True, a wolf's usual intention with a dog (especially little yap-yaps) is
to eat it. But a successful feral bitch in heat might very well attract
male wolves.
> I realize that there have been a more-than-trivial number of incidents
> of wolf-hybrid attacks. But the same can be said for pit bulls, etc.
> The problem with just counting such incidents is that it says nothing
> about the circumstances.
Nobody disputes any of this.
I'll even go out on a limb, and say that most attacks by pet wolf/dog
hybrids are a result of one of the following:
1) Challenge/competition for the position of alpha. It's a common
mistake for people keeping wolves to put themselves as alpha in
the pack. When dealing with wolves, you don't want to be alpha,
you want to be god.
2) Retaliation for abuse.
3) Discipline of youngsters (which does get a bit rough with canines).
All of this is normal behavior, and the circumstances are easily avoided.
> All animals, wild or domesticated, may resort to killing any other
> animals (humans included) if starved or otherwise desparate. But to
> attempt to characterize wolves as "bloodthirsty" or just dangerous, out
> of context, is a miscarriage of reasoning and patently unfair to the
> species.
Nobody disputes this either. Wolves are not going to lie in wait
specifically to eat little kids. Most modern wolves have a well-inbred
fear of humans (and especially adults with guns).
However -- and this is what city folk fail to realize -- wolves are
nonetheless large and dangerous predators. Their primary instinct is for
survival. Predators are opportunistic, and will attack what is perceived
to be vulnerable and defenseless prey.
Wolves are also pack animals, and make a sharp distinction between "in
pack" and "out pack". Canines frequently accept humans in the pack,
particularly with shared living arrangements. But you can't generalize
behavior of wolves towards an "in pack" human child to wolves in general.
An unattended "out pack" child is potential prey for predators; as are
livestock and domestic pets. This doesn't just affect the children of
Seattle yuppies out of a day hike; it also affects local children waiting
for the school bus.
The main reason why there aren't more attacks is that we don't taste good;
given a choice a predators would prefer a sheep to a child.
-- Mark --
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