Posted on 05/25/2012 8:35:56 PM PDT by mamelukesabre
I became hyper-interested in canids awhile back when I read something about coy-wolf hybrids in the northeast part of the US. I've been reading about them lately. I know there is an ongoing effort to "re-introduce" wolves into certain parts of the united states. This upsets a lot of folks and makes others giddy with excitement.
So, I am sharing my only personal wolf story I can because it is the only one I have. It isn't much since they've been extinct in these parts for a very long time.
My cousin used to tell me stories about the old-timers hanging dead wolves from the eaves of their porch when he was a small boy. This would've been in the early 60s. He and I were business partners for awhile so we used to trade stories a lot. Sometimes I would wonder about the stories he told me and try to double check them by asking his brother, sister, and dad. This wolf story was one of those that I doubted since according to official history, wolves were extinct in that part of the country way before the time period he speaks of.
So I had a discussion with his dad one time when I was out to the old farm doing some odd stuff for him.
He told me "oh gosh no, those weren't wolves...he was mistaken and wasn't old enough to know the difference." I felt like the air was let out of me because I wanted it to be true. Then he said "those were wolf-dogs...half wolf, half dog...bigger and meaner than real wolves".
So then I said to him "you know, according to the experts there were no wolves alive in this area after the 1800s?" He says "yeah, I suppose. They might be right"
Then I say "well, if they were extinct in the 1800s, how the hell you get any wolf dog hybrids around here a hundred years later?"
He says: "Ya got me there, I guess there had to have been at least one more wolf around cuz those were not dogs. They were wolfdogs...And they were a serious problem around here in the 1960s. We were all out to get them around here. I bought a mauser to shoot them with."
Then I said "your son told me he remembers the dead wolves hanging from the eaves of someone's porch around here and they were so big, they were almost touching the ground."
"Yep...that was [i forget the name]'s place. He was old and strange and would hang them by the neck from the roof of his porch and the hind legs would be pretty close to the ground...let 'em hang til they rotted to nuthin. Those wolfdogs treed me once when I was new to this area. I was out on my old ford tractor pulling a wagon and mending fence. My dog warned me and I dropped what I was doing and ran up a tree while he kept them busy as long as he could. Best dog I ever had. He was free...came with the farm...lived under the porch. I was in that tree a long time waiting for the wolfdogs to move on."
I asked around after that. I decided the story wasn't made up.
Another person from that area told me there was a highway cut through some hills and it disrupted the hunting ground of a small isolated pack of wolves. The pack scattered and was on the run. Just a small number survived and bred with feral dogs. The resulting hybrids formed a pack and terrorized the area for years. This was the theory they come up with because the wolfdogs appeared shortly after a new stretch of highway was cut through some virgin hills.
Just watched this dvd:
The Grey (2012) R
After narrowly surviving a deadly plane crash in the Alaskan wilderness, a band of oil riggers must fend for their lives in the ice and snow. But thanks to wolves that view their presence as a threat, they aren’t alone.
Genre:
Action & Adventure, Action Thrillers, Adventures
This movie is:
Dark, Gritty
I hated that movie.
One of my favorite pets was a wolf hybrid. But I wouldn’t recommend them for everyone. They can be a little bit spooky.
I guess the love of wolves depends on which side of the fence you are on. If you have a herd of cattle..not bueno. If you can enjoy them from a distance with no threat to your livelyhood..they are beautiful.
One of my favorite pets was a wolf hybrid. But I wouldn’t recommend them for everyone. They can be a little bit spooky.
I guess the love of wolves depends on which side of the fence you are on. If you have a herd of cattle..not bueno. If you can enjoy them from a distance with no threat to your livelyhood..they are beautiful.
According to my uncle, wolves are less deadly than wolf hybrids...and also according to the other old geezers in his neck-of-the-woods.
according to wikipedia, canis lupus and canis domesticus are considered now the same species by biologists. yes, the teacup chihuahua and the wolf are blood brothers.
Yeah, but then we’re told there’s only 2% difference between us and Chimps.
They sure make soft pelts.
My aunt who lives in northern Ontario has one on her bed. Used to lay on it when I was a kid.
Libtards hate Sarah Palin for allowing their control with hunting from small planes...that’s the only way their population can be controlled in the outreaches of Alaska.
whats this monkey business?
I have this weird fascination with wolves and have never seen one.
I have wolf bookmarks,calendars,playing cards,and a lovely painting of a wolf I bought at an art show.
I forgot to add...he showed me a picture of the old dog that saved his life. It looked like a yellow lab except it had a larger head and a black muzzle and a slightly curvier tail. His name was Butch and my uncle says “he was no bird dog but that dog could read my mind even though he didn’t even know me.”.
I accidentally rescued a 7/8 hybrid... most incredible dog ever. Best huntress ever, too. As it turned out. Or rather, as a sheriff’s deputy brought to my attention.
Wolf-dogs have to be entirely fenced in, no two ways about it.
Aroooooooooooooooooooooooo
Anyway, my story...I was out walking at night a couple of winters ago, not in the woods but next to them. I heard this sort of yapping sound, and I later compared what I had heard to some videos online and it sounded just like coyote/wolf sounds. Suddenly I heard a drawn out howl, very loud, and the yapping noises got more excited...And closer. Well, I was with my brother and he started to take off running, but like a good scout (ha) I held him back and we continued at rather a fast walk. Remember, we were walking along a treeline (we moved away from it a bit after this started) and the excited yapping from the woods stayed abreast with us as we walked. Eventually (not fast enough), it began to fade, and we heard a chorus of mournful howls (call of the wild anyone?) that continued till we got out of earshot.
Creepy, to say the least.
Where I used to live, we had big trouble with coyotes. They were overpopulating. Men shot them (SSS). But one of the men was an Indian and he took blood and spread it next to the wood line where the coyotes trailed into the neighborhood. He did that as a warning to them. Maybe that is why that guy hung the dead wolf-dog out front of his house?
Wolves curious about you?
If there are going to be any new Wolf-Dog hybrids, they should be a mix of Wolf and Golden Retriever. I want any Wolf-Dogs around me to always be happy when they see me or any other human, wag their tales and be play like puppies—even when they grow old. I love Goldens.
PS - I know that Wolf-Golden Hybrids would NOT be friendly like Goldens and would also be dangerous. But a guy can dream, right?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.