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Call of the mild: These 'wolves' are friendly

Denise Flaim | Animal House

March 6, 2008

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Blame the Victorians.

Throughout the ages, humans have proven themselves constitutionally compelled to tinker with the genetics of other living entities, from corn to canaries. The 19th century set, though, made this a near obsession, creating an explosion of dog and cat breeds, many of their traits teased from the genome for sheer form rather than any actual function.

More than a century later, it has become increasingly un-PC to write about, much less promote, nascent breeds. Rescuers note that creating still more closed gene pools while mixed breeds languish and oftentimes die in shelters presents an ethical dilemma. On the other side of the fence, "breedists" themselves object, because it is their "pure" lines that are being used to create new strains. (In this respect, they remind me of those isolationist offspring of immigrant stock, who, in their fervor to decry open borders, forget that their ancestors were once very glad to make it into the country.)

One of the few canids that can profess primacy when it comes to dog breeds is the wolf itself. And one of the newest breeds, the Tamaskan, offers the ultimate homage to that wild ancestor: It aims to look like a wolf, without benefit of even a drop of wild blood.

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Meaning "mighty wolf" in some American Indian tongue, the Tamaskan has been around for less than two decades and was crafted out of crosses among Siberian huskies, Alaskan malamutes and German shepherds. (Another breed, the Czechoslovakian wolfdog, also aims squarely at this lupine look, with the glaring difference that it went back to the primordial well to do so, originating as it does from a 1955 breeding between a German shepherd and a Carpathian wolf.)

Evidencing that other irresistible human tendency for infighting, the Tamaskan started out as the Northern Inuit (which is not to be confused with the plain ol' Inuit, a working sled dog), only to eventually splinter to become the Utonagan. Then, amid concerns that the Utonagan was not "wolfy"-looking enough, it officially became the Tamaskan in 2002.

There are about 200 Tamaskans worldwide, most in Finland and England. There are about 20 dogs and five breeders in the United States, where the first litter was born in June 2007, right here on Long Island.

"The most appealing thing is that the Tamaskan looks like a wolf, but there's no wolf in it," says Gina D'Andraia of Ronkonkoma, who bought one of the puppies, Cody, from that inaugural litter. Her groomer, however, remained unconvinced. "He kept asking us, 'Is he acting funny?' We had to assure him he's not going to turn on us."

Cody's breeder, Judy Haight of Great River, is sometimes less quick to correct such cases of mistaken identity. "Why tell people differently?" she jokes. "It keeps people away from the house."

In truth, Tamaskan breeders say, their dogs are effusively friendly.

"They're very loving and extremely social, and are not bred to be a guard dog," says Kim Monagas, vice president of the National Tamaskan Club of America (tamaskan-dog.us). Compared to the Northern sledding breeds on which it is based - and which needed a degree of disobedience to literally stay off thin ice - the Tamaskan is far less independent, and, Monagas says, "more easily trained."

Female Tamaskans weigh 55 to 90 pounds, and are 24 to 26 inches at the shoulder; males are 70 to 110 pounds, and a whopping 25 to 33 inches - a huge range that borders, at the far end, on super-size-me proportions.

Monagas adds that the Tamaskan is too young for major health issues to have surfaced yet, but, given the large breeds in its background, hip dysplasia is a concern, and reputable breeders are required to submit hip X-rays to the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (offa.org) or a similar reputable registry. Eye screenings, while not mandated, are recommended as well.

Armed with their own registering body, the Tamaskan Dog Register (tamaskan-dog.com), the Tamaskan faithful are lobbying to have their dogs recognized. The United Kennel Club is reviewing their application; an official nod from the American Kennel Club, which has more hoops for a breed to jump through, is a more distant goal.

But, as Tamaskan owners will attest, their dogs already get instant recognition from passersby, who see the bushy tail, face mask and small pricked ears - and do a Little Red Riding Hood-worthy double take.