wolfdog misinformation is so innocent. Take, for example, “The Tragedy of Wolfdogs” written by Dr. Patricia McConnell, a licensed animal behaviorist with more than 30 years of experience. In this written work we find a more vitriolic type of misinformation, laden with information that Dr. McConnell knows, or rightfully should know, to be misleading. By her own words, she states that she has “worked with A FEW wolfdogs as a consultant.” Dr.McConnel writes about two particular wolfdogs that she did consultations on. The first wolfdog is a 4 month old, high content wolfdog living in an upstairs apartment.She details how the wolfdog puppy comes up to her and plays with her hair, then proceeds to get on the table, chew on her notepad and tear down the blinds from the windows. Sounds terrible, right? No, not really. The wolfdog puppy played with her hair, which means the pup was friendly, social and eager to interact with a stranger. This would be considered a positive attribute in any dog, domestic or wolfdog, but in Dr. McConnell's writing she represents a perfectly friendly and outgoing behavior as a negative behavior. Dogs getting on the table, tearing up the blinds and chewing on notepads is standard puppy behavior for any type of dog that hasn’t had proper training or leadership. I’m struggling to understand how an animal behaviorist with 30 years of experience could find these behaviors anything but normal. Dr. McConnell then goes on to identify the root of the problem when she describes the owners as “idiots and they had no clue what they had taken on.” In fact, she has written many works detailing how the “stupid owners” are the problem, but when it comes to wolfdogs, all of the behaviors she sees from dogs everyday all of a sudden become a wolfdog problem. Same exact behaviors, but instead of addressing the owner issue’s she scapegoats the wolfdogs. The only thing that changed were her feelings about whether or not this dog should be allowed to exist. For the record, wolfdogs do NOT belong in apartments, just like many other breeds of dog do not belong in apartment type housing. Dr.McConnel knows this, but instead of addressing the root issues, wolfdog in an apartment and owners that are idiots, in this case she makes it about the breed; she makes false claims that wolfdogs are caught in a “neverland” of “never being comfortable in their surroundings.” She then goes on to detail another wolfdog story, a standard shelter dog story that dog rescuers have seen a thousand times with every breed of dog. The story goes like this: owner buys puppy but doesn’t socialize or train puppy, then dumps dog at shelter, dog sits in shelter mentally deteriorating, comes out of the shelter shy and skittish. This is a very basic issue of lack of socialization,lack of fulfillment and enrichment resulting in a shy and skittish rescue dog. Shy and skittish rescue dogs are just part of dog rescue, this is nothing new under the sun, but again, Dr.McConnell misrepresents this as a wolfdog issue and completely misleads the reader into believing that this somehow an extraordinary event caused by the low wolf content in this animal. It’s not, this is textbook behavior for many rescue dogs of every breed on earth. Ask yourself how and why an animal behaviorist with 30 years of experience would fail to recognize very normal dog and puppy behavior, especially when she has documented these same behaviors in domestic dogs many times in her other writings. Did her anti wolfdog feelings cloud her judgement or was it malicious misinformation? Only she will ever know,but now you know that even with the word “Doctor” before a name, that does not mean someone is qualified to provide expert information about wolfdogs. Perhaps a better title for the article would have been “The tragedy of letting your reach exceed your grasp.”

Wolfdog misinformation takes many forms, but always be on the look out for things that simply don’t add up. Like this statement “I don’t think people should have wolfdogs because I’m opposed to all dog breeding.” Notice how the reason is not relevant to wolfdogs. You will frequently see people online say things like “those things will turn on you, they are so dangerous.” Ask how they came to that conclusion. Have they owned and lived with wolfdogs? Remember, no one can be a wolfdog expert if they have never owned and lived with wolfdogs. If you are interested in learning about wolfdogs, please ensure that you are receiving real, qualified information from people and organizations who have real wolfdog experience. There are a variety of wolfdog groups on social media, some of them are better than others. Look for groups that have been active for many years, groups that request DNA test results to prove wolf content, groups that have a focus on education and teaching. Separating fact from fiction gets harder by the day, and it is no different with wolfdog misinformation and real information. The only people who can tell you the truth about wolfdogs are the people who live with them everyday.

Keep seeking truth!