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Watch out, wolves of Idaho – the Becker dogs are ready to rumble
By Dr. Marty Becker
January 8, 2010
I had a feeling something strange was going on morning before last when Shakira, my eight-year-old Golden Retriever, stopped pawing in the snow for her ball and took off across the meadow near the barn.
Now, if you were able to look inside Shakira’s head, you’d find two neurons connected to a tennis ball instead of a brain. But not only was she running away from her ball, she let out a combination of a bark, howl, and groan that was like nothing I’d ever heard before.
I don’t know what that sound means in dog language, but the rest of the pack sure did. Flying after her came seven-year-old, 15-pound Quixote and my daughter Mikkel’s two pugs Willy and Bruce, who between them have neurological problems, a missing hip joint, and partial vision loss.
I was pretty worried, so I took after them as fast as I could. When I caught up with them at the overlook and looked straight east down into the meadow below our house, I could see what looked like two large black deer.
But weren’t.
No, deer are fawn colored and have white tails, not bushy black tails. And deer, which I’ve seen my share of here in Northern Idaho, also don’t look like large, long back German Shepherds, and aren’t around 8 feet long from nose to the tip of the tail.
Because deer aren’t wolves, and that’s definitely what we were looking at there.
So I’m standing there with my pack, consisting of a ball-crazy Golden Retriever senior citizen and three tiny dogs with health problems — one of whom is in a little Christmas doggy sweater and a jingle bell collar — when one of those wolves turned and looked right at us.
The Pugs and Quixote took off in two directions to help Shakira attack the wolf pack. Me? I dove straight off the steep lip of the hill, heart pounding, in a crazed fear not so much of what the wolves might do to me but what my wife and daughter would do to me if anything happened to the dogs.
There must have been something in my voice that got the dogs’ attention — in fact, I’m pretty sure I made the same sound Shakira did — because all four of them came running when I called their names. I got everyone back into the house safely, and, after my heart slowed back to something like its normal rythmn, my son-in-law Pat and I went down to where I’d spotted the two wolves.
There was no sign of the animals, but we found their prints in the snow. The larger of the two wolves had paw prints that were 5 inches long and 4 inches wide.
I could just imagine the wolves saying to each other as the noisy little pack of dogs came tearing down the hill, “Did you see that little black glob of a dog with the pushed in face, crooked teeth and orange fleece coat that was going to rumble? And how about that dome-headed dog with the jingle bell collar?” Kind of like a fly swatter going up against a tank.
In all seriousness, dog/wolf encounters can be deadly, even if your dog’s a lot bigger than those in the Becker pack. The Idaho Department of Fish and Game publishes guidelines for dog owners who live in wolf habitat. And even though this is the first time I’ve spotted a wolf in all the years we’ve lived at Almost Heaven Ranch, that’s pretty clearly what our property is.
I called my friend and local Idaho Fish and Game officer Greg Johnson, and he told me that the wolves on our mountain, Hall Mountain, are a pack of 8 or 9 native wolves out of Canada and Glacier National Park. The males can get up to 160 pounds but average about 140 (did you hear that, Quixote? Pugs?).
They mostly eat moose and elk, and don’t tend to bother horses.
Or, hopefully, little dogs in sweaters and jingle bell collars.
Public domain photo of gray wolf: Gary Kramer/US Fish and Wildlife Service
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The problem with wolves is that they are not above cannibalism. Wolves kill other wolves that invade their territories, and if they are hungry enough, they will eat them. To a wolf, a dog is just another invading wolf that can be killed and eaten.
Even the biggest livestock guardian dogs are little match for a big Northern Rockies/Northwestern North American wolf. Dogs don’t have the jaw strength to really defend themselves. If wolves can kill a moose, what do you think they’ll do to a golden retriever?
I’m not anti-wolf, but I’d be very worried about letting a golden retriever or any dog out in wolf territory.
Comment by retrieverman — January 8, 2010 @ 7:24 am
But I should say that wolves, like dogs, are all individuals. There are some wolves that are so comfortable around dogs that they invite them to play. It’s not that common, but it has happened.
In the early days of settlement, wolves and dogs ran together, and the wolves didn’t seem to care.
I have some theories about why this was so, and why it is so uncommon now.
Comment by retrieverman — January 8, 2010 @ 7:26 am
Oh my. My heart was racing just reading that post. I can’t fathom the terror I would have felt in your boots. Thank God the dogs responded to your command so faithfully. The size of the wolf pawprint is chilling.
Comment by David S. Greene — January 8, 2010 @ 7:30 am
Well, how cool is that? Fear and safety aside, this story reminds me that we (humans and “our” animals) actually do share this planet with others. It ain’t all just about us.
BTW, where was Quora during all this?
Comment by Rori — January 8, 2010 @ 7:51 am
Good thing the dogs listened to you ! Probably the panic in your voice at the idea of them attacking the wolves.Hopefully the wolves will stay away now they know there are dogs on your ranch.
Comment by Leslie K — January 8, 2010 @ 8:49 am
Marty, I nearly had a heart attack just reading this. But I also had a good laugh at the “I’d rather be eaten by wolves than face my women if something happened to their dogs” line of thought.
Comment by Phyllis DeGioia — January 8, 2010 @ 9:22 am
I dunno, I thing those pugs could have taken ‘em. The wolves would have been too busy laughing at the fleece and jingle-bell collar to defend themselves!
Comment by Gina Spadafori — January 8, 2010 @ 9:23 am
Wow, that encounter would have scared the wits out of me - fear for my dogs. You’re very lucky the dogs came back and didn’t charge down to investigate. Isn’t it amazing how the dogs knew something new was going on - must have been a scent waft or two in the wind.
Comment by Snoopys Friend — January 8, 2010 @ 9:42 am
Unless a predator is very hungry or is hurt (and hence hungry) they will flee in the face of a perceived attack or charge. A hurt predator can’t hunt and will starve unless he heals quickly. So even though your pack consisted of small dogs, there were more of them than the wolves - and they were making noise. That’s threatening. When they were followed by you - also making noise - that’s probably cinched the deal and the wolves were gone.
That doesn’t mean I’d let the pack of little guys so chase them! But that’s probably why no damage was done.
We don’t see wolves here in San Diego county but we do have coyotes, bobcats and mountain lions and the predation usually happens when a pet is alone. Usually. There are always exceptions, of course.
When a coyote shows up at our dog training yard, we can drive him off with a charge and noise. They run off very quickly!
Comment by Liz Palika — January 8, 2010 @ 9:49 am
Thank goodness you are all safe. How scary. I visited my cousin last May in Tarzana CA (I live in NY-no wolves, only rats) and the wolves come into the yard, often. My cousin told me that no one can ever let their dogs in the yard alone and no one has outside cats. Even walking with a dog can be hazardous. They don’t seem to bother the humans but pets are at great risk where she lives. At night I heard them howling. It was an amazing sound. They were definitely nearby. I was a little freaked about going in the yard alone.
And retrieverman, your comment about the play gave me chills. I have read many times about how the members of a wolf pack will mimic dog play (adult wolves don’t typically engage in play behavior with other adults) to incite a dog to play with them. Each wolf pack member will take turns playing one after the other with the intent of making the dog exhausted and defenseless and then…. I can’t finish the sentence.
Comment by Nicole — January 8, 2010 @ 10:07 am
You lucky SOB.
Yes, isn’t it interesting that one’s first glance of a wild canid brings the thought “deer” instead of “dog?”
It is the perfection of form and movement common to all wild things who are born under economic pressure from Momma Nature — rarely seen in domesticants — that creates that “blink.”
Now, consider this the Universe’s letter informing you that you need to take the time to instill a 100% reliable, no-questions-asked, drilled-to-automatic lightning-fast recall in each and every dog.
Even — especially — a blind, crippled, fashion-forward pug who enjoys romps on the home ground of timber wolves.
Comment by H. Houlahan — January 8, 2010 @ 10:10 am
Nicole, there are no “wolves” in Tarzana, California.
Comment by H. Houlahan — January 8, 2010 @ 10:11 am
Except in the bars.
Comment by Gina Spadafori — January 8, 2010 @ 10:36 am
Oh yes there are. I heard them myself. I heard a wolf pack howling in the hills across the street. My cousin sees them. She has seen them in her yard. How can that be. Hmm. Could they have been cayotes maybe. I may be mistaken then. I swear she said wolf but maybe she said cayote.
Comment by Nicole — January 8, 2010 @ 11:01 am
Nicole, they’re coyotes. :)
Comment by Gina Spadafori — January 8, 2010 @ 11:04 am
Nicole, what you heard howling in Tarzana were coyotes. For 15 years I lived in Tarzana in the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains. Not far from us was a coyote den in a canyon with dense foliage. Yes, in the heat of summer it was common for coyotes to find their way into fenced residential backyards to drink water from swimming pools. Often in the evenings while sitting in our jacuzzi we’d watch them mosey along the path on the hill 30 feet away from us. They knew we were watching. We assumed they were on their way down to the more interesting trash bins at the restaurants and fish market on Ventura Blvd. However, in the event they didn’t find dinner after all, I always accompanied my miniature schnauzers in the yard at night under flood lights.
Comment by Nadine L — January 8, 2010 @ 11:11 am
Coyotes can be a problem, also. My parents lived up against Federal land in the Oregon Coast Range. They had a pack of coyotes that frequented their neighborhood. The pack managed to lure my parents’ greyhound into the woods and attack her. Luckily, she made it back to the house, and was fine after a trip to the vet to be stitched up.
I lived in Montana when the first wolves were introduced into the Bitterroot/Selway. What a controversy! I check in on the local papers every once in awhile. It’s still legal to hunt cougar with dogs there and hunters are losing their hounds to wolves. The wolves are certainly thriving in that area.
Comment by C.L.H. — January 8, 2010 @ 11:20 am
Urban sprawl in the San Fernando Valley has been displacing the coyotes for many years. Building on their territory lessens their ability to find their natural food. And then there was that nice old neighbor lady who thought they were cute doggies and was feeding them…
Comment by Nadine L — January 8, 2010 @ 11:20 am
There are coyotes all around where I live. Many missing pets are lost to coyotes - they come up the river beds searching for food and roam the neighborhoods.
Coyotes are losing their fear of man and are becoming quite brazen in their attacks. One stalked me and two of my hounds one morning - it was spring and after talking to the forest ranger, there was a den in the trees near where I was walking. That mother coyote knew no fear. She made it known we were on her turf (even though we were not out in the wilds but in a park). My two large coonhounds would have been fine but I still didn’t want trouble. When I drive to work I spot coyotes in the fields near my house and several have been hit by cars on the rode I travel. Mostly I see them hunting rabbits.
Comment by Snoopys Friend — January 8, 2010 @ 11:28 am
It’s interesting that you first thought they were deer. I once mistook a black bear for a black lab. It was just that I wasn’t EXPECTING the black bear, but I wouldn’t have been surprised to see someone’s dog. It takes awhile for the brain to process the unexpected sometimes.
Comment by C.L.H. — January 8, 2010 @ 11:32 am
Rori asked, “Where was Quora when all this happened?”
If you ask Quora, she’ll tell you she was standing guard at the house to make sure the wolves didn’t carry off baby Reagan.
If you ask me, she wasn’t with us because she once got zapped by the hotwire on the horse pasture and hasn’t gone near the barn since.
Comment by Dr. Marty Becker — January 8, 2010 @ 11:52 am
They really do respond to that sharp note of panic in the voice, don’t they? I’ve only had to use it a couple of times, but the response was instant. Something similar to this happened to my friend Tamela’s husband, Mike. He had their three Cavaliers out at some open area and they all decided to charge a coyote. I forget how it was resolved—other than nobody died—but Mike’s big concern was which dog should he save, because he knew he could only get to one of them in time.
Comment by Kim Thornton — January 8, 2010 @ 1:04 pm
A group of little dogs sometimes can fare okay when confronted with a larger wild aggressive animal. The little dogs are usually faster than the bigger animal and are adept at nipping at heels and scooting away. When the coyote has the jump on the animal, the dog being stalked or leashed, then the outcome is not so favorable. It all depends on the aggressiveness and degree of prey drive of the little dog - some little dogs can take care of themselves.
Comment by Snoopys Friend — January 8, 2010 @ 2:10 pm
@Gina - I used to live in West Sac, down by the river. Coyotes EVERYWHERE. You’d hear them singing and yipping just about every night.
There were no outside cats in the neighborhood. ;( I remember boarding a couple of apparently homeless kitties in my garage for a couple days - turned out their owners were new to the area and didn’t know about the coyotes.
A side note - in my folks’ backyard in South Florida one night last year, I heard that unmistakable sound again. Mom insisted it couldn’t be, because “there are no coyotes in FL.” The very next week, their local paper ran a story announcing coyotes had moved into the area. ;) They’re resilient critters, that’s for sure - and once you’ve heard them, you don’t forget.
Comment by LauraL — January 8, 2010 @ 2:29 pm
That’s awesome! I’d love to live in a place where nature is a little more real than the feral kitty cats that prowl my back yard.
I’d love to be so lucky as to have to think about a danger bigger than the idiot drug head or drunk on the corner of the street.
In short, I’d love to fear nature than all the human crap we’ve put into this world (drugs, cars, used needles, idiots with hunting dogs. Ever worry that your dog digging in the sand was going to die from burns because some jerk buried hot coals? Or used drug needles in the leaves?) That wolf has more right to be where it was than most other things do. And heck, you could look at it as an early warning system that no bears were around! ;-)
Denise (from Oahu where the most dangerous wild animal we have is the humans that live here….sigh…)
Comment by Denise — January 8, 2010 @ 2:57 pm
I just found out recently that a coyote has taken up at least part-time residence over at the airport, about a mile away from our house. It’s the first I’d heard of them being this far north in Humboldt County. They’ve been a problem for sheep ranchers farther south for a long time.
Comment by Susan Fox — January 8, 2010 @ 6:56 pm
Scary and funny with a good ending, all the pieces needed for a great story. Loved the description of the dogs.
Good luck with no more encounters and keeping everyone safe.
Comment by Perri — January 9, 2010 @ 12:50 am
I agree, that was the scariest AND funniest story I’ve read in awhile. Glad everyone fared ok. And glad it wasn’t me. While I’d love to see a wolf in the wild, I don’t want that kind of stress having the worry of that my dogs might do. Love the photo of the group.
Comment by Marie — January 9, 2010 @ 8:21 pm
Wow - exciting and scary all in one! I had a similar reaction when I encountered a mountain lion on a run a few years ago - sw it on a ridge above me and my first thought was “yellow lab” - the color and the expectation that it would be a dog fooled me. Then I saw the tail and thought, um no - that is no lab - that is one big kitty! Walked away slowly and was later glad of the reminder that there are still wild creatures in our midst - and the reimbder that we are NOT the top of the food chain!
Comment by Di — January 11, 2010 @ 12:03 pm
Little dogs are always looking for a good time! We had a bear out back of our house in Idaho, the St Bernard woke up from a nap looked went back to sleep, the cocker spaniel went into the mudroom, but the basset hound he was off for a good run…don’t you just love them all!! Thanks for the story!!
Comment by Susan Dunnick — March 16, 2010 @ 7:50 pm