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May 26, 2006 7:06 am US/Central
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Humane Society Houses 19 Wolf-Dog Hybrids
Golden Valley, Minn. (AP) ―
The Animal Humane Society moved 19 adult wolf-dog hybrids to its facility in Golden Valley, Minn. Thursday after their owner died, leaving them neglected on a Burnett County farm in western Wisconsin.
Humane Society investigator Keith Streff said the animals will be destroyed if the society isn't able to raise enough money to send them to a Colorado sanctuary for wolf hybrids.
The animals were living in "outright deplorable" conditions and were emaciated, Streff said.
"This was a bad scene, catastrophic for the animals," he said.
Humane societies do not offer wolf-dog crosses for adoption because of liability concerns, Streff said.
Walter Medwid, executive director of the International Wolf Center in Plymouth, said the hybrids that result when timberwolves and dogs breed are unpredictable.
"There have been fatal outcomes from that genetic stew," Medwid said.
"There are risks perhaps with almost any dog, but the risks with hybrid animals dramatically increase," he said.
The hybrids will receive medical care at the Golden Valley shelter, said AHS President Martha McPhee.
"Our goal is to save them," McPhee said. "We may not be able to do that -- there is a sad possible outcome -- but we will try to find a way to save them."
(© 2006 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)