Wanting to share our lives with exotic and wild animals is nothing new, but it’s not something that needs to be done. Not only are there plenty of perfectly wonderful dogs and puppies waiting for new homes, there are a number of downsides to owning wild animals. Even if you’re considering getting a wolf or coyote hybrid, you should probably think again.
#1 – Wild Animals Should Be Kept Wild
One of the most important concerns many animal activists have is that wild animals should be kept wild. While zoos and conservation centers work hard to bring threatened species back into their natural habitat, they still offer large enclosures and work hard to provide their captive specimens with the best lives they could have. A wild animal has no place inside a house or in a backyard and should be provided with the resources it needs to live a normal, healthy, wild life. Even wild animals kept in ideal conditions still show signs of anxiety, stress and depression.
#2 – Overwhelming Behavior
A well-behaved wolf is not a well-behaved dog. Many owners want the exotic look and feel of living with a wild animal but don’t want to live with the exotic behaviors that come with it. Hybrids are far more territorial and prey-driven than dogs are, which means you’re likely to experience excessive marking, howling and other destructive behaviors.
#3 – Wolves, Coyotes & Foxes Are Not Dogs
While nurture can create a more domesticated hybrid, genetics cannot be overruled. Dogs have been bred for centuries to live alongside humans and are easily trained to display behaviors we enjoy. Hybrids have centuries of the opposite genetics. They are not social, not easily trained and are highly predatory and territorial.
#4 – You’ll Probably Be Scammed
Many, many people advertise having puppies with a very high percentage of wolf in the ancestry. Unfortunately, more often than not, people get scammed into paying hundreds to thousands of dollars for a mixed-breed dog with little to no wild ancestry at all. Proving what percentage of wolf or other animal is mixed into your puppy is impossible. Don’t always trust what you hear or see, because most people who think they have hybrids often don’t have hybrids at all.
#5 – Hybrids Are More Dangerous
Dogs bite people every year, but it can be attributed to poor dog handling and judgement far more than the general temperament of the dog. But don’t be fooled into thinking that dogs aren’t any safer than hybrids, because it’s simply not the case. Many hybrid owners will tell you stories about how their hybrids were great pets until one day something happened – they attacked the neighbor’s dog, they attacked a child, they bit the dog walker or even their owner. Wild animals are what they are – wild. Just as you would expect a tiger to attack its owner, you should expect a wolf to do the same. If someone tells you they have a hybrid that makes a wonderful pet, ask them how old the animal is. Hybrids don’t fully mature until 2-3 years of age, meaning they haven’t shown serious signs of aggression yet. Also remember that their hybrid might not be much of a hybrid at all and take into consideration what they define as a “good pet.”
Toledo, United States.
