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#1 2010-07-13 21:57:23

Mad Mab
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From: Puyallup/South Hill, WA - USA
Registered: 2010-07-08
Posts: 4
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Wolves and Dogs

Wolves and dogs are both canines, anyone who disputes that really is a lunatic. But are they the same thing? No, not in the least. Dogs are variations of the canine family that have come to be after thousands of years of domestication.

I once told my sister that I like werewolves, which surprised my sister. She knows that I don't like dogs, but then again she wasn't thinking of dogs and wolves as separate creatures. But in defense, it's not like the differences between big cats like tigers or panthers and their house cat relatives. You can tell how big of a difference big cats and house cats are from each other. Dogs and wolves aren't so lucky, some dog breeds retain wolven traits even after thousands of years due to domestication.

This could be that nature created certain traits that just can't be bred out of certain dog breeds, Husky dogs are a prime example of just how wolven dog breeds can be. Husky dogs at one point looked different than they do today, they are infact a wolf-dog breed. That means that despite the years of domestication by humans, they haven't strayed too far away from their ancestral wolf forms.

Husky dogs are a prime example of close dogs and wolves are related, perhaps in another thousand years, husky dogs will be far more different than they are today.


To me Wolfs are noble creatures, I will grant you that they are wild creatures. So if you are attacked by a wolf, it's part of it's nature to attack or defend. Dogs are not the same as wolves, because they can lack that wild excuse. Even feral dogs have no excuse, feral dogs are those dogs that are raised or live in the wild and not in the care of humans. If a dog or feral dog attacks you, it has not excuse. Why not? Because humans are always to blame for the behavior of dogs, good or bad it's the owner or lack there of that determines a dog's action.

Wolves are wild creatures, if a human is attacked by one, we can't really blame the wild animal for doing what it's genetically programmed to do for the last few thousand years. But dogs are the descendants of domesticated canines, so anything they do is our responsibility. In some cases, the domestication factor can prove to be dangerously unstable. The "wild gene" as some people put it are still in the dogs we have today, and sometimes that gene is active. If active, the dog may be unable to control it's actions due to it's unusual genetic family history.

People will often mistreat wild animals, due to actions of their domesticated cousins. Wolves, wild cats and other such creatures are often cruelly judged. Such judgments can lead to people hunting down, killing or even the down right torture of innocent wild animals because humans refuse to see that it's their fault for what's become of domesticated canines and cats.

All I'm trying to say is try to be a bit more understanding how we have shaped entire species and/or breeds of animals all over the world.

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#2 2010-08-24 06:01:04

SilentKiller
So very silent its killing
Registered: 2010-06-21
Posts: 2532

Re: Wolves and Dogs

agreed smile


Having faith is better than nothing.

Dont worry I wont bite you. I only bite people I really like.

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#3 2010-08-24 22:51:07

Vespertinus
Member
From: Iowa
Registered: 2010-07-04
Posts: 24

Re: Wolves and Dogs

Actually Husky aren't very close to wolves they just were domesticated in the same area as wolves live so they look and act similarly but the closest to wolves are the dogs who haven't changed since first domesticated. The closest to wolves are Saluki's. I also disagree about dog behavior they are also influenced by their surroundings and needs. In an attack by either wolf or dog its the human who is encroaching on territory and is seen as a threat. I agree wolves and dogs are not the same but they are similar and their fate is in misinformed hands.


-No wonder I get along with dogs so well!

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#4 2010-08-25 05:38:01

ShadowTrail
Member
From: Poland
Registered: 2010-07-17
Posts: 115

Re: Wolves and Dogs

Vespertinus wrote:

Actually Husky aren't very close to wolves they just were domesticated in the same area as wolves live so they look and act similarly but the closest to wolves are the dogs who haven't changed since first domesticated. The closest to wolves are Saluki's.

Sorry but you are wrong. Where you get this Saluki thing, i wonder??? From here perhaps >> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_dog_breeds
Ancient dosnt means they are closest related, present race  outlook is also important


Husky, alaskan malamute and other northern dog are domesticated ascendand of northern wolf and still mostly resemble one (many people mistaken husky that run alone in the woods with wolves). They are not a race that live WITH the wolves, and surprise they dont change at all since domestication

Still the closest race to wolf is of course one of Wolf-Dog hybrid. If you are interested in this things i really sugest to read that wiki article, especially the agression part


Mad Mab wrote:

Dogs are not the same as wolves, because they can lack that wild excuse. Even feral dogs have no excuse, feral dogs are those dogs that are raised or live in the wild and not in the care of humans. If a dog or feral dog attacks you, it has not excuse. Why not? Because humans are always to blame for the behavior of dogs, good or bad it's the owner or lack there of that determines a dog's action.

This statemet lack logic. Dog are not *dog* because of little difrent genetics but they was domesticated, or *brainwashed* if you wish. As a result they see human as member of the pack and can accept them as alfa of it. Still some dogs are aggresive and attack humans from outide the pack, at  sight. If a dog is not raised by human, then they are equal to wolf, not something more or less (and they atack human more offten, becouse they lack mentioned fear)

On the other hand wolves are afraid of the humans, and usually dont attack them (strange isnt it?). Wolves can attack you if they sense you are easy prey, when they are really hungry (and dont care much about potential threat) or when they are sick (rabies)

Once again , here is good link about this >> Wolf attack on human

Hope that helps

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#5 2010-08-31 08:25:38

Moonlit Hunter
Member
Registered: 2010-04-26
Posts: 127

Re: Wolves and Dogs

From what I understand, GENETICALLY speaking, no single dog breed is closer to a wolf than any other. This is because they are, at the DNA level, the same species as wolf. This is as true for a poodle as it is for a malamute.

If we are talking about BEHAVIORALLY, then huskies, malamutes, and other such northern breeds are the most similar to wolf behavior. They also retain a good amount of their original appearance.

I grew up with labs and golden retrievers. Now I have a husky. Husky behavior is definitely different from that of a golden or a lab, for sure. A lot of what my husky does, I have read about captive wolves behaving in similar ways. And when they play with other dogs, they are a lot more intense. Seriously. I take my pooch to a dog park nearly every day. Most of the people there like my dog and find him well behaved, but there are several other huskies that come to play there. Non-husky dog owners cringe inwardly when they see a husky arrive. They are not aggressive dogs, but they tend to get blamed for aggression simply because when they play they growl - A LOT. They don't bark. They also stalk, pounce, and shoulder-shove other dogs a lot more than other breeds. In general, they are just MORE.

However, even a husky won't match a wolf's behavior for intensity.

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#6 2010-09-06 08:01:13

glephnir-fenrir
New member
Registered: 2010-09-06
Posts: 2

Re: Wolves and Dogs

Agreed. As a husky owner i fully agree.


cat - the other white meat

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#7 2010-10-26 03:39:59

Moonlit Hunter
Member
Registered: 2010-04-26
Posts: 127

Re: Wolves and Dogs

Something else about wolf vs. dog -

Apparently there was a study done in Germany involving gray wolves, coyotes, golden jackals, and dogs (specifically poodles). They took poodles and interbred them with each of the other species. They did this for several generations. In the cases of coyotes and golden jackles, the hybrids began to develop decreased fertility, problems with communication, and genetic diseases after a few generations. The wolf/dog crosses continued to remain healthy and had no visible problems in their line at all. This is part of why dogs have been classified as a subspecies of gray wolf rather than as a different species with in the group of canids. The ability to interbreed freely without any defects is one of the most important criteria in seperating one species from another.

So basically what this means - wolves and dogs literally ARE the same species genetically. No matter how much selective breeding you do to a dog to make it more habituated to humans, it's still a wolf the minute you look below the skin-deep level. Maybe in another million years of this, they might be different enough that they can't interbreed interchangeably like they do now. But none of us will be around then, so who can say?

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#8 2012-02-02 20:46:24

just a british person
New member
Registered: 2012-02-02
Posts: 1

Re: Wolves and Dogs

i would assume a wolf-dog hybrid to be a dog and a wolf, wouldn't you?

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