Questions from YouTube on our High-Content Wolf-Hybrid!

 I'm happy to hear back from anyone that has questions. I know that I've been busy over the Christmas holidays but I do encourage any feedback or questions anyone has about raising a high-content wolf-hybrid dog so please feel free to drop me a line and ask!

Your puppy

Hi, i am very interested in getting a hybrid. I was wondering what are there special needs, and what is her diet?

Thanks for your time.

 My Response:

Hey!

High-content wolf-hybrid dogs are wonderful! Jason & I are really enjoying raising our little wolf female. Our landlord breeds them and I had similar concerns before I made my final decision to get one.

They do take a lot of work so you should know how to handle them properly. The only special needs they NEED to have is an owner that has a lot of time to dedicate to raising them, with a lot of love. Wolf-hybrids are not like dogs; you can not use the same disciplinary actions with them like you can with dogs. This breed is VERY intelligent and will analyze people and situations and make a decision based on what she thinks; whereas, a dog will go do what its told (our landlord can explain this better haha).

Wolf-hybrids get the same shots as a dog, they have the same care needed for their nails and teeth as well as they eat the same food a dog does.

The only other special thing about wolf-hybrids is that you get them at 4weeks old whereas a dog you usually get around 6 weeks old. When we first got Tundra, we were told to buy some milk from the vet and feed her 3-4 times a day for 2 weeks (small portions of milk made with warm water). We slowly introduced her to water and now we have her completely off of milk. Because Tundra is a puppy, we were recommended by our breeder to feed her the iams puppy pet food "chicken" and the iams dry puppy food. 

You can read more about Tundra and how we have been raising her at raising-tundra.blogspot.com. I will post your question for anyone else out there that needs to know.

I have never owned a dog let alone a wolf so I thought it would be fun to blog about raising her and post what I learn so that others that decide to get a high-content wolf will know what to do too, because I think we all have the same questions.

Tundra just turned 10 weeks old and I'm still learning how to raise her. Our vet has told us things that we came back with questions about and our breeder/trainer/landlord told us that the Vet was wrong and that the form of discipline was for DOGS.

We are currently in the process of training her so we will post techniques as well.

In other good news, I've asked Jason to help out with creating this blog as I'd love to post some videos on how to train your wolf-hybrid (thank you YouTube). We are learning "down" for when the puppy jumps up.  This is great this time of year when they're tracking mud throughout the house and when guests come over for Christmas dinner you'll want your little wolf to make a good first impression as many people stereotype this beautiful breed without giving it a chance.

I like to joke with Jason that we should have company over ALL the time as Tundra is such an angel when there are people around and loves to play with kids the most. I must admit I'm still nervous with Tundra playing with children as she still likes to bite hands (gently) but sometimes doesn't know her own strength. If you don't know how to properly play with wolf-hybrids they will attack your hands (with love). Thank goodness a wolf-hybrids puppy teeth are sharper than its adult ones!

Happy Holidays everyone!

Wolf-Hybrid Training

Wow, where has the time gone?

Since starting a full time job we have blocked a section of our home to Tundra so she has her kennel to sleep in, a place to do her business and a little section to play.

So far we've come home twice to her creating an absolute mess with her puppy training pad as I'm assuming she got bored. She is already starting to become our little guard dog barking at the cats outside.                    Tundra 7 weeks old --->

This Saturday we had her in doggy obedience as her first Vet visit caused her to freak out at the vet and bite when the vet when to check her lymph nodes (her throat area). A normal dog usually does well but with a high-content wolf breed, you must be very careful when approaching the jugular as they take this as a threat to their life.

Tundra 8 weeks old (Sorry for bad pic of me lol)

After coming home, thankfully, our breeder had an appointment the exact same day with all 4 of his dogs/wolves. He asked which vet was ours and after his appointment reported back that this vet had no idea what she was doing when handling wolves and not only his full grown (well behaved) wolves wanted to bite her face off but also his German Shepards too!

I use the analogy of going to a doctor with humans. If you don't really feel comfortable with your doctor or you get the wrong vibe from them (not matter if they did something wrong or not) you generally don't go back to that doctor. The lady that cut Tundras nails was very good with Tundra and she was a very good girl for that step at the vet.

Well I'm at work so I must run but I will keep postings of how we are training our little wolf (and hopefully Jason will help me out!).

Tundra 9 weeks old --->

Another cute video of our wolf-hybrid busy playing

Tundra being a playful wolf

Here is a cute clip of our wolf-hybrid getting her toy stuck under the couch. She's very vocal lol

Tundra - 7 weeks old - Slept all night

Last night was the first night that Tundra slept all night without needing to pee. She woke us up at 8:00 am whereas she usually wakes us up at 5:45 am or once at 1:30 am and then at her normal quarter to 6.

Jason took her outside the other day without her leash on and aside from running a bit far she did and always came back with a bit of coaxing and praise from us.

I have just recently landed a full time job so I will be gone all day at work. This saddens me in a way to not be there for Tundra but I think in the end it will be more healthy for our little wolf-hybrid.

I've noticed that she's been my shadow a lot lately. Even when Jason is home Tundra is always asleep at my feet while I'm working. I have an old towel thrown down on the tile so she's not too cold.

Tundra has outgrown her puppy kennel and with the start of a new job, we have went ahead and bought her a kennel that is her full blown size. We have decided not to keep Tundra in her kennel while we're both at work, instead, we are going to be sectioning off an area of our place so that she has a place to pee, a place to sleep and a place to play. Update: That went well but be aware that baseboards could end up chewed.

Tundra also bit too hard today. She drew blood on my ankle while "playing" with me. I've been trying to get Tundra to look at my face to read my facial expression that I'm NOT in the playful mood. To do this I simply move my hands toward my face as she seems to look at my hands a lot for direction. I think Tundra will be very good with the hand signals when she's a bit older.

Her paws are slowly getting larger. I had to take a pic to remember how small they are now. Her Dads hands are the size of mine to give you a comparison.

So far tone of voice seem to work and clapping my hands (sort of like the 1,2,3 method taught to children-- 1 being NO! 2 being a clap and three I will take whatever away and gently tap her nose and repeat "NO!"). This method is working very well as I usually don't need to get past clapping my hands together for her to listen... here's hoping "NO!" will start working better (:

Tundra is now a part of our family & we love her. This is our first family pic. Tundra is 6 1/2 weeks old in this picture to the left.

Our first real outting with our wolf-hybrid

Yesterday my Mom and I did some Christmas shopping together. Tundra was in her kennel for 3 hours and about 15 minutes and she didn't wet her kennel blanket. She's now 6 weeks old and her other ear is just starting to stand up too periodically.

Its okay to lock them in their kennel when you go out for a couple hours, just make sure they have plenty of water.

Here are some 6 week pictures.

What to get your Wolf-Hybrid Puppy when first purchasing

hen you first buy a wolf-hybrid puppy it's good to know what you'll need to get your puppy before you bring her home. I took photos of all of the toys, food, and milk that you need to have if you're getting a wolf puppy as young as we did (4 weeks old).
We bought her:

• A small kennel (this will have to be upgraded to a very large one in the future
• An blanket for baby (our dog has never peed on her blanket ever overnight in her kennel - she always crys to go pee)
  
• Canine Milk from the Vet
• The recommended food to feed her is iams for puppies (photo below) combined with some dry food to slowly introduce solid dry kibble into her diet
• You have to have toys for her as she's going to be biting everything - have a couple small toys around that shes allowed to chew on (even if its an old pair of slippers) - I recommend the rubber toys that you can hide treats inside as it keeps them busy.

How should I potty train my Wolf-Hybrid Pup?

It is recommended to have one spot that your wolf-hybrid pup is allowed to do its business. We have her training area right next to the door so that its a smooth transition to going outside. We bought Oversized Puppy training mats because they were on sale but you can use flyers if you like. Newspaper can leave ink on their paws. I do recommend the training mats if they're on sale as they sure make cleanup easy.

The Wolf-Trainer/Breeder/Friend/Landlord uses the paper you get on a roll at the post office that is that brown color... no ink, inexpensive solution.


UPDATE 3 Years Later: The only problem we had with using puppy pads is that when we let her sleep on our bed with us she has woken up on two occasions and peed because of the feeling and texture of the soft blankets that triggered her to think of when she was a puppy and this feeling on her paws meant to pee here.

What you will need at 5 weeks +

•  A coller/leash (Wal-Mart - $2 your wolf-hybrid will grow out of it fast)
• Brush (although still not mandatory, I like to brush my puppy every day to get her used to it)
  

Warning: Do NOT feed your wolf-hybrid puppy Milk that humans drink as this can KILL if not seriously harm your puppy at such a young age. ONLY feed veterinary milk formula to your wolf-pup.

Tundra, wolf-hybrid pup, at 5 ½ weeks old

Tundra is a very curious girl getting into everything now. I miss the days when we could snuggle! Now she likes to bite when we try and snuggle as she loves to show affection and play. Biting in Wolf-hybrid puppies is common and normal at a very early age they start to hurt (not intentionally) so I like to distract Tundra with a towel, old slipper or another toy to chew on. Re-enforcement of toys and things she's allowed to chew on will be your constant battle until she's old enough to really know better.

I notice that after 3 weeks of living with us she's already knowing certain sounds, words, and things that are bad and not to do. She already responds to her name and has recently taken up (although cute) a bad trait of howling and barking when she knows that I'm making her food/milk. She gets so excited that the food is coming that the longer I take, the louder and longer she'll cry to me for. I will talk to the wolf-training expert and find out what the best practice to avoid this trait is. I don't like being demanded around my kitchen- by a man OR a dog! haha

Here are her week 5 1/2 old pics. Enjoy.

The YouTube Video I followed to make Tundra's Liver Treats

This video was very helpful for making very inexpensive liver treats for your dog or wolf-hybrid. Our little wolf-hybrid, Tundra, just loves her liver treats, and for $1.50 for a beef liver from the grocery store, I love how practical they are!





Liver treats can be used as encouragement for your wolf-hybrid. We use ours for Tundra when she goes to the bathroom in the correct area. We break them up into smaller pieces so that she can have more (too much liver can be harmful).

A week later... Wolf-hybrid puppy - 5 weeks old

Well tomorrow will be the marking of week one with our new wolf-hybrid pup. Tundra has tripled her food portions from the first couple days we had her... she loves the milk we bought her from the vet. I got a laugh out of reading the directions and reading "Bitches first milk" so I guess it's politically correct to call her a bitch? The breeder said to pop the milk in a small bowl for 10 seconds to warm it up but I find that just running warm water and mixing it in is fine.

The first two nights with Tundra was draining... she woke up about 4 or 5 times whining to go pee and play. Now, at 5 weeks old, last night she only woke up twice: once at 11:30 pm (I've been going to bed lately at 9 to catch up on my sleep) and once at 1:00 am.

Its off and on when she wakes up if she'll cry when we put her back in her kennel. Some nights she'll go right back to bed and other times I'll have to tire her out with playing with her toys.

Her toys consist of: A rope toy with a rubber ball big enough for her mouth, a rubber dog bone with a hole (for hiding treats - keeps them busy for the length of their attention span), a simple piece of rope tied (shown in picture), and a red ball.

Tundra plays with her ball by nudging her nose against it until it begins to roll...

Our little Wolf-Hybrid puppy is still learning potty training. Today she's been bad, peeing on the rug 3 or 4 times (Mom is working and can't always watch her) but for the most part with a little encouragement she has been going on the puppy training mats we bought her.

These puppy training mats are not mandatory but I find them to be a lifesaver because they have a plastic bottom that doesn't allow the pee to absorb through to the ground. Thankfully our entire home is tiled except for an area rug in the living room making cleanup a lot easier.

My other best friend has been a swiffer wet mop for those little paw prints that step in the pee and get tracked around. I'm finding I'm moping the entire floor once a day (or more) when I don't get to her fast enough to clean off her paws. Don't think my floors have been cleaner though haha!

Tundra has a bad habit of biting... all puppies bite and we have been telling her no and tapping her nose. After talking to our dog trainer that specializes in Wolf-hybrids, he said that she's too young to punish or discipline and that biting is a really good sign. My concern was when picking her up she would bite my neck or boobs, wrists etc. Instantly thinking I need to discourage her biting near the jugular. So after hearing that this is normal and GOOD I've now learned that when she does this we need to distract her with something she's allowed to chew on.

Well its winter and cold and one thing I find amusing is cuddling with us, Tundra will often wake up 30-45 minutes later and move away from us because her coat is so thick that she's too warm. She loves our leather couches because they're nice and cold... maybe she'll like my cold feet on her belly lol.

Well I'm off now to get some more work done. This weekend we are going to run some errands in town and this will be Tundra's first time kenneled without anyone home. I hope she does well!

Already I've noticed she's grown a bit (just in a week!) so here is a new updated picture. You might not be able to tell on the picture, but just lift her up and you'll say shes at least 2 lbs heavier.

Tundra's Wolf-Hybrid Video

This is Tundra, our wolf-hybrid puppy, at 4 weeks old.

Tundra's Wolf-Hybrid Litter

In case anyone was curious. Here is a litter of wolf-hybrid puppies. I thought you'd like to see Tundra's brothers and sisters. The Timber Wolf-Hybrid had 10 puppies but we only got photos of 7 puppies as people started showing up to collect their puppies as early as 9 o'clock.

Night1 raising a wolf-hybrid

Tundra is not very fond of her kennel at night. Jason and I both already agreed that she wouldn't sleep in bed with us because when she's 120lbs we don't want to have to share the bed with her.

We do take her on the couch when we're on the couch to cuddle and nap. Shes a very good puppy except for the kennel. She cried/howled/growled last night for a good 20 minutes on and off until Jason got up and slept on the couch with her. She's so small right now that when she trys to hop off the couch its too big of a drop so he had a pillow on the ground.

I had a bad headache last night so I remained in bed waking up 3 more times to her crying as Jason was trying to put her in her kennel to sleep. As soon as he let her out she just walked out of the crate, over to her blanket and fell asleep there.

I got up early this morning to fix her some food and milk we bought from the vet. After playing with her for a good 15 minutes shes out like a light again. Tempted to wake her so she'll let us sleep tonight but I know that puppies need a lot of sleep just like babies do.

Tundra, like most pups, loves to chew on the bottom of pant legs. To try and break her of this habit we have a rope for her to chew on. Every time she trys to chew on it we bring out the rope for her to chew on.

Oh and in good news, potty training this little girl is very very positive so far. We put down a place with paper for her to do her business and last night she took her first poop there! Peeing is a bit hit or miss but its normally around the area we've designated.

Well I must be off to buy some more wet canned food to mix with her dry and some puppy pads.

The Day Tundra was born

Our Wolf-Hybrid puppy was born on October 16, 2009. She was one out of 10 puppies and the only other blonde one in her litter. Her "twin" male brother later reflecting wasn't so much her twin as the solid black brother with white facial markings you will see in the pictures. We are calling him "twin" or "teddy" because he looks like a teddy bear. I tell ya, if I was able to keep both a girl and boy it would have been Tundra and Teddy.

EDIT: I've been getting a lot of hate mail from this blog telling me I'm wrong about her breed. I am friends with the owners (at the time I lived below them and have personally interacted with the parents). I was there when they first got Tundras father... Now one of the supposed "facts" that people constantly throw at me is that she's not a wolf because wolves are not born in the month of October... it's not in their nature. This is true for WOLVES IN THE WILD... wolves when raised in captivity don't regulate to normal habitat ways... they aren't fed every night or given a warm heated home to sleep in therefore they don't mate in the wild during those months. Any more questions ask at sunvalleywolfkennels.com

Tundra is the name of our 4 week old female wolf-hybrid. My name is Nancy and my hubby J (Jason) are both starting a blog to promote wolf-hybrid dogs and share with your our experience in raising one of these amazing animals. Wolves are often mis understood but they are a very affectionate, intelligent species unless raised to become otherwise.

We purchased her from a very close friend (and landlord) that lives upstairs and shares his beautiful property with us. Our landlord breeds wolf-hybrids and we've had the pleasure of getting to know his wonderful wolves and his beautiful German Shepards.

Our Wolf-hybrid puppy is part Alaskan Wolf (male), part Timber Wolf (female) as well as part German Shepard. We are told by our landlord that she has the typical wolf markings on her face and behind her ears of the red you see in wild wolves.

I never knew that a wolf-hybrid puppy could be so intelligent! Day one having her and she already responds to hand signals and words like "come". We told her to come with the hand gesture and repeated the word. She looked at us you could tell trying to figure out what we were saying to her. So I gently lifted her back legs and she started walking towards J. We tried that two other times in a 30 minute span and she came each time called.

We crate her when we eat to teach her not to beg and we are supposed to feed her only after we eat.

Today on day one, we've put her in and out of the crate all day to make sure she's comfortable with it as she put up the cutest tantrum when put her in before supper. She growled, then she howled then she barked and then her final attempt at a big mean growl before falling asleep. It's amazing how, like a child, she has human tendencies.

She has a very thick coat at 4 weeks old, she is cuddling with us for a bit and then she has to get away from us when she later wakes up too hot. She loved laying on the cold tile for a good 20 minutes before switching to the rug.

We are feeding her iams puppy food solid mixed with iiams puppy wet food with rice & chicken. Our landlord said that it is good to feed wolf-hybrids rice and vegetables from the table (after you're done eating, not during). The leftovers from our dinner (rice, veggies, steak) went into a tiny bowl for her. She doesnt eat much but she sure loved the treat.

We've tried feeding her the milk we picked up from the vet (puppy milk) but she seems to prefer the water over the milk.

We're touching her paws, her nose, and her tail to get her used to human contact. We want her to be used to being examined when she visits the vet.

Shes just might make a really really good watch dog at her age already! When we crated Tundra (after her fit and she was calm/sleeping) I walked up to her and startled her awake. She started to growl at me and I couldnt figure why until I bend down face level with her. As soon as she saw my face she stopped growling and we think it's because she didn't recognize us.

Anyways day 1 is coming to a sleepy end. I love the stage where she snuggles us. Just love it! Soon she'll be too big to snuggle.

I'm not sure how much she weights. Jason figures 5 lbs. and we don't have a scale to see.

I'll keep you posted.