Wolf?

[VanC]

Mom was in the hospital for a couple of days last week and I was up there to check things out. She lives in central Wisconsin. Was driving home on Wed and I think I almost hit a wolf. Was about 10 miles south of Stevens Point on 39 doing about 70 and this sucker just ambles onto the highway right in front of me. Luckily my brakes worked good and there wasn't anybody too close behind me. Couldn't have missed him by more than a couple of feet and was pretty slowed down by then. Got a pretty good look at him. Tall, I figure roughly 2 1/2 feet or more, long and lanky, gray on top but more tannish underneath, big bushy tail, and the biggest, brightest yellow eyes I've ever seen.

Couple of guys here say it was a coyote, but I say bull. It was a lot bigger than any coyote I've ever seen, and I know it wasn't no dog, but I didn't know there were wolves that far south in Wisconsin. Any of you folks have any ideas? Especially anyone who lives in that area.

I gotta admit, I've never seen a wolf in the wild, but I've seen plenty of coyotes and that baby wasn't like any coyote I've ever seen. Am I nuts?

 

[Jogeephus]

I doubt you are nuts. There are no absolutes when it comes to wildlife. Just because there may not be any documented sightings doesn't mean they are not there. If you know it wasn't a coyote and you know it wasn't a dog - what else could it have been?

 

[Horticattleman]

sasquatch lol

Yeah I say bigfoot too!!!

 

[VanC]

I doubt you are nuts. There are no absolutes when it comes to wildlife. Just because there may not be any documented sightings doesn't mean they are not there. If you know it wasn't a coyote and you know it wasn't a dog - what else could it have been?

Thanks for giving a serious answer, Jogeephus. The other two posters seem to be still striving for adulthood. One doesn't surprise me, the other does. Anyway, the point was that I don't know if wolves are common in that area or not. I was hoping that someone who lives in that area could shed some light on it. Not really that big of a deal, though.

 

[mnmtranching]

VanC, Up in this country and more so a little farther North Gray Wolves are common. I've seen a dozen or so over the years. I can tell you for sure if you see a Wolf you will know it, no question.
So my 2 cents, if there is doubt? you saw a coyote. Wolves are so much bigger and different than a coyote. Coyotes are always being mistaken for wolves, but a wolf will never be mistaken for a coyote.

 

[iowahawkeyes]

Did you report it to the DNR. Around here the critter has to be dead to confirm "Yep, that's a ____". I was taking my walk one day and I thought I saw the neighbor's dog tracks. Turns out a mountain lion had been spotted by two of my neighbors. I always walk at dusk and my husband wouldn't let me walk anymore. (Nice to know he was concerned, I really wasn't). A lot of people think the DNR was actually releasing the mountain lions in the area. Of course they deny that.

 

[Horticattleman]

Sorry for the joke. I have only seen a wolf one time and it was stuffed in the Smithsonian. I don't know what kind they were but man they were sooooo much bigger than a coyote.

 

[VanC]

Sorry for the joke. I have only seen a wolf one time and it was stuffed in the Smithsonian. I don't know what kind they were but man they were sooooo much bigger than a coyote.

That's why I thought this might be a wolf. It was a lot bigger than any coyote I've ever seen. Anyway, it's really not that big of a deal, just thought it was kind of interesting.

 

[Horticattleman]

I don't know what kinds of wolves they would have up there. We supposedly have some type of wolf round here, but you never hear of anyone seeing them.

 

[Mahoney Pursley Ranch]

Could have been a coydog,part coyote and part large breed dog. Common here.

 

[AngusLimoX]

Could have been a coydog,part coyote and part large breed dog. Common here.

All sorts of studies going on up here for just that type of thing - wolves and yotes interbreeding with each other and both with dogs.

There are some yotes around here fully the size of an average German Shepherd. I only see them when the rifle is locked up. :lol:

We are at about the same latitude as Detroit, and the natural resources folks say wolves range is at least 300 miles north of us.

Still a neat thing to see Van.

ALX

 

[VanC]

Did some reading and it seems that there are 400-500 gray wolves in Wisconsin, mostly in the north woods. They were introduced in the 80's to help cut the deer population. They would be pretty rare as far south as I was, but who knows? Makes an interesting story anyway.

 

[mnmtranching]

There are wolf sightings in central MN, why not in central WI?

 

[NamVet_Farmer44]

I know a man with a few "wolfdogs"...he had one that he claimed was 98% wolf...it was at least twice the size of any coyote i've ever seen...probably around 115 pounds...not sure if it was really 98% wolf or not but I know darned well it did have a good bit of wolf in it...i'll try to get some pictures sometime soon of the one he's still got...so you can do a comparison

 

[Dave]

Having trapped and shot hundreds of coyotes and seen some wolves when I worked in Alaska, the thing that really stands out to me is that a wolf looks really long legged.

 

[msscamp]

Could have been a coydog,part coyote and part large breed dog. Common here.

All sorts of studies going on up here for just that type of thing - wolves and yotes interbreeding with each other and both with dogs.

ALX

I know that wolves and coyotes will breed with domestic dogs, but I didn't think they would breed with each other. At least, not according to what I've read and the documentaries I've seen. :?:

 

[AngusLimoX]

Could have been a coydog,part coyote and part large breed dog. Common here.

All sorts of studies going on up here for just that type of thing - wolves and yotes interbreeding with each other and both with dogs.

ALX

I know that wolves and coyotes will breed with domestic dogs, but I didn't think they would breed with each other. At least, not according to what I've read and the documentaries I've seen. :?:

I didn't know the answer to that off hand msscamp so a google showed lots of sites that say they will interbreed. Maybe a certain breed of wolf won't permit it?

Here's one little site with a down and dirty on yotes.

ALX
http://www.bright.net/~swopejak/coyote.htm

 

[msscamp]

Could have been a coydog,part coyote and part large breed dog. Common here.

All sorts of studies going on up here for just that type of thing - wolves and yotes interbreeding with each other and both with dogs.

ALX

I know that wolves and coyotes will breed with domestic dogs, but I didn't think they would breed with each other. At least, not according to what I've read and the documentaries I've seen. :?:

I didn't know the answer to that off hand msscamp so a google showed lots of sites that say they will interbreed. Maybe a certain breed of wolf won't permit it?

Here's one little site with a down and dirty on yotes.

ALX
http://www.bright.net/~swopejak/coyote.htm

That could very well be. Or it might be circumstances - member of a pack vs lone animal. Thanks for the link, it was very interesting! I didn't realize that coyotes whelped during specific months of the year, or that fall howling was mothers calling their babies. I've been listening to the coyotes for quite a while now to see if I can tell the difference between an adult and a young one - so far I can't. :lol: :lol: I'll give it another go this fall! ;-)

 

[mnmtranching]

When ever a Coyote ventures into Wolf territory he is dispersed of quickly, they don't get along at all. Wolves will kill and eat coyotes. In all the wolf studies done here in Minnesota [volumes] there is no evidence of Gray Wolves and Coyotes interbreeding. And the only times Wolves and dogs interbreed is in captivity 1 on 1. The wolf/coyote crossing would have eliminated both species long ago as in the case with many other similar species. Such as in wild ducks, wild geese, wild cats, wild deer, wild grouse, wild birds, get the point. :roll:

 

[dewey]

Dog or wolf?