Would you keep a wolf-dog hybrid that snatched your baby from the crib?

[Liberal_in_LA]

note, offers to adopt the dog are pouring in. Others, including an animal sanctuary, have offered to take the dog and save it from death

Father of baby taken from crib wants wolf-dog hybrid Dakota back home
August 18, 9:02 PMPet News ExaminerHelena Sung

Michael Smith, the father of the three-day old baby who survived being snatched from his crib by the family's wolf-dog hybrid, Dakota, says he now wants the animal back at home, reports the Lexington-Herald.

On July 20, Dakota grabbed baby A.J. while he was lying in his crib and ran outside. By the time A.J. was recovered, he had suffered two collapsed lungs, a fractured skull and numerous cuts and bruises. Miraculously, A.J. survived, and after several days in critical condition, recovered enough to return home, where he is expected to fully recover.

[MichaelHarris]

1. Dingos

ate my baby.

[waiting for hope]

2. That's insane! Doesn't the state

have an obligation to put the animal down? And where is the guarantee that it won't happen again?

[dflprincess]

3. Wolf hybrids are dangerous

not only should this guy not get his wolf-dog back, I'm not so sure he should get his baby back.

[EFerrari]

37. Who leaves a three day old baby alone long enough for a dog

to snatch him. :wtf:

[gbate]

72. Do you have children? Maybe the baby was sleeping and the mother had to pee?

There are many reasons to leave a baby for a minute.

[stanwyck]

70. My daughter's wolf hybrid is a total sweetheart.

she got her dog five years ago when he was a puppy. He's been a wonderful pet ever since.

[mitchum]

4. I like dogs better than babies, but my answer is still "no"

[FarCenter]

5. Give him the dog back

It is too late for the father to get a Darwin award.

But the wolf-dog might nip the next generation of his genes in the bud.

[flvegan]

6. This will be unpopular

but as I recall the story, I'm not convinced that the "dog" was being malicious and intending to harm the kid.

That said, it is weird to want the dog back even still.

Personally, I wouldn't keep a wolf hybrid regardless. They aren't dogs. I wouldn't have a tiger either, though I have a cat.

[Liberal_in_LA]

8. Dog probably thought the baby was a toy or something. Baby was only 3 days old, new to the

dog. My cats tried to 'play' with my birds.

[flvegan]

11. Right. Or

a "pup" in some sort of danger. Had this story climaxed with "right before the house exploded from a gas leak" the "dog" would be a hero. Nobody's going to ever know what that animal was thinking.

[seabeyond]

12. this was more my thought. either that, or jealous.... but i can see that. nt

[pnwmom]

30. Dogs could tell by the smell that the baby belonged to the parents.

I wouldn't compare this to a cat and a bird.

[pnwmom]

24. The "dog" wasn't malicious, it was acting on its instincts. And it does NOT

belong in a home with children -- not with those instincts. I think it should go to the animal sanctuary.

[AndrewP]

52. Well said

[hamsterjill]

78. I agree, as well.

I don't think the dog was acting intentionally malicious. That said, it is the obligation of the parents to maintain a safe environment for the infant.

The dog should not go back to the home, but to an animal sanctuary with experience with the wolf-hybrid breed. There is no need, in my opinion, to kill the animal. There is enough killing in this world. When one can be spared by some creative maneuvering, then let's save it if we can.

[Gormy Cuss]

31. It's wanting the animal back in the house that doesn't sit well with me.

I'd want to find a great new home for the animal but there is a major disconnect when someone wants to bring back that hybrid with a newborn infant in the house. Whether the animal had malicious intent is irrelevant. The child will be in danger for years with that animal in the house.

[Karenina]

35. I wonder what the child's mother thinks of all this...

:shrug:

[LisaL]

48. And I wonder what CPS thinks of all of this.

[anneboleyn]

58. Exactly. This is seriously f*cked up. The baby was in CRITICAL condition for f*cks sake.

And the father doesn't seem to care. I am sure this is a very well adjusted household. Right.

[Arkansas Granny]

47. Like you, I remember the original story and it didn't seem that the animal was

trying to harm the baby. That being said, he should not be around babies or small children, ever again. It sounds like the same restrictions should be placed on the father.

A sanctuary is probably the best outcome for the "dog".

[Hassin Bin Sober]

61. He was probably taking him to the forest to raise as his own.

[WildEyedLiberal]

82. I don't think the dog was being malicious and I hope it finds a good (childfree) home

But for the dude to want it back after it almost - inadvertently or not - killed his kid?

:wtf:

My aunt has a wolf hybrid - it's a gorgeous creature. But it's VERY strong-willed and my aunt constantly has to assert her alpha status. She also has no kids and lives in a big, sprawling, isolated rural home. Definitely not a "family pet."

[tinkerbell41]

7. I love my furbabies

But I would draw the line there. Let rescue take it .

[PopSixSquish]

9. I Have Friends Who Owned Two Wolf-Husky Crosses

and they were the sweetest things ever. The bigger one thought he was a lap dog and the smaller was more scared around people but if you ignored her, she would eventually come over and start licking your feet.

These two dogs lived in a house with four cats as well and got along fine with all of them. Of course the Siamese cat was the pack leader to begin with.

[Liberal_in_LA]

10. when will cat lovers get tiger-cat or couger-cat hybrids?

[InvisibleTouch]

20. There are serval-domestic crosses...

...called savannah cats. Very beautiful, though I don't know what they're like in the home. I've known pet full-blooded servals and pet ocolots, and some are very personable and friendly (and some aren't), but they can't be kept loose in the home like a domestic cat. They do need the proper facilities.

Bengal cats are a cross between domestics and the Asian leopard cat, though most of the ones sold as pets have the wild cat several generations back, by now. They are essentially domestic cats.

[Lorien]

55. Had one (seval/bengal mix) and don't recommend them

as pets:

[Liberal_in_LA]

56. What a beautiful animal.

[anneboleyn]

62. Wow. He is gorgeous. Was he just too much of a handful?

[Liberal_in_LA]

66. Look at those big ears. like satellite dishes. Must have good hearing.

[Lorien]

67. You couldn't get much past him:

[Liberal_in_LA]

79. "I'm all ears" wow

[Lorien]

68. Yep. He is 75% wild, and it showed. He'd be a loving housecat one minute

and a fly-at-your face wild cat the next.I adopted him from a woman who didn't like his destructive behavior (he chewed everything out of boredom). I exercised him daily with play so his chewing behavior did stop, but he was bonded to one person and one person only (most wild cat pets can never be re-homed). I convinced her that taking him back would be the best thing for him, and TRIED to convince her that daily play and exercise would be the only way to curb his destructive tendencies, but she didn't listen to me there. Last I heard she was still seeking another home for him. He adores her; jumps on her and licks her face like an excited dog when he sees her--but she wants him to behave like a domestic house cat, which is something that he will never do. :-(





Big boy Ashiki stretches against his cat tree:

[Liberal_in_LA]

80. lol. My kinda feral domestic cat has those tendencies. Lovingly rubbing against us one minute,

Trying to kill you if you pet her one second too long. crazy cats.

[Lorien]

83. But I bet that she doesn't weigh 35 pounds

he isn't just a handful; he's two arms full!

[Critters2]

25. How did I know that sentence was going to end with...

"and they were the sweetest things ever"? :banghead:

[Vektor]

43. Because maybe it was true?

Sad that we always have to rationalize and explain that our wolf hybrids/pit bulls/rottweilers/mastiffs are "the sweetest things ever" when most of the time they are - except in rare cases of human stupidity/ignorance/mistreatment/irresponsibility.

You don't hear about the millions of large/bull/molossian/hybrid breed dogs who never attack anyone and ARE the sweetest things ever because they don't raise the hackles of the knee jerk reactionaries, or garner ratings on the evening news like the bad apples do.

[PopSixSquish]

57. Because These Two Dogs Were

but they were also owned and trained by responsible, caring people who loved them. But these two people were also in charge and didn't let their dogs get away with anything bad behavior.

I'm only relaying my experience with the type of dog from the story. If the poor pit bulls rescued from Michael Vick's place can be rehabilitated and adopted out, then so can this dog...

[misanthrope]

69. And that's the thing with wolves...

...They MUST have someone strongly in charge to keep them in line as good pack members and most folks just don't have what it takes to do that. It's very demanding and time consuming, requiring diligence, consistency and high self-awareness. Wolves are consummate social observers and the slightest changes in body language are noted by them.

[stanwyck]

71. Same for my daughter's wolf-husky. A wonderful pet

people are scared of him because he looks like a wolf. But he's very gentle with other dogs and is protection for my daughter and her roommates. He probably wouldn't hurt an intruder. But they don't know that...so, he serves as protection.

[Forkboy]

77. We raised Huskies when I was a kid and the female was a Wolf-Husky cross.

She was awesome. Beautiful and friendly dog. Plus, I could feed her without getting tackled. The male got me every time. Just to lick my face of course, but I was 6 and he was bigger than me, so I was easy prey. :)

[Sebastian Doyle]

13. I doubt this critter would make a good family companion.

If he lived around here, I'd consider taking him to Wolf Haven.

http://www.wolfhaven.org/

[Feron]

18. I agree.

Wolves are gorgeous, but they aren't pets.

[baldguy]

14. Dogs that attack children deserve to die.

Human beings that attack children deserve to die.

[misanthrope]

22. It's not a dog**nm

**

[Vektor]

42. Respectfully disagree. Human beings know better. Dogs, not quite so much.

Animals don't have the same higher reasoning capabilities that humans do. I don't feel they "deserve to die" for attacking. They're animals. They may act on instinct and inadvertently cause harm, but that's not the same as a human being knowing right from wrong and making a conscious decision to do harm despite knowing better. An animal attacking a person is a tragic, unfortunate incident. A human attacking another human is a choice to do harm, with malicious intent.

You only "deserve to die" if you have full understanding of the consequences of an act, can discern "right from wrong" and choose to do harm anyway, knowing full well what you are doing.

Dogs just don't operate on that level.

Don't get me started on what fate humans who abuse animals deserve.

[Mystayya]

15. Wolves are not pets----- EVER

They are beautiful, majestic, deadly carnivores and any parent who puts their child in the path of one should be locked up for a long time.

[lonestarnot]

16. Woofie needs new home.

[InvisibleTouch]

17. Yes, but I would keep him away from the baby in the future. n/t

[Warpy]

19. The court needs to step in and say he can have the dog

if he gives up the baby, puts it up for adoption by a sane family.

I wonder which one he'd choose then.

[Critters2]

26. Yep. Dog or baby, take your pick!

And I agree, I wouldn't be surprised if this mouth-breather chose the dog.

[misanthrope]

21. That poor beautiful canine needs to go to a rescue group...

...While wolves that are raised in captivity can seem very doglike, they aren't domestic dogs. Neither are hybrids.

Dogs are neotanized wolves. The difference between canis lupus Linnaeus and canis lupus familiaris is like the difference between an adult human and a neotanized human.

Someone needs to step in and save that poor animal.

[mitchtv]

23. I had a wolf huskyx st Bernard Great Dane

ended up 37.5 percent C lupus. for 14 1/2 years , not the best trained but very loyal and a great watchdog. I never let her off the leash in town, as she didn't like other females; smart and extrmely beautiful, and was quite a handful in adolescence, but became a great dog, despite tearing the wiring out under the Jeep, twice.

[MilesColtrane]

27. So the baby is only one-quarter werewolf now?

How does that work?

[B3Nut]

50. It never finishes its pina colada at Trader Vic's

and its hair will never be perfect.

(sorry, couldn't resist!) :D

ah-WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.......

[proteus_lives]

28. No!

Good god, it needs to be put down.

[Vektor]

44. He needs to go to the sanctuary like the article suggests.

Putting an animal down for doing what animals do (act on instinct) isn't necessary. Just don't keep him in a home with infants.

[TankLV]

29. Keep the dog - eat the baby...

I'm KIDDING!

geesh...

[Bryan]

32. No, and highlighting the wolf-dog issue is needlessly inflammatory

It strikes me as a fairly simple calculation: if your pet injures your child, and you don't endeavor to remove the pet from your household, then one or both of them should be taken away from you.

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[TexasObserver]

34. The father shouldn't be allowed to have the dog or the baby.

He's unresponsible.

[Hekate]

36. Why hasn't Child Protective Services removed the baby from this idiot's custody?

The newborn had "two collapsed lungs, a fractured skull and numerous cuts and bruises". It's obvious that he would have died outright if not for immediate extensive medical intervention.

And the father of the baby wants the wolf-dog back in the home? He's an idiot -- and if Baby's mom stays with him, so is she.

Hekate
:argh:

[comtec]

38. It sounds like there is much more to this story than is printed

How much of that damaged was caused by the animal?

and what frelling idiot lets a animal anywhere NEAR A 3 DAY OLD BABY!?!?!?!

Good god, my niece was attached at the breast to my sister for weeks, same with my SiL's sons.

There is more to this story I imagine.

If the dog drew blood, then it needs to probably be put down.

K9's can't be allowed the taste of human blood, ever, at least that's the common wisdom passed down for milena.

[MattBaggins]

73. That's the way it was in my rather large family

Dog drew blood from a human and Dad/Grandpa/Uncle took him for a walk and the dog didn't come back.

[anneboleyn]

59. This is what disturbs me -- an infant in critical condition and the father cares about the dog?

[greguganus]

39. He should of snatched Michael Vick from his new crib in Philly. n/t

[RebelOne]

40. As much as I love animals, I definitely would not

keep that dog around my baby. I would be finding it another home or a rescue group.

[Cass]

41. Dakota should go to the sanctuary.

No way should he be put back in an environment with the baby. Even if the parents were able to protect the baby at all times (which I doubt they could do), eventually that baby will grow into a toddler and things could could get real dicey then. The sanctuary is the best option for all involved.

What is a beautiful animal.

[Scout]

45. Other

i don't DESERVE my dog back after an incident like this. wolf-dog hybrids can be very flakey, and it's extremely irresponsible to own one unless you are an expert trainer/handler.

it's not the dog's fault it did what it did, but it's certainly not the babies fault either. this dog needs to go to a sanctuary or with professionals, for its own well-being and safety.

dad needs some serious counseling in responsibility, and a hefty fine to an animal rescue, and some community service too.

[havocmom]

46. That idiot is more concerned with a macho image than his child's well being.

Have known a couple of wolf 'owners' and several hybrid owners. All of them had the same issue. And the animals all looked miserable.

This man's wolf is not pet material. This man is not father material. Neutering both would get my approval.

[DailyGrind51]

49. Dogs have been known to drag or carry children from homes, if they smell smoke.

Like they would carry their whelps from a forest fire.

[xultar]

54. I was thinking that maybe the dog thought it was helping out as well. The baby

was part of the dog's pack and may have wanted to carry it somewhere to help.

If the child's injuries didn't include like ravage dog bites I'd lean on the fact that it wasn't an attack of some kind.

[DailyGrind51]

81. Exactly! The dog had no way to determine how much pressure was harmful to an infant.

The first time I tightened the bolts on a tappet cover on an engine, I snapped the head off one of them by applying too much torque. (I guess that's why they make torque wrenches?) But, if I didn't know how much pressure to use without causing damage, how could a dog know?

[Yunomi]

51. I voted 'yes' because...

the question was 'would I want my dog back?' Yes, I would. That's not saying I SHOULD have the dog back. There are a lot of things to be considered, the safety of the child being first, in most people's minds. I admit, I would make a piss-poor parent, which is why I don't have children. But I do have dogs, only one of which is safe around kids. I know this, and avoid situations where my beasties would come in contact with children. I am a lot more diligent at keeping my dogs away from kids than most parents are at keeping their kids away from my dogs.

[me b zola]

53. Other

The father is not smart enough to be a pet owner. He obviously did not properly socialize the dog/wolf into the family. Loser.

[aikoaiko]

60. I had a wolf-malamute mix. I learned it couldn't be trusted around any child.

I was 19 and my GF at the time wanted one because they are beautiful and it fit her hippy mountain girl persona. Unless you have a lot of land and/or a lot of fencing and no children, they are next to impossible to keep contained. It took me two years to figure out how to keep it from digging under the fences. And then it learned to climb them.

I tried to get the GF to give it to someone with a couple of wolf mixes and a lot of land in AZ, but she couldn't part with it. Eventually, we parted and she took the wolf mix with her. She was completely unprepared to keep it contained. It would get loose often. It died by being hit by a car. It was a terrible death, but a part of me was glad that he died without having mauled a child.

It was inevitable if he had lived. I prevented too many close calls when I lived with it.

RIP TUNDRA. You were a beautiful wild thing.

[Thickasabrick]

63. That looks just like my mutt except coloring...maybe I have a hybrid. I would take

that dog in a heartbeat. Give it to me!!!

[KakistocracyHater]

64. who here with a younger sibling didn't feel threatened? the poor dog is just

an animal & felt his/her position in the home was endangered, & this proved to be true. It is for us to make decisions using the executive areas of the brain, not half-wolves or any other animal-they can't make such choices.

I say sanctuary.

[Roon]

65. My parents have a huge dog that has bitten several people

including a toddler...they keep the dog though. My parents are college educated,work at good jobs, have a big huge house..and they risk losing all of that over a biting dog. I can't understand it.

[drm604]

74. He wants the "dog" back?

Fine, give him the animal and take the baby.

[d_r]

75. I love dogs

I love animals. I would put it down. It just can not be trusted.

[Edweird]

76. Sure, I'd keep the dog....

at the bottom of a 4 foot deep hole out back by the fence next to my other deceased pets. I love animals, but if my dog attacks anyone, especially one of my children, I am putting that dog down.

Of course, I wouldn't have a 'wolf hybrid' or 'wolf' anything for that matter. A girl I used to know had one and all parties involved were miserable.

[Evoman]

84. Yes, I would keep him. And I would feed him more babies to make him stronger.

I heard a rumour somewhere that if wolves eat enough babies, they start to aborb human grey matter and they can be taught human tricks. Like playing the piano. And doing jazz hands.

[saltpoint]

85. I happen to like wolves, dogs, and babies. I hope something can be

worked out.

[renate]

86. we had a golden retriever who would, literally, never hurt a fly

Sweetest dog ever. She was made of sugar.

And I would never, ever have made it possible for her to be alone in a room with my babies. You just never know when domesticated animals will be decide to be undomesticated animals... it's their nature, it's not their fault, but I would never have taken a chance.

[ManiacJoe]

87. How much wolf is in that hybrid?

According to folks I used to know who did raise the hybrids every now and then, unless the new owner really really knows what he is doing, 1/4 wolf is far better than 1/2 wolf.

[Thothmes]

88. If I had young children, I would not keep a wolf hybred any more than

a 14 ft. Burmese python.