Why Wolf Content Matters!
Wolf content is THE biggest determining factor of what type of behaviour a wolfdog will display and whether a wolfdog can be a pet. The more wolf in the wolfdog, the more instinctual, undomesticated behaviours you will be dealing with. The more dog in the wolfdog, the more companion animal behaviours you will see and therefore making it easier to live with this animal as a pet. Below I’m going to do a deep dive into how wolf content affects behaviour and why it matters so much!
One thing I cannot stress enough is that there is no getting around wolf content. It is IMPOSSIBLE to have a wolfdog that looks like a wolf and acts like a dog. Some exceptional wolfdogs may have lower intensities of certain behaviours based on their content, but they will still never behave like my Irish Wolfhounds or my Belgian Malinois. Genetics is a funny thing and if you selectively breed for a specific behaviour, there are physical attributes that are connected to that as well. Google the Silver Fox Project in Russia and you can read some pretty fascinating things regarding this. Ultimately, there is a reason it took humans a very, very long time to domesticate dogs from wolves. If all it took was taking a wolf puppy out of the wild and raising it as a puppy around your cats, kids, in the house and it would end up behaving like a dog, we would probably all own pet wolves and we wouldn’t have all these different domestic dog breeds. This is where instincts come into play which I will discuss next.
Instinctual behaviours are innate behaviours that animals (including us humans) are born with. We don’t have to think about them, they are wired into our brains. There is plasticity in those instinctual behaviours, but when it comes to animals, these behaviours are deeply ingrained as their survival is dependent on those exact behaviours. I could go much deeper into this topic, but for the purpose of this article I will leave it at that. The point I am trying to get across is that the instinctual behaviours that wolves are born with them allow them to survive in the wild. When wolfdogs are bred, humans are intentionally breeding these “wild” behaviours into a dog that we want to live amongst us in our homes and work with (and for) us. Do you see the conundrum there? This doesn’t mean it’s impossible, but the more wolf that is bred into the wolfdog, the less capable they are to innately live in our human world. Perhaps it’s obvious by now, but a low content wolfdog that is mainly dog is going to be able to be a much better “pet” than a high content wolfdog. This is why my personal belief is that low content wolfdogs can make good pets in the right homes, high content wolfdogs never make good “pets” and mid content wolfdogs fall somewhere in the middle. So let’s talk about these content levels now and their suitability as pets.
Low Content
Low content wolfdogs are mainly dog with only a small amount of wolf content bred into them. This means the majority of their behaviours will come from whatever dog breed(s) is bred into them. Any wolf behaviours they inherit are usually expressed at a lower intensity. This means that if a low content wolfdog does inherit a fearfulness of humans for example, it will be less extreme and therefore easier to work through and improve upon than in a high content wolfdog for example.
That being said, low content wolfdogs still have special needs and requirements in order to be good companion animals. I usually joke and say that owning a low content wolfdog is like owning a Siberian Husky on drugs. They are essentially more challenging than owning a typical northern breed, but if you have the right lifestyle, know what you are getting yourself into and have a good understanding of dog behaviour, you will be perfectly capable of owning a low content wolfdog as a pet. There will be challenges for sure. You have to be fully committed and in it for the long haul, but they really do have the ability to live as a companion animal to us humans. They can enjoy living as part of a family, being out in the human world, going to dog parks and going on car rides. So if you want a wolfdog as a companion animal, a low content wolfdog is absolutely your best bet.
Mid Content
Mid content wolfdogs have a considerable amount of wolf AND dog content bred into them. This means there can be a somewhat equal contribution of behaviours of whatever dog breed(s) is bred into them as well as wolf behaviours. The wolf behaviours they inherit can definitely be more intense and harder to influence. However, with mid content wolfdogs there is usually still enough dog genetics in order to build a solid companion animal relationship for those dedicated and experienced enough.
Mid content wolfdogs can have very specific needs and requirements in order to have a chance at being good companion animals. They are certainly more challenging than owning a low content and are really only suitable to those with significant experience with wolfdogs. If you are well versed in wolfdog behaviour and their challenges, have the right lifestyle, living environment, and have the grit and determination to see it through, you can mold their behaviour enough to have a relationship that somewhat resembles that of a human/companion animal relationship. There will be significant sacrifices to be made and you will have to put in a lot of hard work and consistency, but it can be done. To a more limited degree, they can enjoy living as part of a family, enjoy human companionship, and perhaps make friends with strange dogs and people. So if you really want a mid content wolfdog as a companion animal, expect a totally different level of commitment to make it work.
High Content
High content wolfdogs are mainly wolf with only a very small amount of dog bred into them. This means that we are dealing with wolf behaviour; tame wolf behaviour, but wolf behaviour none the less. This presents a lot of very specific and difficult challenges that should be taken very seriously. All of a sudden we are dealing with an animal that has no resemblance to a companion animal. Their motivations and thought patterns are totally different than that of a dog and their needs are extensive.
High content wolfdog ownership carries a completely different responsibility than that of any other contents. They can pose extreme challenges and should only ever be cared for by extremely knowledgeable and experienced people. Sure there are some high content wolfdogs that can be taken in public, like other dogs and don’t go through huge behavioural swings. However those wolfdogs are the exception and not the rule (and not so conveniently it is those exceptional wolfdogs that people are exposed to). High content wolfdogs have extremely specific needs and requirements in order to be able to live around (not with!) humans in a manner where they still have a good quality of life. Under no circumstances do high content wolfdogs make good companion animals. However, if you are EXTREMELY experienced, have a true understanding of their nature and can give them the lifestyle they need to be happy, perhaps you might be suitable to share your life with one of these animals. From my over 10 years of experience running Yamnuska Wolfdog Sanctuary, 99.9% of people interested in wolfdog ownership have absolutely no business owning a high content wolfdog. The types of instinctual behaviours they display and at the intensity that they display them you must be an expert at understanding wolf behaviour and understanding body language. You also have to have a very specific setup, lifestyle, and general circumstances to even have a chance of doing right by that animal. Owning a high content wolfdog is essentially like owning a tame wolf. Really think about that. In my opinion, it is on par with owning a pet tiger or pet bear. It is in a whole different league than owning a domestic animal. Just because they do have a small amount of dog in them, does not mean they can ever behave like a companion animal. Frankly, they have no interest in being a companion to you and ultimately that poses a lot of difficulties if you try to treat them as one. Trust me, I learnt that lesson the hard way with Kuna!
Wolfdog Behaviours
Below I will outline some typical wolfdog behaviours. Since wolfdogs are such complex beings and the amount of wolf content present dictates their behaviour, keep in mind there is a spectrum here. Some wolfdogs may show all of these, some wolfdogs may only display one. The higher the wolf content, the more likely you will see more of these behaviours and definitely the more intense they will be! I will likely do an in-depth writeup on wolf behaviour to get into the real nitty gritty of it all, which I will link here when completed.
prey drive
territorial
same sex aggression
fear of humans
fear of new places and confined spaces
lack of affinity towards humans
destructiveness
independence (with strict boundaries)
extreme intelligence and problem solving skills
space requirements and a tendency to test/escape containment
major behavioural changes throughout the seasons and throughout their lifetime
This is the absolute tip of the iceberg, but hopefully gives you a bit of an idea…
