What breeds of domestic dogs would stand a chance against a wolf?
Wolfhounds
^;)
I have seen some pitbulls that would probably hold their own, mostly due to training.
Heh.
It really depends on the Wolf. Some wolves are only about 40 lbs. Others can be as large as 175 lbs.
A number of breeds of dogs were bred to protect herds against predators. German Shepherds, Bouviers, Belgian Sheepdogs, Great Pyrenees, Komondors. The Irish Wolfhound was bred to hunt wolves and Elk. The Irish Wolfhound male weighs on average between 140 and 180 lbs.
Basically, I’d say any equivalently sized dog or larger would have a fighting chance against a wolf. And there are a lot of large dog breeds.
Charter Arms Bulldog gets my vote.
Pit Bulls are “game” due to breeding, not training. You can either encourage that disposition (if you want a dog that’s dangerous to other dogs and possibly humans) or you can try to discourage their dominant disposition if you want a dog that would make a good pet & companion. They can be good pets if they are raised correctly. You will probably have to introduce other dogs slowly and under controlled situations before you can leave them unattended together.
The “training” that a dog fighter would use would be more like the training that a boxer does to get ready for a fight, athletic conditioning, running, pulling, etc. rather than any kind of obedience training or operant conditioning.
Pit Bulls have incredible strength for their weight and endurance, both of which are important for pit fighting. I’d expect them to take most other similarly- sized canids in a fight because that’s what they were bred for.
If you could arrange it so the opponent is a single wolf, some of the larger breeds might do okay. But because wolves typically hunt cooperatively, in real-world encounters a dog’s chances would be poor.
I would guess that wolves in the wild are not all that great at fighting. That’s not the way they operate. There is some fighting in the group for dominance but it usually doesn’t last long and isn’t to the death. The submissive wolf gives up rather quickly and that’s the end of it. Wolves act by cooperation within the group and not by continually fighting each other for first place.
I would think one on one a Bull Mastiff could be added to the list.
There are definately Wolves that hunt alone. While they are pack animals there are for many reasons exceptions.
Well, actually Pit Bulls were bred to fight…bulls. The practice of “Bull Baiting” is described by The Perfect Master Himself in a discussion of Bulldogs. Now, the ability to mess up a bull goes a long way when messing up another dog, or a burglar, or an unwary cat; but that’s not what the dog was bred for.
Now. The Chihuahua. That’s a dog bred specifically for fighting other dogs in a pit setting.
Are dogs significantly different in this respect?
“Pit Bull” is not a breed of dog, any more than “Seeing Eye Dog” is.
A pit bull is a bull terrier bred for and trained to fight competitively. (That is, a strain of bull terrier with the aggressive tendency is selected for, and then the resulting pups raised to become pit bulls.)
We used to have neighbors with a mild-mannered bull terrier that was quite friendly to people he knew, but would stand guard over the family’s young children, who could therefore be allowed to play outside otherwise unsupervised in a neighborhood arguably too dangerous to do safely in the absence of the dog.
You’re absolutely right. The Borzoi (Russian Wolfhound) is still used for hunting wolves in Russia. Usually two of the animals will chase down a wolf, grasp it by the neck from each side, and bring it to the ground. They then hold it there until the hunter either kills or captures the wolf.
Borzoi are incredibly fast and agile, They can run down and catch a rabbit easily no matter how it turns and doges. In many places in the US they have coursing contests with sight houds and rabbits.
As to temperment, they are sweethearts.
[QUOTE=KlondikeGeoff]
no matter how it turns and doges. /QUOTE]
…dodges :smack:
Dig THIS.
The American Pit Bull Terrier is not recognized by the AKC, bu the AKC does recognize a certain line of pit bulls called the American Staffordshire Terrier. All AmStaffs are pit bulls, not all pit bulls are AmStaffs.
Very true within a pack - there are obvious advantages to minimizing bloodshed. But confrontations between packs (as when territory boundaries are disputed) can be serious fights - so fighting ability is a real asset.
My Chow would be willing to try to kick a wolf’s ass! He’s not scared of anything. Not even ‘Daddy’ and he should be. We’ve lost count of the number of 'possums and raccoons he’s killed. He murdered a bobcat through the fence two months ago - ripped off two boards and mostly decapitated it!
Tommy is a stray of that presuasion who showed up as a pup and begged to stay.
He hides under the porch when neighbors come over.
Neighbors he knows. :rolleyes:
Damned if I know. As xema pointed out, behavior within the pack is different than behavior outside.
Willing, yes - but able? I recommend declining this engagement.