I volunteer at a rescue in Bulverde, TX and have adopted a beutiful (maybe PB?) dog that looks almost identical to several pictures of Huskies that I've looked at. She is very "wolfish" and acts like no other dog I've owned/interacted with (I'm used to Labs, Pits,Hounds, etc). She also has a nice plushy coat and is solid black with a few white hairs on her chest. I don't know her height, but she weighs 40lbs.

Her name is Mysti and she was found as a stray on a person's ranch with two puppies approximatly 7 weeks old. She was malnourished, underweight and covered in fleas, while the puppies where at a good weight, healthy and the only problem they had was fleas. They where also solid black, which makes us think she was a BYB or Mill dog that had too many "boring" puppies. We have a ton of BYBs and mills around here, Craigslist is flooded with Husky puppies for $$$. Most likely she is either a badly bred one or a mix, I love her either way. She was brought to the shelter in November and sat there till I adopted her last week (Big Black Dog Syndrome was part of the problem, the other problem was that she, according to some people "looked like a wolf"  ).

I need to work on leash manners, crate training, grooming (she has never seen a brush before) and recall. She appears to have lived in a house before (goes to a door if she needs to got potty, respects the cats (looks like she wants to chase them but acts like she knows not to), waits to be allowed up onto furniture, etc) and as a fear of plastic bags for some reason. Otherwise she is a super sweet dog that I just need a little help with.

Besides her I have:

An 8yr old Anatolian mix named Deputy. He was pulled from a kill shelter by a rescue group and fostered till I adopted him when he was 2yrs old. He has Canine Cogantive Dysfunction (dementia) and some slight arthiritis in his neck. He is a sweet dog, but is slowly getting worse (anxiety, forgetting to eat, etc).

A 1yr old Dachshund mix named Kieber. He was found running down a busy road and brought to the shelter. They gave him to me for free since he was driving them up the wall. He barks, has OCD (growling/screaming while he chases is tail or feet), got kicked out of a puppy class and almost failed a basic obediance class. He's getting better as he matures(will be 2 in October).

Two cats, Ardishire (mother was a stray I fostered) and Binky (sick feral kittten that was abadoned by his mother), 4 goats, and a flock of 20+ chickens.

Welcome! Sounds like you have a big heart and an open home for special dogs

Mysti is amazingly gorgeous. I can't believe she sat for so long!

MGoBlue wrote:

Welcome! Sounds like you have a big heart and an open home for special dogs

Mysti is amazingly gorgeous. I can't believe she sat for so long!

The shelter is kind of in the middle of no where, plus she didn't really look this pretty when she first came in. Her coat looked really rough until one of the volunteers began using coconut oil on her and it really made a difference.

People are actually intimidated by her. She is a "scary" Big Black Wolf to some people. We had adopters sidestepping away from her kennel, but not the 50+lb pit bull next to her.

Greeting from the Big Bend region of our Great State!!  Welcome to the forum!!
Hope you don't mind that I had to look up where Bulverde is ... musta had a group who couldn't speak good TexMex up there, I figure at one time it had to be one of the ValVerde towns, yes??

I'm sorry, I can't see wolf and I can't really see scary in her ... some people are just intimidated by anything bigger than a Chihuahua!!

aljones wrote:

Greeting from the Big Bend region of our Great State!!  Welcome to the forum!!

Hope you don't mind that I had to look up where Bulverde is ... musta had a group who couldn't speak good TexMex up there, I figure at one time it had to be one of the ValVerde towns, yes??

I'm sorry, I can't see wolf and I can't really see scary in her ... some people are just intimidated by anything bigger than a Chihuahua!!

Don't know the history of the town (I don't live there, I'm in Canyon Lake), but yeah, most of the people coming to look at the dogs are one of three types:
1. 2.5 kids and a picket fence types. They want a loveable lab or lab mix. Nothing that, in their minds, could eat the kids.
2. Older retired couples. Usually own small or toy dogs and seem to dislike "dog like" dogs (ie; mud is "gross", slobber is "gross") and go for the rare Chihuahua or small mix.
3. Young singles/couples that run marathons/go hiking. They get the hyper young dogs (labs, pits, etc). She would of done good with them, but she is really reserved with new people and sort of blended into the background. She is friendly, she'll approach a stranger and lick their hand, but that is about it.

Welcome to the forum fellow Texan, and someone who actually lives within a few hundred miles of me, lol. What a stunning girl you got!! Believe it or not there are many wolf dogs from your area, and a few that do look similar in the face as your girl, so I understand the reactions you get, I get the same thing here in my neck of the woods of Texas with my girl. Good luck with her, and I can't wait to see more pics!!

She is very pretty! You have a house full! You are so kind working with the rescues and even adopting a couple yourself. Welcome to the forum!

Dimo wrote:

2. Older retired couples. Usually own small or toy dogs and seem to dislike "dog like" dogs (ie; mud is "gross", slobber is "gross") and go for the rare Chihuahua or small mix.

Hey...this older retired type does NOT do small dogs and revels in her "dog like" boy who regularly tromps in the mud  

Don't do slobber, though

Your lady is beautiful.

Yeah, Amy I caught that too but figured I'd let her slide since she's new here. That makes at least two of us "older retired folks" who don't do small dogs (or slobber!!)

Welcome! Beautiful dog!

amymeme wrote:

Dimo wrote:

2. Older retired couples. Usually own small or toy dogs and seem to dislike "dog like" dogs (ie; mud is "gross", slobber is "gross") and go for the rare Chihuahua or small mix.

Hey...this older retired type does NOT do small dogs and revels in her "dog like" boy who regularly tromps in the mud  

Don't do slobber, though

Your lady is beautiful.  

Accept my apologies.

Quote :

Yeah, Amy I caught that too but figured I'd let her slide since she's new here. That makes at least two of us "older retired folks" who don't do small dogs (or slobber!!)

You guys are totally not the "small untrained, unsocialized dog in a stroller wearing an outift" types that come to the shelter. Oh and I'm not a "she".

She looks like she's got some chow in her. That blue splotch on her tongue gives it away. She's gorgeous though. I think its the lighter eyes with the black face that gives the wolf impression. I'd love one like her though. She's striking!

wpskier222 wrote:

She looks like she's got some chow in her. That blue splotch on her tongue gives it away. She's gorgeous though. I think its the lighter eyes with the black face that gives the wolf impression. I'd love one like her though. She's striking!

Most likely, I think both of the our dogs are the same age (based on your ticker).

Dimo wrote:

You guys are totally not the "small untrained, unsocialized dog in a stroller wearing an outift" types that come to the shelter. Oh and I'm not a "she".

Oh, geez, Dimo - sorry! Now I see the Mars symbol in your profile.  Excuse me while I step all over my tongue!!!

Just went back to look at the pictures and that's a really unusual lay to the hair on her back and legs ... I don't think I've ever seen any that lays like that.

I agree with the earlier comments - thanks for rescuing, of course - and that sounds like quite a menagerie you have there!

aljones wrote:

Dimo wrote:

You guys are totally not the "small untrained, unsocialized dog in a stroller wearing an outift" types that come to the shelter. Oh and I'm not a "she".

Oh, geez, Dimo - sorry! Now I see the Mars symbol in your profile.  Excuse me while I step all over my tongue!!!

Just went back to look at the pictures and that's a really unusual lay to the hair on her back and legs ... I don't think I've ever seen any that lays like that.

I agree with the earlier comments - thanks for rescuing, of course - and that sounds like quite a menagerie you have there!

That's okay, it happens alot IRL, so I'm used to it.
Her coat is really weird. It's "plushy", but not a uniform length. Part might be the past malnutrition, I have no idea.

Btw, I meant chow mixed with husky. I definitely see husky in that face, but her muzzle is blockier than a typical husky. In terms of the coat, it looks like she's definitely double coated, and could be blowing out old, damaged coat and growing in a new one.