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I guess I have a Wolf

4K views 39 replies 12 participants last post by  Sunsilver 
#1 ·
So this picture of Rollo (below) is my background on my computer at work. Lady in the office comes over & asks what kind of dog he is - I tell her he is a GSD, she goes "No, that's definitely a wolf, I've seen them before." she was dead serious & KEPT telling me he is a wolf & not a GSD. Lol, so my question now is, what do I do now that I obviously have a wolf? Do I leave the forum & make new friends at the wolf forum website? Very confused..
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2h2XQF5]unnamed (1) by charlie marquardt, on Flickr[/URL]
 
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#19 ·
My children are demon spawns straight from Hades. I’ve tried turning them over to animal sanctuaries for years, but they won’t even have them. I’ve been advised that euthanasia would be the best option to put them out of their misery, but I just can’t bring myself to do it.

Anyone willing to temp foster them for me while I recover? ???
 
#23 ·
It definitely is kids! haha The other thing at play is that Rollo is huge (100+lbs) so that seems to make people "more conviced" that he's a wolf. What are ya gonna do
 
#31 ·
Yeah, Dad was quite the looker, but unfortunately, my female had temperament problems (extremely fearful) and had to be rehomed. Very disappointing, as I bought her as a potential breeding dog. But one of the rules for the ISSR (breed founder's registry) is ALL breeding dogs MUST pass a temperament test, as well as having passing hips and elbows.
 
#33 · (Edited)
It was a HUGE problem with the ISSR dogs! I once went through the training forum and made a list of all the threads that dealt with dogs with fear issues. It was a real eye-opener!

I no longer follow what's happening with the breed, since the death of Tina Barber, the breed founder, so I don't know if that's still the case, or if the other rival registries have been able to lick the problem.

The breed was mainly based on American lines, many of which have temperament problems, then when she outcrossed to a dog that was (supposedly) a cross between a giant malemute and a German shepherd, things seemed to get even worse...:crying:

The fall I got my dog, we were out in the woods while someone was shooting a deer hunting rifle. She looked up briefly at the first noise, then went back to sniffing a bush. She also stood beside me while we watched an excavator dig up the sidewalk, put her nose into strollers, and kissed babies. About 9 months, everything went south, and when she saw my best friend approaching us on the street, she tried to run away and hide! She was suddenly afraid of children, men, bicycles, loud noises...EVERYTHING! One day, a small off leash puppy came running up to greet her, and she freaked so badly she tore the leash out of my hand. When I took her to training classes, she would hide underneath my chair, and refuse to take even very high value treats, like chicken.

Everyone said, "oh, she's going through a fear period" Well, she never grew out of the 'fear period', so I rehomed her at the age of 2. :frown2:
 
#34 ·
It was a HUGE problem with the ISSR dogs! I once went through the training forum and made a list of all the threads that dealt with dogs with fear issues. It was a real eye-opener!

I no longer follow what's happening with the breed, since the death of Tina Barber, the breed founder, so I don't know if that's still the case, or if the other rival registries have been able to lick the problem.

The breed was mainly based on American lines, many of which have temperament problems, then when she outcrossed to a dog that was (supposedly) a cross between a giant malemute and a German shepherd, things seemed to get even worse...:crying:

The fall I got my dog, we were out in the woods while someone was shooting a deer hunting rifle. She looked up briefly at the first noise, then went back to sniffing a bush. She also stood beside me while we watched an excavator dig up the sidewalk, put her nose into strollers, and kissed babies. About 9 months, everything went south, and when she saw my best friend approaching us on the street, she tried to run away and hide!

Everyone said, "oh, she's going through a fear period" Well, she never grew out of the 'fear period', so I rehomed her at the age of 2. :frown2:
I'm sorry to hear that - but it's admirable you made the best decision for you! My family has always had GSDs, Rollo is the first dog thats fully mine. But before I got him I was researching tons on Shilohs (they are beautiful) but I heard a lot of cautionary stories such as yours Sunsilver and there were no breeders near me. I'm so glad to have Rollo (remember he is a wolf, no longer GSD lol) but man are they a fascinating breed! Rollo's confidence is maybe his best quality it allows us to train & have fun in so many different environments
 
#38 ·
People should do real research on what kind of dog they get as dogs get dumped left and right. Any line or breed of dog can have a bad temperament. I adore my American show line great dog.not perfect but close enough. Best dog I ever had. My life will never be the same without him in. He brings a strong good fun energy into this home. My daughter walked both dogs through a crowded concert in the fog on the beach with screaming babies inches away. Music so loud I felt like a had gone dead walking my the stage. I would only hope they get a dog as great as Max and Luna as so many great stories and memories that helped my entire family grow through some pretty rough times.

Lol! Red riding hood at least you have your costume picked out! Halloween Sadly around the corner - so not want this summer to end. It sounds like that cape will have to be custom made lol!
 
#40 · (Edited)
People should do real research on what kind of dog they get as dogs get dumped left and right. Any line or breed of dog can have a bad temperament.
Jenny, I knew the breeder, and saw the pups being born in this case. I also knew the mother and father (owned by the breeder) and I even knew many dogs from the previous generation (mother and father's siblings.) There was NOTHING that raised any red flags.

She showed no fearing during the puppy evaluation that was done at 8 weeks, and as I said above, she was fine up until about 9 months - gunshots, noisy machinery, kids, etc. Then, BOOM! Everything changed. And there were no bad experiences with people or other dogs that triggered it.

To say it was a big disappointment was putting it mildly...:crying:

All I can say is, sometimes poop happens, even when you do EVERYTHING right!

The only thing that MIGHT have raised a red flag was hearing the breed founder and dog owners talking about 'fear periods'. This was something new to me, but at that point, having never raised a puppy that young, I thought, okay, I don't know everything. Guess this is something that happens.

I've raised several German shepherd pups since then. Guess what? They DON'T HAVE fear periods!!
 
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