(Puppy-Dog Blog, 2010. 'Understanding Differences Between the Wild and Domestic Dogs' [online]. Puppy-Dog Blog. 17th July 2010 [Online blog]. Available at: http://puppy-dogs.com/2010/07/17/understanding-differences-between-the-wild-and-domestic-dogs/ [Accessed on 2nd January 2015].)
The Three Amigos – Understanding Differences Between the Wild and Domestic Dogs
To really understand the differences between wild dogs and domestic dogs, consider three canids, coyotes, wolves, and dogs. Despite their differences, they seem to crossbreed rather freely. Unfortunately, it can cause problems when an unexperienced pet owner keeps the offspring as a pet.
Many of our domestic dog’s best traits are the ones most similar to their wild ancestors. For example, the wild dog is every bit as loyal and intelligent as his domestic counterpart. These are traits that allow the pack to survive and thrive.
When a female wild dog gives birth her litter can have anywhere from two to ten pups; however, only one or two pups are expected to survive the first year. Both parents raise the pups until they are fully-grown. The expected life span of a wild dog is thirteen years, and if they are raised in captivity it moves up to twenty years.
The coyote is considered a cousin to both the domestic dog as well as to the wolf. One of the most versatile canids the coyote will eat just about anything making him highly adaptable. He is both cautious and curious and unfortunately, this adaptability often results in missing pets or livestock as humans continue to crowd his land. The coyote looks like a small German Shepherd, but instead of dark brown eyes, the coyote has yellow eyes. Other distinguishing marks include black lines on his legs and a cylindrical, low hanging tail. He is much smaller than the wolf, though his appearance is very similar. His coat has a protective undercoat for protection just like his wolf cousin, and he has four canine teeth just like his domestic dog cousin. The coyote is built for hunting with incredible agility and speed.
Coyotes are notorious pack hunters setting ambushes for larger animals, and double teaming smaller rodents. Coyote females breed in January or February, have six to nine pups and again infant mortality is high. Between human predators, winter temperatures, distemper and roundworm, it is nothing short of a miracle that any of the pups survive. Yet despite being hunted by man and the ravages of parasites and distemper coyotes are alive and thriving.
Wolves on the other hand while similar to the coyote are shy and not quite so quick to adapt, and their numbers are thinning. Physically they mature more slowly than dogs with females not breeding until they are two as opposed to about six months in domestic dogs.
Both the wolf and coyote have a very well defines pack structure. Dog trainers encourage dog owners to understand pack theory and why the alpha position in the pack is so important. Just as your dog lives in your family pack, wolves in the wild live in family packs. Consisting of 12 to 24 members, each pack has a single alpha male and an equivalent female. The alpha dogs maintain order in the pack. Generally only the top male and female mate, and a single litter is born to the pack each year. The job of raising the cubs goes to all of the pack members whereas a domestic male dog does not participate in raising the pups at all. Pack members communicate with subtle body language just as domestic dogs do, and left to their own devices, domestic dogs behave more like wild dogs than not.
There is a line between wild dogs and domestic dogs, but it is probably much thinner than you would expect. Humans frequently use the principles of pack behavior to train their dogs, and it is very effective because of domestic dogs’ connection back to their wolf ancestry; however much of the pure wolf like behavior has been bred out of domestic dogs by generations of selective breeding by humans.