# Coy dog, how do I know if my puppy is one ??



## LeiLei

I recently rescued a 6 month old puppy that the vet says is a coy dog. She acts very different than any other dogs I have ever had. Very shy, sweet, tries to climb trees and I mean climb, has been impossible to house break her, it has been 3 months and she still messes inside every day. I am an experienced dog owner and I don’t know what to do. She has an extremely high prey drive and is very skittish. She is a sweet sweet girl and she and my Rottweiler get along great. Any suggestions are welcome.


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## Blue_Octopus

Can you post a picture?


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## DaySleepers

The only confirmed coydog I know of personally cannot be confused with a domestic animal. She just... doesn't look or act like a dog. Pictures of your girl might help, but those behaviors can also be found in many dog breeds and feral mixes, or just dogs unsocialized to humans. 

Just a warning: mislabeling a domestic dog as a coydog can have serious consequences. It's outright illegal in some states, for one. For another, the rabies vaccine has only been tested and approved for use in domestic dogs. This means that the law cannot assume that a vaccinated hybrid (coydog or wolfdog) is protected by the vaccine. If your pet is on record as a coydog, this could lead to her being seized and euthanized for testing if, goodness forbid, she bites someone. Or even is accused of biting someone. A vaccinated domestic dog generally only needs to be under home quarantine after a bite incident. Be really sure you have strong evidence before you put 'coydog' in her records for this reason.


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## LeiLei

View attachment 262709
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Blue_Octopus said:


> Can you post a picture?


Here she is


Blue_Octopus said:


> Can you post a picture?





DaySleepers said:


> The only confirmed coydog I know of personally cannot be confused with a domestic animal. She just... doesn't look or act like a dog. Pictures of your girl might help, but those behaviors can also be found in many dog breeds and feral mixes, or just dogs unsocialized to humans.
> 
> Just a warning: mislabeling a domestic dog as a coydog can have serious consequences. It's outright illegal in some states, for one. For another, the rabies vaccine has only been tested and approved for use in domestic dogs. This means that the law cannot assume that a vaccinated hybrid (coydog or wolfdog) is protected by the vaccine. If your pet is on record as a coydog, this could lead to her being seized and euthanized for testing if, goodness forbid, she bites someone. Or even is accused of biting someone. A vaccinated domestic dog generally only needs to be under home quarantine after a bite incident. Be really sure you have strong evidence before you put 'coydog' in her records for this reason.


i don’t know, her prey drive is like nothing I have seen before. I am used to raising shelter Rottweiler dogs and they are wonderful and easily trained, loyal and loving 🥰


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## LeiLei

Blue_Octopus said:


> Can you post a picture?


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## LeiLei

Yes


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## LeiLei




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## LeiLei

LeiLei said:


> View attachment 262709
> View attachment 262709
> 
> 
> Here she is
> 
> 
> i don’t know, her prey drive is like nothing I have seen before. I am used to raising shelter Rottweiler dogs and they are wonderful and easily trained, loyal and loving 🥰





LeiLei said:


> View attachment 262713


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## parus

She's very cute.

She looks like a shepherd/husky or similar mix to me. 

I don't see any coyote traits - what physical features make you think she's part coyote?


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## Blue_Octopus

Looks like a definite GSD mix. Maybe husky? From my experience huskies do have a high prey drive hence why they are so prone to getting into shelters (at least where I live). I've heard of them killing chickens, cats, and even small dogs. GSD's also tend to be very driven dogs. She looks like a rather large dog... About how much does she weigh? To me, she looks like a normal dog with a prey drive I would expect from any GSD husky mix. This could just be because I'm used to living with a dog with a serious amount of "chase and grab anything that moves" and "that animal is just sitting there but I still want it". I worked with her to the pint that we can walk past non-moving animals without dropping into a stalk but I know I can never train her instincts out of her. She's still a wonderful hiking companion.


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## parus

Climbing is a very husky behavior, too. 
A classic video clip (there's an f-bomb so you might want to turn down audio if sensitive ears are around):


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## Crantastic

That looks like a normal dog to me, probably shepherd/husky as other have said. Huskies tend to have high prey drive and are escape artists. They can climb, dig, jump high... and they're very active, which is why you see so many surrendered to shelters by people who didn't realize what they were getting into.

I have an online friend who owns a coydog. You can tell from one look at that animal that she's not a normal dog. Coydogs are also fairly rare -- most coyotes will choose not to mate with dogs.


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## DaySleepers

I'd absolutely believe husky/GSD mix with those looks and that behavior! I'd stick with that, personally. It seems more likely than coydog, and you'd avoid the legal issues that come from labeling your pet a wild hybrid when you can't be 100% sure of her genetics.


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## LeiLei

parus said:


> She's very cute.
> 
> She looks like a shepherd/husky or similar mix to me.
> 
> I don't see any coyote traits - what physical features make you think she's part coyote?


The vet I take her to said she may be a coy dog. The way she carries her tail and her shyness as well as her prey drive is very very high.


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## LeiLei

DaySleepers said:


> I'd absolutely believe husky/GSD mix with those looks and that behavior! I'd stick with that, personally. It seems more likely than coydog, and you'd avoid the legal issues that come from labeling your pet a wild hybrid when you can't be 100% sure of her genetics.


Thank you


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## LittleFr0g

She's definitely not a coy dog, I know a person who has an actual coy dog, and as has been mentioned here, they are unmistakable. Unfortunately, vets are not breed identification experts, and frequently are mistaken in these areas. She's a lovely girl, but not a coydog. This link gives some really good examples of real coydogs. Even lower content ones look unmistakably similar to coyotes.


http://imgur.com/a/u9Heu


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## Crantastic

If you really want to know, you can do an Embark DNA test -- their test can identify coyote DNA (and dingo and wolf, among other things). So can Wisdom Panel, actually. I'm not sure which one is considered "better."


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## LeiLei

Crantastic said:


> If you really want to know, you can do an Embark DNA test -- their test can identify coyote DNA (and dingo and wolf, among other things). So can Wisdom Panel, actually. I'm not sure which one is considered "better."


Thank you 😊


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