Seijun

[quote]Their instincts are what make them wild animals. You can train them to tolerate certain situations, but they still have those instincts there, and that makes them wild animals.[/quote] By your deffinition then, even beagles are wild animals. Think about it--beagles have the instinct to chase rabbits, so if you put one in with a rabbit, they will probably chase it no matter what--that is an instinct that cannot be changed, in a situation you will probably never be able to make the beagle tolerate (being in a room wityh a rabbit and NOT chasing it). ~Seij

First off, chances are slim that it is really 3/4 wolf. Reliable breeders don't use that terminology anyway. A wolfdog that has a lot of wolf content is RARE. The vast majority of breeders out there sell northern breed dogs misrepresented as wolfdogs, so it is more likely that this is what your friend has (I know, maybe, only 4 or 5 breeders on the net selling REAL high contents, in comparison to 20 or more others selling fake high contents). Second off, saying you "can't train the wild out" of it is not entirely true. A wolfdog is not a wild animal, nor is it a wolf. It's more accurate to say you "cannot train the instincts out" of it. This is true for any animal, "wild" or "domestic." Like with any pet, you have to be prepared to deal with the intense instincts that are sometimes present when you choose to get a wolfdog. A responsible owner never gets a wolfdog with the intent of "training out its instincts." A responsible owner gets a wolfdog with the intent of "handling what instincts are present." Again, this is true of ANY animal. Thirdly, you [i]can[/i] keep a bobcat as a house pet, at least part of the time :wink: . It is important though to have a secure outdoor enclosure for it as well. Bobcats can be destructive indoors, but I do know that there are those who have chosen to sacrifice some indoor possessions for a housecat bobcat. Lastly, regardless of all of this, this person should not have a wolfdog, misrepresented northern breed mix, or any other kind of dog. It sounds like the animal she has now has a dominance issue, likely brought on by a lack of training. In the end, someone will get seriously hurt, and it will once again come back as bad PR for my "breed." She is the sort of person who could get wolfdogs banned in her area, even her state, and in the end innocent dogs/wolfdog will be paying for it. I hate irresponsible pet owners :x ~Seij

How long have you had Toby and how old is he? (sorry, can't remember, I know you have said before though, just can't find it right now). It took me between 6 and 12 months to feel as though I had reached a "bonding" point with my Shilo. Sometimes, it just takes time. Shilo has never cuddled with me, and she never acts like she appreciates me, but I can feel that there is a bond there now, regardless. ~Seij

Hmm.. Hadn't thought of that, but I don't think it would work. I would have to let her off before I left, and she would end up trying to shove past me as I left out the door. I have tried going in there to fix it and then leaving again while she is in the kennel (not taking her out, like you said) but she has tried shoving past me and it is another fight to keep her in. No nipping and scratching those times, but that doesn't make it any easier to keep a 70 pound sled dog at bay. It is very risky--if she gets loose, it is very hard to get her back, and I don't want to risk her running away and/or hurting someone else's roaming pet. Luckily though, she very rarely knocks over her doghouse now, so it is not a problem I have to deal with very often. ~Seij

She will go into the kennel for ANY food, I only have issues when she has knocked over her doghouse. You see my predicament? The only way I can get her in is to give her food, which is no problem regularly. My problem arises when she knocks over her doghouse. I have to take her out of the kennel to fix it. I could easily get her back in again if I threw some dogfood into the back, but then she sees that as a reward for knocking the doghouse over (so my only choice is to put her in with[b]out[/b] food--that is when she fights, because she is not willing to go in without food). BTW, she is a food proccessor, to go near her with raw meat is suicide, lol. To her, any food is unresistable. Tricky gal, isn't she? :wink: ~Seij

[quote name='courtnek']sorry Seij but I have to disagree. your dog, IMO, is knocking over the house because she knows you will fix it, then treat her. she has learned to expect a treat on recall to the house. not a bad thing, but I wouldnt tolerate the house wrecking. [/quote] I know Court, isn't that what I explained? :D I know that is why she knocks over her doghouse (I thought I mentioned that in my post, oh well). Unfortunately, force is the only thing that will get her into her kennel if there are no treats in there. She has been like this even since the first day I brought her home. There is no way around it though, if I reward her in any way going back in her kennel (or even before I put her in the kennel) after she destroys her doghouse, she WILL associate that with her act of knocking the doghouse over. She is stubborn, and the only way to get her in the kennel voluntarily is if there is actually food in there. I can't risk "helping" to teach her that knocking over the doghouse is "good" though. I have tried commands to settle her down, but when she is that upset over something, no command will work--it

I knew a guy who was convinced that c@ts should not be kept around babies because the c@t would smelll milk on the baby's breath and "suck the life" out of the baby in an attempt to get the milk. No, I'm not joking. This dude was serious. ~Seij

It sounds like maybe he just didn't want the walk to end, but I would definitely start reinforcing NILIF if you don't already. BTW, what position were his ears and tail in when he growled/bit? Did you happen to notice whether or not his pupils dilated or contracted to any noticeable degree? Every once in a while my Shilo will knock over her doghouse to get me to take her out to fix it. She also knows that going back in her room means getting a snack (she knocks over doghouse, I take her out of kennel, she goes back in with a treat). To prevent her from thinking that she is actually being rewarded for destroying her room, I have tried to avoid giving her a treat when she goes back in her room after knocking over her doghouse. Unfortunately, she doesn't always like that. The other night when she had knocked her doghouse over, when I tried to get her back in the kennel, she knew there were no treats in her room so she absolutely did NOT want to go in. I was holding onto her collar and every time she felt it tug she would "scream" and start flipping around, clawing, kicking, and nipping. After I finally got her in, I looked as though I had been attacked by a bear! It was not an alpha issue though. She is submissive to me at almost all other times, and her ears were back and tail tucked in as I was trying to get her back in the kennel (this told me that even though she was fighting me, she was trying to show me that she wanted to be submissive at the same time). She hates going in unrewarded SO much that she is willing to put up a fight, even against the "alpha." If your dog is submissive to you at all other times, it may not be that he was trying to "take over," it could just be that he hated going home so much that he was willing to fight you over it (again, watch the eyes, tail, and ears--this can tell you a lot about what your dog is thinking!). Besides NILIF, I would also suggest rewarding him whenever you get home. Give him something he REALLY likes so that he associates going home with good things. I always give Shilo breakfast/supper the moment we get home, so she is almost always very eager to get home. ~Seij

Why do they have both "Siberian Husky" and "Husky" listed, what is the difference between the two?? ~Seij

I think the guy did plan on taking it to a zoologist (he allready did try a museum, they didn't know). We have suggested he get DNA testing done on it, not sure what his plans are at this point though as far as that goes. ~Seij

Thylacine only have stripes on their back end though, and their fur is not that thick or dark... ~Seij

About the size: I have no idea how big a chow is compared to that pelt, but I do know that pelts tend to look [i]slightly[/i] larger than the animal it came off of. Maybe the dog is a chow [b]mix[/b]?? ~Seij

You won't find it on Snopes, Pumpkin. Snopes usually only does stuff that is mass circulated on the net. This skin picture is not mass circulated, Cryptozoology.com is the only place it has been posted (so far), and we have been speaking with the owner of the pelt. It could be a fake, but only if the person who owns the skin deliberately dyed it and is lying about it not being dyed. He seems just as curious about the pelt

Does anyone know what kind of dog this could be?? [url]http://www.cryptozoology.com/gallery/display_picture.php?id=2489[/url] [url]http://www.cryptozoology.com/gallery/display_picture.php?id=2493[/url] Supposedly, the thing is a dog from China (at least, that's what the guy was told when he bought it). It has claws like a dog so no, it is not a tiger. It is not a hyena or aardwolf either (markings too dissimilar). The fur is not dyed, the guy had it tested and the fur color is genuine. Most of us think this is probably a dog--but what kind? I have never seen markings quite like this before on any dog. Suggestions anyone? EDIT: Forgot to mention, the tail-piece is missing from the pelt. ~Seij

Like Kendalyn said, never force him to do anything he is too afraid to do unless it is absolutely necessary! Let him come to you, don't try to force him, that will only make things worse. AllAmericanPup brought up a subject I felt I wanted to comment on--dogs being afraid of men. It seems a lot of dogs are more afraid of men than women, and it doesn't necessarily mean they were abused. Men tend to look and "feel" much more imposing than women (they are taller, and have deeper voices), so a dog is more likely to fear them. Also remember that a dog only socialized to men will likely fear women, and a dog that is socialized only to women will likely fear men. In one case, a dog I read of was afraid of everybody except teens because teenagers were the only people it ever had contact with. ~Seij

[quote name='Crystal']but he is only afraid of me :cry: [/quote] Like I said, sometimes a dog will "decide" to fear somebody for no reason, at least not one that we can see (he probably [i]does[/i] have a reason, but it might be a reason impossible for you or anyone else to pick out right now. ~Seij

Yes, this is definately a fear issue. Have you noticed whether or not he acts like this around all women? If he is afraid of any other people that you know of? Try to find out what you have in common with any other people who Toby fears. Often-times dogs will be afraid of just women, or just men, or even just people from a certain age group. Who a dog is afraid of can even depend on little things like voice, height, or even clothing. Other times, a dog may pick out ONE person to be extremely afraid of, and for no apparent reason that we humans can see. This is the case with my Shilo. She has always been afraid of men, but she is downright TERRIFIED of my dad, and no one is our family can figure out exactly why. When she sees him she will run away, bark, growl, and raise her hackles. I would suggest you look up some tips on the net about socializing dogs who are afraid of people. ~Seij

This does not really sound like an "alpha dog" problem (although there is always the slight possibility that it is), it sounds more like a "scared dog" problem. -Has Toby always done this to you? If not, is there anything you have done recently that could possibly have caused him to associate you with fear? (Maybe you stepped on his paw by accident, or maybe made some loud noise that scared him) -What is his body language like when he is acting like this--is his tail tucked in or held high? Are his ears laid back or pointing forward? -How does he react when you do other things to him, like try to brush him, pet him, etc? -Are his reactions worse if you are trying to touch around his neck and collar? -What happens if someone else tries to bring him indoors or feed him? -Was Toby ever abused or mistreated by anyone? Could it be that you remind him of someone bad in his past (the way you look, walk, etc), or maybe you did something that somehow reminded him of something bad in his past? ~Seij

[quote name='SandrA9810'] Sorry for not posting to help your presentation. But it's probably true that more animals end up in animal control because they were dumped, because the owner couldn't take care of it and didn't want to admit it.[/quote] This can be tied into the spay/neuter problem as well. If a person has to abandon a dog at a shelter because they can't take care of it, chances are they did not get it from a responsible breeder (A responsible breeder should be able to take back unwanted dogs that they produced, and they should educate buyers BEFOREHAND about what they are getting into. Anyone who does not breed responsibly should not be breeding dogs at all, and should have the animals spayed/neutered. ~Seij

Where's the picture that shows the dead dogs lying in the garbage dump?? I think that would be a great picture to use. Graphic stuff is not always good, but when it comes to this subject it is your best weapon, along with statistics. Find pics of euthanized animals in trash cans, find pics of starved and unwanted dogs roaming the streets. Explain why pet stores and byb's are bad. Show them pictures from THOSE places, and God help anyone who buys from a petstore or breeds Fido with the neighbor's FiFi after watching your presentation. ~Seij

Shilo gets one to two walks a day, each about 1 1/2 hours long. She could run all day if I let her though. ~Seij

Don't worry, it's just a joke :D Personally, I found it hillarious, but then, I do have a morbid sense of humor... *ducks and runs* ~Seij

Shilo has just started her spring molt, which means LOTS of brushing--she hates to be brushed, mostly because she hates to hold still. Anyway, today she was rolled over her back while I was trying to brush her front leg and I could tell she didn

Pumpkin, that picture is hilarious, it makes it look at though you used the Pom to kill the deer... :lol: ~Seij

Have you ever had a dog that would imitate different things you did? Shilo does, it is so cute! Once I was trying to dig an interesting bottle out of the dirt and she came over and started trying to dig it out too. Another time I was dislodging a branch from a brush patch and she went over to a separate brush patch and started trying to pull branches out of it too. She does stuff like this all the time, like when I am turning over logs to look for snakes, she will try to paw over smaller logs herself. She is so curious, every time she sees me doing something [i]different[/i], she wants to do it too, I think it must be because she wants to know if she can get anything good out of it (she basically just lives for herself, she is ALWAYS looking for something that will be of a benefit for [i]her[/i]). ~Seij