Wild Dogs and Their KIn

A coydog is a coyote/dog cross.

Dingos are dogs that were domesticated thousands of years ago who have since gone wild.

Wild dogs don't make particularly cuddly, trustworthy pets.

Other people here know more than I do on this subject and can answer the more complicated questions.

There are wolf/dog hybrids. I know this because I worked at a hospital that, on occasion, treated kids who'd been mauled by one. Not a good idea for a pet...

I got followed by a wolfdog while taking a lunchtime walk through an urban neighborhood. Freaked me out. Once I busted him though, he lost interest.

Is there such a thing as a fox-dog hybrid?

I think this topic should be over in he pets forum.

JGoldman--

Why not click on the Report button in the upper right hand corner of the first post and suggest the move to the mods?

Fox-dog wouldn't work -- chromosomes don't match up.

(I've mentioned this elsewhere today, somewhat inaccurately...)

Dingo has been bred back into at least one domestic dog breed in the past 100-150 years or so (the Australian cattle dog, aka blue heeler, aka a few others), and I would guess into some other Aussie breeds as well -- the kelpie certainly looks like it might have some dingo.

What wild dogs are in the pomeranian's lineage?

I should think wolf, like virtually everything else.

A fox-dog hybrid propbably wouldn't work anyway because a fox is in the vulips family and dogs are in the canis family.

I found this tidbit on fox-dog hybrids:
An unconfirmed female fox-dog hybrid (terrier/fox) has been reported in the UK, unfortunately it was euthanized when the owner died because no suitable home could be found for it. Although gamekeeper folklore claims that Terrier bitches can produce offspring with dog Foxes, there are no authenticated hybrids between domestic dogs and Red Foxes. Most supposed hybrids turn out to be natural variation in the domestic dog. The "dox" hybrid is no more real than a cabbit. There has been a reported cross between a domestic dog and a South American fox, but the latter was most likely a fox-like wolf and not a true fox.

Does anyone have any further input?

IN CHINA there are some dog named wolf dog.

Both the dog and the fox are of the order Carnivora, family Canidae. The dog is of the sub-family, or species, canis lupus familiarus, the fox of the sub-family canis vulpinea (the wolf is of the sub-family canis lupus lupus - genetically indistinguishable, apart from breed and family characteristics, from canis lupus familiarus).

They share a common ancestor, the progenitor of all modern canids, hesperocyonines, which looked similar to a cross between a weasel and a fox, and evolved in North America around 40 million years ago. Hesperocyonines went extinct about 15 million years ago, leaving 2 offshoots, one of which survives as the family Canidae. About 35 million years ago another dead end, the hyena-like borophagines evolved, going extinct about 2.5 million years ago. The other offshoot, canids, includes all extinct and existing species of canid, including the domestic dog. Having evolved in North America, canids crossed a land bridge to Asia about 7 million years ago, and within a million years or so had made into and throughout Europe and the African continent. DNA analysis indicates dogs evolved from wolves about 130,000 years ago, and that the sub-species peculiar to Australia are descended from African ancestors.

Fox-Dog hybrid just ain't gonna happen; while similar in many respects, the critters aren't similar enough. Among other considerations, their blood chemistries are very different, as are their basal temperatures, the dog's nominally 101.5, the fox's about 103. The normal gestation for a fox is around 7 weeks, for a dog around 9 weeks - two or three days either way being within normal variation. Dogs, wolves, jackals, and hyenas, having sufficiently similar chemistries, metabolisms, and gestations can and do interbreed, but foxes are out of the party.


And frankly, anyone who has to ask questions concerning the ins-and-outs of maintaining a one-on-one relationship with a wild or feral critter just doesn't have the qualifications to take on the task; neither you nor the critter will get any good out of the deal, and both of you likely will suffer harm. The truly unfortunate part of that is its generally the critter that suffers the most harm.

I've got some experience with wolves and hybrids; starting about the second page of this topic, I get into a related discussion with somebody who was considering getting one. I hope that individual thought better of that plan.