# How different is a human-raised wolf from a dog? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 20, 2000, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-different-is-a-human-raised-wolf-from-a-dog/30009 "2000-08-20T01:32:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2000, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-different-is-a-human-raised-wolf-from-a-dog/30009/1 "2000-08-20T01:32:54Z")
Suppose I take a wolf puppy from the wild, and raise it as I would a “regular” dog. What behavioral differences would the wolf have from, say, a German Shepard or an Akita (or any other dog)? ---
**Author:** ![Anti\_Pro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Anti\_Pro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anti_Pro)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2000, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-different-is-a-human-raised-wolf-from-a-dog/30009/2 "2000-08-20T01:44:47Z")
In a backward way of guessing at an answer to your question. I have an English Springer male dog, Watson, who loves to hunt things, not to eat them, he just kills and carries them around. Now where did he learn that? He was raised by some very nice people who don’t do that, but in his long past, his genetic coding STILL knows to hunt. The dog of today doesn’t do it to eat, but he still can and has killed. I hate it, it’s messy and gross and our female dog doesn’t do this, she glares at him when he DOES. Even after years and years of domestication ‘wolf behavior’ STILL prompts the inner Watson to kill, can you just imagine what a newly domesticated wolf puppy would end up doing? Why not just stick with the usual messy problems associated with dogs, or Wattie’s still pretty cute, want him?? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2000, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-different-is-a-human-raised-wolf-from-a-dog/30009/3 "2000-08-20T02:02:47Z")
Wolves still have the instincts of the pack. They will only obey you as long as you are clearly dominant, both socially and phyisically. Therefore they are not at all afraid to challenge whoever owns them. They are also violently protective and will attack anyone or anything they see as a threat to their land, food, pack, or status. Certain breeds of dog have these properties to some extent, such as Malamutes, Akitas, and Dobermans, but not to the extent wolves do. I say, stick with dogs. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2000, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-different-is-a-human-raised-wolf-from-a-dog/30009/4 "2000-08-20T02:22:13Z")
I’m certainly not thinking about doing this, it’s just a question that popped into my head today. I would assume that humanity’s dog breeding would have favored friendly dogs, so the wolf would be genetically inclined to be “meaner”. Derleth’s comment them challenging the owner is thought-provoking. I wouldn’t let the wolf sleep in my bedroom! ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2000, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-different-is-a-human-raised-wolf-from-a-dog/30009/5 "2000-08-20T02:53:37Z")
Well with my Username I had to jump into this one. You can get into an debate about nature vs nuture on this one, if temperment is part of genetics or mostly the environment it is rasied in. But from my experience it genetics has a lot to do with it. Obviously any domesticated dog can be mean, but I think a wolf is much more likely to be agressive, and to a much greater extent. Except for small groups of a\*\*holes who breed for dog fights, dogs have been specifically bred to be calmer and work well with people. The agressive and uncontrolable dogs are usually not bred, and often euthanized these days. The couple thousand years we have been doing it, gives us dogs that live very well in society. Especially big dogs, an agressive wolfhound is not very likely to be kept in a family setting, due to the fact it is completely capable of killing someone. Crappy little rat-dogs on the other hand are often considered “cute” when they ran up and start biting your shoes, and display much more antisocial behavior than dogs capable of inflicting harm. A true wolf, having no selective breeding for temperment(except its natural world, where agressiviness is good) has a lot more chance to be a viscious and dominant animal, and obviously has the size and technique to be very dangerous. The wolf breeders I know(admittedly very few) all say that a pet wolf, even one that has a good disposition, has to be much more carefully put in situations, because they are more likely to “revert” to competitive behavior than a domesticated breed. ---
**Author:** ![justwannano](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7ab992/32.png) [@justwannano](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/justwannano)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2000, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-different-is-a-human-raised-wolf-from-a-dog/30009/6 "2000-08-20T02:55:04Z")
I don’t know about behavorial differences myself but some people who live a few miles away raise wolves. There is a state park nearby and in the evening the wolves can be heard howling. Kind of neat if you know what the noise is but kind of eerie if you don’t. I have heard you cannot ever trust them though. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2000, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-different-is-a-human-raised-wolf-from-a-dog/30009/7 "2000-08-20T03:58:15Z")
Funny, I just read something about this. The artical said that domestic dogs (_Canis Familiaris_) are essentially wolves (Canis Lupis\*). It said that dogs and wolf used to be considered different species, but recently dogs have been included with the wolves. I don’t remember exactly, but I believe the domestic dog has been reclassified as _Canis Lupis Familiaris_. ---
**Author:** ![Poto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ab992/32.png) [@Poto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poto)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2000, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-different-is-a-human-raised-wolf-from-a-dog/30009/8 "2000-08-20T04:10:21Z")
Domestic dogs go back 30-50 000years. They are different from wolves, as you are different from Neanderthals. A few hald wolf half dogs have been raised, in cages. They do not bark. The third generation from them may bark again. ---
**Author:** ![beakerxf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc79bd/32.png) [@beakerxf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beakerxf)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2000, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-different-is-a-human-raised-wolf-from-a-dog/30009/9 "2000-08-20T04:29:18Z")
One of my dad’s drinking buddies owned a wolf/huskie mix. It was extremely high strung and was chained up 24/7. Us kids were intructed to stay away from the dog/wolf at all times. While it had never attacked anybody, its “play” was extremely rough and the owner had the scars to prove it. ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2000, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-different-is-a-human-raised-wolf-from-a-dog/30009/10 "2000-08-20T18:04:53Z")
There’s a ton of stuff on the Web on raising pet wolves, both pro and con.