# My daughter captures a wolf with her foot **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 26, 2008, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578 "2008-10-26T00:35:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2008, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/21 "2008-10-26T16:25:21Z")
> [@auRa](#): > > I’m guessing you both are going to gaze upon me with ultimate disdain when I point out that the wolf is Canis lup_u_s? I should know not to misspell that, as many of my patients have lupus. So I’m _familiar_ with it. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2008, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/22 "2008-10-26T16:57:21Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Yeah–I’m not a big fan of the idea, either. Early humans spent a lot of time and energy breeding certain instincts out of wolves, and early wolves spent a lot of time and energy adapting to human society, so that humans could get doggy companionship and assistance, and dogs could get human companionship and brains on their side. It’s been one of the great success stories of symbiosis in our planet’s history. > > Folks who try to live alongside wolves are kind of missing the point of all that hard work. Wolves are amazing creatures, but they’re not tailor-made to live in human society. They can cause a bunch of problems here. > > Daniel This. Squared. I used to be kind of laissez-faire towards exotic pets. But the older I get, and the less able to ignore the idiocy that so many people exhibit towards animals when they suddenly consider them a pet, the more I support a lot of the stricter anti-exotic pets laws. You shouldn’t be able to buy a great cat kitten, or a barely hybridized wolf, or a large snake species, without first proving to someone with a clue that you know how to handle and care for such creatures. And that you have the facilities to house them, as well. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2008, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/23 "2008-10-26T17:02:22Z")
There’s a lot of backstory to these wolf-owners and their situation. I won’t go into it as much of it is innuendo and hearsay. But we have reported them to the local Humane Society (who already apparently has a file on them) to try to ensure that the right thing is being done for this animal. While I make light of it in this thread, I am certainly no fan of animals like wolves who are habituated to humans having free run of the neighborhood, even by accident. It would be far better for them to be viable members of a oroper pack than someone’s exotic pet. ---
**Author:** ![CaerieD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/da6949/32.png) [@CaerieD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaerieD)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2008, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/24 "2008-10-26T17:12:29Z")
> [@OtakuLoki](#): > > You shouldn’t be able to buy a great cat kitten, or a barely hybridized wolf, or a large snake species, without first proving to someone with a clue that you know how to handle and care for such creatures. And that you have the facilities to house them, as well. I would go even further than this. I don’t believe people should be able to adopt such animals without the animals first being sterilized. The last thing we need is backyard breeders of wolf hybrids and great cats. The people irresponsibly allowing their domestic cats to breed, or breeding horses that they can’t afford to feed and no one wants to buy whose only future is auction and ultimately slaughter are bad enough. There is absolutely no reason why someone who isn’t part of a licensed breeding program should have an intact male wolf hybrid. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2008, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/25 "2008-10-26T17:14:07Z")
**Qadgop** , I never noticed before, but my, what big eyes you have! ---
**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:** [October 26, 2008, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/26 "2008-10-26T17:17:18Z")
> [@CaerieD](#): > > The last thing we need is backyard breeders of wolf hybrids and great cats. Or Tigerwolves! Or Wolfcheetahs! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![CaerieD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/da6949/32.png) [@CaerieD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaerieD)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2008, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/27 "2008-10-26T17:25:03Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Or Tigerwolves! Or Wolfcheetahs! :eek: Surely they’d be even more terrifying than the Chinese monkey-pig! ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2008, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/28 "2008-10-26T17:36:45Z")
**CaerieD** , I agree completely with you about sterilization, too. ---
**Author:** ![KRC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/45deac/32.png) [@KRC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KRC)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2008, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/29 "2008-10-27T02:00:58Z")
Obligatory story about Cabo the psycho jungle cat: [http://www.angelfire.com/il/cabothecat/](http://www.angelfire.com/il/cabothecat/) ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2008, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/30 "2008-10-27T02:11:16Z")
**KRC** , that is some mind-boggling stuff there. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2008, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/31 "2008-10-27T02:54:24Z")
> [@](#): > > Or Tigerwolves! Or Wolfcheetahs! [Or owlbears.](http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0322.html) ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2008, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/32 "2008-10-27T04:21:01Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > [Or owlbears.](http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0322.html) [Or manbearpig.](http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l62/theonlyPHELPS/manbearpig.jpg) Its serial! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2008, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/33 "2008-10-27T04:34:22Z")
No one else is distressed at reading “tail between its legs” or “acting submissive?” It’s been abused. No offense to the OP. I’m glad you’re daughter is alive. But the animal shouldn’t have been acting like that. I’m glad the humane society is looking into it, though they don’t have law enforcement powers, do they? The cops should be involved. ---
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2008, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/34 "2008-10-27T06:57:05Z")
Purebred wolves never become domesticated. By nature they are pack animals and they are afraid of man. If they weren’t afraid of human beings, they could kill us very quickly. Wolf-dog hybreds are more dangerous because they aren’t afraid of human beings, but they still have the ability to kill us quickly. People think they’ve been domesticated, but they still have that wild animal impulse. They should be illegal. If you are approached by one, don’t look him in the eyes or express any kind of dominate behavior. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2008, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/35 "2008-10-27T14:56:59Z")
I fail to see how a wolf retains “the ability to kill us quickly” in any way that’s distinct from any large breed dog. Many guarding dog breeds are bred and trained to attack humans, at least under certain circumstances. A wolf is somehwat different from a dog psychologically but very much exactly the same physically. IMHO the dangerous thing about wolves is the “s” on the end – in a pack, they’re efficient murder. Sailboat ---
**Author:** ![Sleel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/73ab20/32.png) [@Sleel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleel)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2008, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578/36 "2008-10-29T03:28:45Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > No one else is distressed at reading “tail between its legs” or “acting submissive?” > > It’s been abused. No offense to the OP. I’m glad you’re daughter is alive. But the animal shouldn’t have been acting like that. > > I’m glad the humane society is looking into it, though they don’t have law enforcement powers, do they? The cops should be involved. You can’t make any assumptions about abuse based on body language in this case. Wolves never raise their tails, and a properly socialized pack animal shows submission toward higher status members on meeting and shows fawning behavior after a proper greeting. This is normal behavior for a mature wolf or wolf-dog; raising the tail and making eye contact or grinning like a normal domestic breed would _not_ be normal, and could be a sign of aggression. You also can’t automatically assume neglect just from the fact that it was running around the neighborhood. Wolves and wolf-dog hybrids are escape artists. Penning them takes some serious work, burying wire mesh at least a meter or more below the ground, angling the top of a fence in toward the pen to discourage jumping, or even enclosing the top of the pen. They are smart enough to figure out latches sometimes, so you’ve got to have a proper lock on the gate too. It looks like the owner may not be taking elaborate enough precautions, but that doesn’t necessarily indicate neglect. Taking the background **Qadgop** alludes to into account, the owners are probably not as responsible as they should be, and the Humane Society may remove the animal because of past escape incidents. Any of these points taken by themselves means little though, and there’s no evidence of abuse from what little information has been related here. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-daughter-captures-a-wolf-with-her-foot/469578.md?page=1)