# Tamaskan Wolf Dog



## SouthernThistle (Nov 16, 2005)

We were talking about Beaucerons, and I ran across this breed today. It never fails that at least once a day I read somewhere on a Georgia forum about someone wanting a "wolf dog" because they "look cool." Inevitably someone suggests getting a Siberian Husky or Husky mix (since wolves and wolf "hybrids" are illegal in Georgia to keep as pets,) and the follow-up is always, "I have owned a Husky before, and it didn't look as cool as a wolf dog."

So I found _these_ today: Tamaskan Wolf Dogs.
"The Wolf-Dog without the wolf." 

http://www.tamaskan-dog.com/Galleries/Photo%20Gallery/photo-gallery.htm

Does anyone know anything about them? Other than what you can read online? lol I think I read somewhere that they were considered an "arctic breed."

I thought it would be a good suggestion for someone who has owned Huskies/Arctic breeds but like think "wolf dogs look cool."


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

I've never heard about them before, but they look (to me) a whole lot like the Czechoslovakian Wolfdog - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Czechoslovakian_Wolfdog and Sarlooswolfhond - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saarloos_Wolfhound


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## Samba (Apr 23, 2001)

They really have a wild wolf look!! I think it would appeal to those wanting the look.

I was looking at this video today and noticed how wolfish this old german sheepdog looked. Wonder if they were utilized too?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYbJ2XMx5...rom=PL&index=13


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

I thought that the Tamaskan and Utonagon looked like wolves but have no wolf content, where as the Saarloos and The Czech are both part wolf.


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## SouthernThistle (Nov 16, 2005)

Czech and Sarloos had SOME wolf mixed in with them in the beginning. I think with the Sarloos is started with GSD/Wolf to create a better herder?


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## Chicagocanine (Aug 7, 2008)

Most of those dogs don't look that wolfish to me. They look pretty similar to an Alasakan Husky or the various northern breed crosses used as sled dogs.


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## SouthernThistle (Nov 16, 2005)

Some of them look like Alaskan Huskies, but some of them are more "wolfy" looking (not on those websites though







)


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## Raziel (Sep 29, 2009)

Well they are quite stunning!!!!


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## Anja1Blue (Feb 27, 2008)

The original Saarloos wolfhound (named after the Dutch breeder) was the result of crossing a GSD male with a female Eurasian wolf. The purpose was to try and create a dog which was more resistant to distemper.(It didn't work.)

I had never heard of the Tamaskan, or that it really got going in the UK. Beautiful looking though.....

______________________________________
Susan

Anja GSD
Conor GSD - adopted from this Board
Blue GSD - waiting at the Bridge


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## SouthernThistle (Nov 16, 2005)

Here is one that looks more "wolfy" - from the wolfdogtrust - "wolf look alikes."


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## Chicagocanine (Aug 7, 2008)

Yeah that one looks more wolfy, although it still looks a lot like the northern sled dogs too...especially the native breeds. 
I was only looking at the dogs in the site the OP posted.


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## kendrrat (Jan 30, 2012)

Hi, i know this topic is really old, but i do know a bit about the tamaskan dog and figured id spill it here in case anyone was still curious.
the tamaskan dog is a DOG, not a wolfdog. unfortunately due to the rising popularity of this breed there have been attempts to duplicate this- primarily by one kennel that claims to be the only breeder of the "tamaskan wolfdog" or "american tamaskan". thee however are not registered tamaskans and the real breed actually contains no wolf content. 
the point of the breed is to look as wolfy as possible while having the temperament of a dog.


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## Mrs.K (Jul 14, 2009)

Well, they said that the founding dogs were Siberian type Husky origin unknown. Who says that there isn't wolf in there? How do they know that those dogs, imported from the US hadn't wolf?


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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

there are so many hybrid versions of the GSD capitalizing on a wolfy look which these tamaskan lack , they look like poorly bred sled dogs Shawlein Fine Art & Purebred German Shepherd Dogs


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## msvette2u (Mar 20, 2006)

Chicagocanine said:


> Most of those dogs don't look that wolfish to me. They look pretty similar to an Alasakan Husky or the various northern breed crosses used as sled dogs.


They look like coyotes to me.


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## von Bolen (Mar 30, 2012)

I would love to have one, but would fear some crazy ******* shooting it thinking its a real wolf. People ask me enough if my white and black GSD's are wolves.


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## GSDkid (Apr 19, 2011)

I was actually just searching through these guys the other day. They say the Tamaskan goes by other names like the Northern Inuit and Utonagan. They definitely do look wolf-ish but they still seem more like experimental dogs. I'd still settle for a GSD.


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## matthewm11 (Oct 18, 2011)

Samba said:


> They really have a wild wolf look!! I think it would appeal to those wanting the look.
> 
> I was looking at this video today and noticed how wolfish this old german sheepdog looked. Wonder if they were utilized too?
> 
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYbJ2XMx5...rom=PL&index=13


If you read the description for the video it says its half saarloos wolf-dog mixed with a fuchs type old german shepherd. Beautiful dog though, looks like The Little Hobo dog.


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## Dragonwyke (Jul 21, 2011)

wonderful looking dog. they've done some nice work here. looks like the origin of the breed is the Northern Inuit and it's worked it's way 'round to Tamaska. it's so very new and still got some real quality there. i hope they make it work so people quit wanting the wolfdog mixes. that would solve such a terrible issue. 

dw~


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## Draugr (Jul 8, 2011)

There's too much secrecy in the clubs themselves and too much infighting.

I love dogs, but not politics (other than reasonable debate), and I'd rather not get myself mixed up in the middle. If the two clubs/registries stop the infighting and agree to make things public instead of hiding them behind closed doors, I'd definitely consider owning one in the future.


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## Betty (Aug 11, 2002)

These dogs had caught my interest a couple of years ago and I had checked into them a bit and communicated with a couple of the breeders.

Infighting was a mild term to describe what I saw/heard.


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## Dragonwyke (Jul 21, 2011)

Draugr said:


> There's too much secrecy in the clubs themselves and too much infighting.
> 
> I love dogs, but not politics (other than reasonable debate), and I'd rather not get myself mixed up in the middle. If the two clubs/registries stop the infighting and agree to make things public instead of hiding them behind closed doors, I'd definitely consider owning one in the future.


oh, man, i agree w/that! the politics of the thing will get in the way every time. probably why there's been so many splits already in such a short time. i mean between what '89 and '06 there's been 3 breeding splits? that can't be a good thing. but somebody's making some progress there. 


dw~


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## Draugr (Jul 8, 2011)

Betty said:


> These dogs had caught my interest a couple of years ago and I had checked into them a bit and communicated with a couple of the breeders.
> 
> Infighting was a mild term to describe what I saw/heard.


Would slander and vicious verbal attacks be more accurate? Heh. It's pretty ugly, from what I've seen.



Dragonwyke said:


> oh, man, i agree w/that! the politics of the thing will get in the way every time. probably why there's been so many splits already in such a short time. i mean between what '89 and '06 there's been 3 breeding splits? that can't be a good thing. but somebody's making some progress there.
> 
> 
> dw~


German Shepherds have politics issues, to be sure, but the GSD is widespread enough that it's easy to get away from that. And it doesn't seem to approach the level of vitriol that exists in the Tamaskan world. But, I could just not be experienced enough in the GSD world, too, I'll admit that.


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## Dragonwyke (Jul 21, 2011)

Draugr said:


> German Shepherds have politics issues,


well just look at the political issues in gsd's. there are, how many maybe a half dozen (or more) kinds of german shepherds across the world. and if you bring up preferring one kind over another, gods forbid, you get your head handed to you. lol 

i can't imagine what a new breed like this would be like in breed meetings or forums. lol

dw~


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## GSDolch (May 15, 2006)

Interesting. I'm not one for politics, so hopefully I don't come across to much when/if I ever decide to buy a CwV 

I don't know a lot about the Tamaskan WD but I've been doing a lot of research on the Saarloos and Czech wolf dogs. 

I may have to add these to my list of dogs to look into. If anything for curiosity sake lol.


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## Pepper311 (Sep 11, 2011)

I have never met one myself I found them online while researching the littlest hobo dog. People were saying the littlest hobo might have been the start of the Tamaskan Wolf Dogs or something like that. 

From what I understand they are dogs bred too look likes wolves. They are not wolves. They are smart healthy dogs but I don't think they were ever bred for one job. They were bred to be companion dogs that look likes wolves. What's my understanding of them. They are stunning.


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## CelticGlory (Jan 19, 2006)

Very interesting, I never heard of them until now either. I will have to also keep them on my list to research further.


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## ayoitzrimz (Apr 14, 2010)

That's one cool dog  I never saw it before this thread. I'm almost amazed that there is no wolf in the bloodlines but then again what do I know?


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## Draugr (Jul 8, 2011)

ayoitzrimz said:


> That's one cool dog  I never saw it before this thread. I'm almost amazed that there is no wolf in the bloodlines but then again what do I know?


It's likely that there actually is, way back, but it's dilute enough now that it wouldn't make a difference even if there actually was.

It's part of what I think all the secrecy is over - and it's definitely a major issue involving the "infighting" between the breed clubs.


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## mosul210 (Mar 23, 2012)

Good looking dogs, from the pictures provided I can see some passing as low content wolfdogs. What is known about their temperment?


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## Macc (Mar 18, 2016)

*Tamaskan*

I am a German Shepherd fan (I've raised and trained 4) and I came across information about the Tamaskan breed. I understand that it was developed in England/Finland by breeding malamutes, huskies and German Shepherds, along with a smattering of Nordic type sled dogs, probably including some wolf blood.
The breed looks beautiful and from what I can find out, its temperament seems gentle and friendly. However, I have never seen one in the flesh.
Does anyone out there have any experience with this breed? Is there anyone in the Los Angeles area who has one?
For anyone who has experience, how does the trainability and willingness to please of the German Shepherd compare with the Tamaskin?


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## NormanF (Apr 14, 2013)

Macc said:


> I am a German Shepherd fan (I've raised and trained 4) and I came across information about the Tamaskan breed. I understand that it was developed in England/Finland by breeding malamutes, huskies and German Shepherds, along with a smattering of Nordic type sled dogs, probably including some wolf blood.
> The breed looks beautiful and from what I can find out, its temperament seems gentle and friendly. However, I have never seen one in the flesh.
> Does anyone out there have any experience with this breed? Is there anyone in the Los Angeles area who has one?
> For anyone who has experience, how does the trainability and willingness to please of the German Shepherd compare with the Tamaskin?


No. If you want a wolfdog, the Czech Wolfdog is much more familiar because its part GSD. Since you have experience with GSDs, a CWD is going to be somewhat harder to raise than a GSD. They're beautiful dogs bred to look like the Carpathian wolf but the trainability and willingness to please come from the GSD. The only breeder in USA is here in Colorado.


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## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

If one is interested in a Czech Wolfdog, I urge them to go see the dogs in person and interact with them and get as many first-hand references as possible. Despite the internet saying that they are a lot like GSDs temperament wise, my exposure to a CWD and stories of CWD shared on the website here would indicate otherwise. The main issue is timidity, and general fearfulness. The dog I have seen was not from the Colorado breeder though, but imported from Europe. It was bought by an individual to be a service dog (because the breeder insisted that the dog would be suitable), but it was a mental wreck that could barely leave the house. 

The dogs being bred for a certain look, temperament has suffered.


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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

agree with Castlemaid --- they do have issues with timidity . I knew the gentleman who took care of the experimental compounds in the Pohranicni Straze breeding program .
He did bring a few to Canada as there was a lot of curious interest in them.
Did not work out. Not good working. Not good as pets .


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## Solo93 (Feb 16, 2016)

Pretty old topic, but...yes, people who have met Czech and Saarloos say that shyness is still an issue. ANY "wolfdog type" that actually looks more wolfy than a mal or husky, is likely to still have the shyness. I think it's possible that it may be genetically linked. (Even the Tundra Shepherd folks, at only 1/4 wolf, noted that the wolf-coloured ones were wilder and shyer than the black-n-tans...) 

I know someone in Tamaskan rescue; I've only met one of hers, but he was definitely...high maintenance. There are different lines of Tamaskan. Some DO have recent wolf (here is some footage of the foundation stock in one line: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvlyTrbUyoo and some are still F3 & F4 downline of him) and others don't. 

Honestly, anything that looks really wolfy, almost definitely acts pretty wolfy, with all the challenges of a lower content wolfdog. The Alaskan Noble is heavy on German shepherd & might be your best bet, along with the Blue Bay, but you still risk things like shyness, independence, reactivity, escape-artist-ism, high prey drive, and same-sex aggression amongst females.


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## NormanF (Apr 14, 2013)

carmspack said:


> agree with Castlemaid --- they do have issues with timidity . I knew the gentleman who took care of the experimental compounds in the Pohranicni Straze breeding program .
> He did bring a few to Canada as there was a lot of curious interest in them.
> Did not work out. Not good working. Not good as pets .


That's probably the reason why Max von Stephanitz did not take cross-breeding with wolves as far the Czechs ultimately did. Looking back on my life with my GSD, she was sweet, affectionate and calm but she also displayed some of that wolf-like reserve in not being overly wanting of human companionship the way lap dogs are. There's a fine line between getting a working dog and a dog that wants to be involved in family life and combining those desired qualities in a dog is a challenge. And the Czechs may not have produced the ideal dog that they were looking for when they created the Czech Wolfdog.


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## Saito (Dec 3, 2015)

Don't mind me, just posting in a thread older than 60% of living German Shepherds.

Le sigh.


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