Elderly woman fatally mauled by her five Czechoslovakian wolfdogs

NY Daily News ^ | 12/22/2020 | Brian Niemietz

[sodpoodle]

A controversy over the safety of owning Czechoslovakian wolfdogs is afoot following the fatal mauling of a 74-year-old Italian woman, who was reportedly killed by her five dogs.

Mariangela Zaffino’s body was found by her daughter in the northern Italy apartment where the pair lived with their handful of canines, according to the Telegraph.

The victim’s daughter and local authorities said the five wolfdogs — named Ares, Aylen, Artù, Aragorn and Apache — had not showed signs of aggression prior to Zaffino’s death. What prompted the attack is unclear, though the animals have been removed from the home by law enforcement. The fate of the dogs hasn’t been decided.

Neighbors had reportedly questioned the wisdom of keeping the roughly 50-pound dogs in a small apartment. Czechoslovakian wolfdogs are a mix between Alsatians and Carpathian wolves. Known in Slovaki as Ceskoslovensky Vlciak, they were first bred to be used as guard dogs in the 1950s and require a great deal of exercise. They’re also said to be highly intelligent, but difficult to train.

Fabrizio Rondalino reportedly told the newspaper Corriere della Sera that he spent 18-months caring for a wolfdog and doesn’t think they should exist — let alone be kept as pets.

“It is a man-made invention,” Rondalino said. “One of the worst breeds created.”

According to Rondalino, the dogs have a “highly developed predatory instinct” and should be sterilized and phased out of existence. He gave his dog to a friend who is a professional animal trainer.

[Norski]

I have read that (paraphrased) “What a dog looks like, it will act like”. By veterinarians. In addition, I have read that the breeders who attempt to domesticate foxes as pets have found that the ones who become the most suitable for pets rather than wild animals, are the ones who begin to look like domestic dog breeds e.g. floppy ears. Sources probably www.animals247.org and youtube domestic foxes, particularly Russian breeders, I think.

[Varsity Flight]

“Tippi Hedren - beautiful woman and lover/keeper of wild animals.”

Cept, maybe de Birds.

[Chickensoup]

Probably planning to breed them and make money. None altered, all in full wild mode.

[Norski]

Found one of them. Caveat: The Animals 24-7 website is not conservative in the slightest. The research and statistics are excellent.

Excerpted from link below:

“Pit bull appearance linked to brain structure––and behavior

In simplest terms, if a dog has the blocky head shape and oversized jaws characteristic of a pit bull, a magnetic resonance imaging scan is likely to identify the brain structures associated with sudden, random, unpredictable violence and “dead game” fighting behavior as well.

Co-authors, along with Hecht, of “Significant neuroanatomical variation among domestic dog breeds” include Stony Brook University anthropologist Jeroen B. Smaers, Ph.D.; William J. Dunn of the Michigan State University Department of Psychology & Neuroscience; University of Georgia at Athens professor of neurology and neurosurgery Marc Kent; and Emory University neuroscientists Todd M. Preuss, Ph.D. and David A. Gutman, M.D.. . .” . .

It is well worth reading. Also please ggl author Semyonova (sic) dog behaviorist scientist, possible PhD.

https://www.animals24-7.org/2019/09/09/dog-brain-study-refutes-every-major-claim-of-pit-bull-advocacy/

[Zhang Fei]

[In simplest terms, if a dog has the blocky head shape and oversized jaws characteristic of a pit bull, a magnetic resonance imaging scan is likely to identify the brain structures associated with sudden, random, unpredictable violence and “dead game” fighting behavior as well.]

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While the second behavioral characteristic is excellent for combat roles, the first suggests that (1) trainability is a problem and (2) intense training and socialization is a far greater necessity for such dogs than for say, a beagle. Considering the average dog owner toilet trains and not much more, if that, owning a pit bull for such individuals is like having a living, breathing mobile booby trap that can seriously injure, or worse, at any time. Owning multiple dogs like this is like having the Sword of Damocles hanging over your head. Only the timing, not the outcome, is in question.

My impression is that some people have two dogs so the one won’t get lonely. The problem with that is the danger of them adopting pack behavior and coordinating an attack on their owner. As I understand it, dogs consider their owner to be part of their pack, in which he (usually) plays the part of alpha dog. The risk is when the dogs - especially large ones - begin to consider one of their own as alpha. This is compounded that the dogs are pit bulls.

[x]

She should have returned them and gotten her money back when the country broke up ...