Hi everybody! need some help!

[carrie]

this is leo or the big baby as we like to call him. he's so loveable and sweet. huge but a good pup. he's 3 and a half months old. he came from colorado. they said he is pyrennees/wolf? can't figure if he is or not? all the pry. I can find are all white or with a little coloring? help? he has white and black toenails, webbed, 1 dew claw in the front and none in the back? just went to the vet and he weighed 56 lbs. already. the vet doesn't want to see him if he does have wolf in him. I don't know what to do?!!! she said they were against the law in tenn. but we didn't know that when we got him. my husband got him from a friend in texas when he was there working. they didn't have the room or time for him, so he brought him home for me. any ideas how to find anything out about him maybe being wolf? or pyr.?

[ZooCrew]

Not that I'm an expert by any means......... ........but just by looking at him, I'm not sure he has either breed in him.  I can't see that coloring or head shape coming out of a pyr/wolf mix.
 
I would not go around telling people he is a wolf mix.  If your vet is concerned I would put him down as a pyr/shep mix or pyr/mal/sibe mix........... although if he is uncomfortable with your dog it may already be too late for that vet.  And yes, in most states it is illegal to own a wolf or wolf hybrid w/o a special license.

It is hard to tell parentage with his current age.  It is much easier to tell once they are closer to 6 mo old.  But he is on track for a big paw.  My dane was 42 lbs at 12 wks.

Are you sure his feet are webbed?  The webbing on webbed feet starts usually just below the end of the nail or beginning of the toe.

do you have any more pix of him? he is a cutie to be sure, i love his coloring.  Welcome to BPO, btw. 

[GoldenPyrs]

Hmmm, I'd guess GSD?/Pyr mix.  His ears look more Pyr to me, but his face is slimmer (more like a GSD or ?), and since he's so young, it's still a little hard to tell.  In any case, he's adorable!  I'd tend to agree with Chris (Zoo Crew) that you may want to keep it a little quiet about the wolf question just so that you don't end up with legal issues.    I'd also suggest that you watch him closely around cats, chickens, etc. though until you know if he has a high prey drive.  We have someone on this board that suspects that he has a Pyr/Artic Wolf hybrid and I read that his beautiful pup has a tendency to hunt around the farm, so you may want to keep a very close eye on your little guy (especially as he gets a few months older), so that everyone stays safe.    

[Ursa]

I have to agree - his coloring is all wrong for a Pyr/Wolf mix.  He looks more like a GSD mix. 

[MagicM3]

It;s kinda hard to tell with this picture..but I don't see any thing pointing towards wolf..his head and eyes look nothing like it..he could have Pyr..even without the back dew claws..but he sure looks like a great dog..

Weird about your vet..though..e ven he couldn't detect caracterists of a wolf..but the thought of it he didn't want to deal with?

I would get a different vet..and not mention the wolf part..and say he is a pyr mix..until he grows up some..

Would love to see more pics especially standing and side view..

TATFK

[filafan]

There are companies now that offer doggie DNA tests for mixed breeds, that you do at home with a cheek swab and mail in. Though I do not know much about them, you might want to look into that and see if it might be of interest to you.

[vmimom2006]

Could be some kind of Leonberger mix too. Whatever you do, DON'T cause yourself problems by labeling him a wolf-hybrid when you have zero proof that he's anything of the kind. Call him a GSD mix, or a Leo mix if he gets HUGE.

Whatever he is, he's a cutie.

I agree he does look more like a sheppard or Leo mix and get a different vet and do not mention wolf to anyone because if he barks at people he will be labeled even if he is doing nothing wrong. He IS a cutie!

[jesday]

On the agreement page with everyone. If possible, you may want to change vets. You've already given her the seed of possible wolfness. Maybe there are stiff legal fines for vets treating or not reporting wolf/wolf hybrids in states where it is illegal to own one and she doesn't want the hassle.

I think you can go to a new vet and not mention the possibility of wolf and be perfectly honest about it. You really don't know anything about his breeding. You basically got him from a friend of a friend of a friend type of thing.

Good luck with that cutie and glad he has found a forever home.

[ZooCrew]

Rabies vaccination for wolf hybrids is yet another difficult issue. Although it is likely that current rabies vaccines are as efficacious in the hybrid as they are in the dog, Federal regulations require that any vaccine be tested in a species before it can be approved for use in that species. Due to the expense, no such testing has ever been done on either wolves or hybrids. Regardless, many hybrids have been vaccinated with canine rabies vaccine. Such vaccinations are not officially recommended or recognized, and in some States may even be illegal. Consequently, hybrids that have bitten someone are often treated differently than a dog would be. In many cases the hybrid must be destroyed and the brain examined, regardless of whether or not it was vaccinated for rabies.

Huh this is really strange (the having to be approved for a species) the wolves at the zoo I worked for were rabies vaccinated.... ....and I'm pretty sure they are everywhere (zoos).  I suppose just a precaution.  I know the cats were rabies vaccinated b/c that issue came up when some people snuck behind the cages and a child got bit by a caracal (after she stuck her arm into their exhibit).  It was put down for rabies testing.

[FXgirl]

Very hard to tell at this age what your pup is.

Were his rear dewclaws removed or was he born without them?  I believe wolves do not have rear dewclaws.  But since you say he only has one front dewclaw maybe he has a "birth defect" and since that one is missing that could explain why the rear are missing.

If you're positive he has webbed toes then he might be a mix of one of the following: Akita, Newfoundland, Leonberger.  I can't see him being a mix of any of the other web footed breeds.  Wolves also have webbed toes.

As he matures you'll be able to see his personality and make a better guess at what he might be if you research breed temperaments.  I don't think he has any wolf in him.  I've seen pyr mixes that look like your guy.  Keep Leonberger in the back of your mind cuz you never know and you're not gonna know at this age.  Leonberger puppies look MUCH different than adults.

Does he have a black spot on his tail?

Some other pictures would be helpful.

[FXgirl]

Okay, hold on, I've been thinking I may have read your post wrong.  Since you made a point of mentioning Leo had A SINGLE front dewclaw I may have read into that a bit deeper.  99.9999% of dogs have single dewclaws in the front and single/double dewclaws in the back.  There are a couple of very rare breeds that are polydactyl in the front.