Physical Differences Between Dogs and Wolves
Both wolves and dogs have the same number of teeth, but they, along with the skull and jaw, are larger and stronger in the wolf. “This is likely due to their need to bite and break things like bones in the wild, compared with dogs who evolved much more as scavengers of human refuse,” says Dr. Hughes.
Dogs have rounder faces and larger eyes than wolves, says Jenn Fiendish, a veterinary behavior technician who runs Happy Power Behavior and Training in Portland, Oregon. “They also evolved to have floppy ears and curly or short tails, while the wolf has pointed ears with a long, sickle-type tail,” she says.
Wolves have enormous feet compared to a dog’s, and their two front, middle toes are much longer than their side toes, says Kent Weber, co-founder and director of Mission: Wolf, a refuge for wolves and wolf-dogs located in Westcliffe, Colorado. “With that, they can spring off of their toes, flex their longer ankles, keep their elbows right together and spring at incredible distances. That’s how a wolf can conserve energy and go so far compared to a dog.”
Usually, wolves are larger than humans, including dogs that look “wolfy” like huskies and malamutes. Male wolves vary in size and weight, but they usually range from 66 to 180 lbs. While huskies and malamutes weigh about 60 to 95 lbs at their heaviest. So if your pup weighs as much or as much as you do, they may have a wolf in them.
The ears of the wolf are not flat. Their ears are tight and rigid. To help them stay warm in very cold temperatures, a wolf’s ears are thick and fuzzy. Wolfdogs are almost always going to be very close to the ears of a true wolf. If your dog has thick fuzzy ears that do not easily flop or fold, it may be something that is passed down from an ancestor of a wolf.
Wolves have NO blue eyes, even when they’re puppies. At about 6 weeks, they will eventually turn into an amber-like or brown color. Nevertheless, because they are more dog than wolf, some low content wolfdogs that retain the blue color for their entire lives. But if your dog has yellow eyes, there is a good chance that there will be a touch of wolf.
The noses of the wolves are black, 100% black, no pink or lighter. On the other hand, Wolfdogs, while chances are high that they will all be black as well, in some sections they may have a lighter color. For lower content wolfdogs, lighter coloring will be more popular, but it is still impossible.
These are all great ways to distinguish a wolf dog from a regular dog, but getting a DNA test done is the only way to know for sure.
There’s two main clues to know if your dog or puppy has wolf in them. These are traits that NEVER stop showing no matter what dog the wolf breeds with . ALL WOLF DOGS OR PUPPIES have what I call a hook at the bridges of their nose. They curve much like the German police dogs. This is their trait that’s used for tracking their pray miles away from them. (All of them will have this as this trait never leaves the wolf breed). Next is the canines most of you would call the fangs. normal dogs, have STRAIGHT canines with absolutely no curve to them. It doesn’t matter if their pups or full grown , a wolf dog or wolf puppy’s canines (fangs) have a curve to them. This is also another hunting trait to tear the flesh from their pray with hardly any work to it for them. This is another thing that NEVER leaves the wolf breed no matter what age they are. Many back yard breeders will tell you that once their grown up teeth come in then that’s when you will see this. That is completely wrong! They will have this as soon as their teeth come in (think about it! Wild wolf puppies have to eat as well. They have nobody bringing them dog food. They need this curve in their fangs to eat from their pray). That’s the main signs but there are also more. All wolf breeds from any age puppies or full grown have very thick fur . they have multiple layers beneath their coat that benefits them during the cold winters, and also to benefit them when they get attacked this makes it harder for a animal to actually bite through and rip the flesh away during a fight. Next is the tail. All wolves have a very thick tail. Don’t let anyone get your hopes up . of your in search of adopting an actual wolf breed, you must get them from a wolf sanctuary. Yes its possible to adopt them and the rehoming fees are a bit higher. I’ve done a lot of research on wolves and have had a passion for them since I was a child. A lot of people on here are simply breeding husky and German Shepherd dogs together to get the wolf look but these simple traits will assure you that your really getting what your paying for. Best of luck to you.”
Personally, I have no idea what they are talking about when they say they have a “hook” at the bridge of their noses. I know some shepherds have a bump to their nose, but not so much for wolves, and this isn’t what helps them with tracking. Having a long nose full of something to the tune of 280 million olfactory receptors gives them a good sense of smell. The curved canines: dogs also have curved canines. Feel free to check out comparisons between wolves and dogs online (skull comparisons are a great way to see their teeth). Personally, I’ve never noticed a dog with straight canines. That sounds like it could be problematic. Wolf pups do not hunt their food any more than our domesticated dogs do though. Young pups nurse from their mothers, then as they get older they rely on older wolves in the pack (their parents and older siblings) to regurgitate food for them. Puppies don’t hunt any more than most of our dogs; they’ll play with what you bring home for them, and practice chasing and grabbing and maybe stalking and such, but they don’t usually hunt.
I do have to give this person credit for recommending sanctuaries to people who are seeking wolfdogs though, as well as doing research. I’m glad they’re calling out the fakes they’re seeing on their local Craigslist. I wish I saw more of those kinds of listings on that website. A Tumblr dedicated to the “wolfdogs” of Craigslist and beyond!
There are plenty of dog breeds with thick coats as well. I currently have a co-worker who is bringing me bags full of his malamute and husky/malamute’s undercoat that they’re currently blowing. My friend’s German shepherd has a rather thick coat, and there’s some great pyrenees that roam around my house that also have thick coats. There are plenty of other thick coated breeds out there (their tails, too). Dogs come in all sorts of types, after all.