That Ain't No Dog
Last night the dog was heading out the doggy door to the garage and I heard a bark as if there was something there then she bolted. So I got the flashlight and went outside to investigate. I saw some dog tracks leaving the door into the pine trees with my dog's tracks following.
I figured it was a neighbors dog come to play with my dog, My dog knows all the neighbor dogs and most of my neighbors. I didn't think much of it.
Later on in the night I heard a noise as if a shoe fell on a wood floor coming from the other room, the room with the doggy door in it. I looked for my dog and she was on the couch. So I looked around and nothing fell so I figured it was that dog hitting its head on the top of the doggy door.
This morning my brother came over and he saw a black thing in the field just a few hundred feet from the house. When he went to investigate, and what he described as a German Shepard with a coal black coat jumped up and ran 50 feet or so away then laid back down. He left it alone.
When I got up I heard that story and saw that it was still there. So I went out to see if I could coax it over to could see if it had a color or whatnot. It was pretty cold last night, (2°F,) and it wasn't much warmer at 11:00am. It was a wolf, or maybe a half dog half wolf, a cattle rancher down the street has one that comes over a lot, but this looked more wolf like it had longer fur and acted more wild like. The wolves I've seen on TV run differently than a dog, I can't place what it is that is different; maybe the way it moves it's head while running?
So I tracked it, ((me and my dog,) she would not listen and stay with me so that made it a little hard to get close,) but it really didn't want to head for the hills.
I basically went in a large zig-zagging circle, and ended up right back in the same field I first saw it in. One time I thought for sure it was going to come to me but then it got scared again and ran. I thought it was finally going to leave, as it was over 200yards away heading for another wood but then it turned and came back right to the edge of the first field, then it hid in some brush.
I had some hamburger I grabbed when I left the house and put it in the field, maybe he will smell it then come eat it. Then I went back to the house and noticed it had tracks all over the place. So I put some dog food out so it could have some of that too.
I figure it was cold and wanted to come in to get warm last night. I think my dog already knew it because she wasn't acting as if anything was odd she was just running around, having fun. She runs with coyotes, why not wolves too?
After I wrote the above, I looked out the window to see if I could see the wolf but it moved so I grabbed my camera this time and went out to get some pictures of it.
Tell me what you think.
Here is the half wolf that lives down the road. It looked about the same size.
Here are the tracks that are in the front yard; most are his.
Here is his track; my boot is size 10.
The wolf is about 75 yards over the top of that mound.
And the wolf zoomed in at about 75 yards away.
One of those pics above; I think that looks a little better contrast wise, at that size.
That is him on the other side of those trees in the pic above, watching me. I left after that pic so I didn't scare him away.
What do you think, is that a wolf?
When I got back from town at sundown today, he was just down the hill from the house, just out of sight of it.
Cross-posted, (kinda,) to
wolf_lovers and wild_canines.
I figured it was a neighbors dog come to play with my dog, My dog knows all the neighbor dogs and most of my neighbors. I didn't think much of it.
Later on in the night I heard a noise as if a shoe fell on a wood floor coming from the other room, the room with the doggy door in it. I looked for my dog and she was on the couch. So I looked around and nothing fell so I figured it was that dog hitting its head on the top of the doggy door.
This morning my brother came over and he saw a black thing in the field just a few hundred feet from the house. When he went to investigate, and what he described as a German Shepard with a coal black coat jumped up and ran 50 feet or so away then laid back down. He left it alone.
When I got up I heard that story and saw that it was still there. So I went out to see if I could coax it over to could see if it had a color or whatnot. It was pretty cold last night, (2°F,) and it wasn't much warmer at 11:00am. It was a wolf, or maybe a half dog half wolf, a cattle rancher down the street has one that comes over a lot, but this looked more wolf like it had longer fur and acted more wild like. The wolves I've seen on TV run differently than a dog, I can't place what it is that is different; maybe the way it moves it's head while running?
So I tracked it, ((me and my dog,) she would not listen and stay with me so that made it a little hard to get close,) but it really didn't want to head for the hills.
I basically went in a large zig-zagging circle, and ended up right back in the same field I first saw it in. One time I thought for sure it was going to come to me but then it got scared again and ran. I thought it was finally going to leave, as it was over 200yards away heading for another wood but then it turned and came back right to the edge of the first field, then it hid in some brush.
I had some hamburger I grabbed when I left the house and put it in the field, maybe he will smell it then come eat it. Then I went back to the house and noticed it had tracks all over the place. So I put some dog food out so it could have some of that too.
I figure it was cold and wanted to come in to get warm last night. I think my dog already knew it because she wasn't acting as if anything was odd she was just running around, having fun. She runs with coyotes, why not wolves too?
After I wrote the above, I looked out the window to see if I could see the wolf but it moved so I grabbed my camera this time and went out to get some pictures of it.
Tell me what you think.
Here is the half wolf that lives down the road. It looked about the same size.
Here are the tracks that are in the front yard; most are his.
Here is his track; my boot is size 10.
The wolf is about 75 yards over the top of that mound.
And the wolf zoomed in at about 75 yards away.
One of those pics above; I think that looks a little better contrast wise, at that size.
That is him on the other side of those trees in the pic above, watching me. I left after that pic so I didn't scare him away.
What do you think, is that a wolf?
When I got back from town at sundown today, he was just down the hill from the house, just out of sight of it.
Cross-posted, (kinda,) to
wolf_lovers and wild_canines. 