About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

23 Rutgers L.J. 633 (1991-1992)
The Hybrids Howl: Legislators Listen - These Animals Aren't Crying Wolf

handle is hein.journals/rutlj23 and id is 643 raw text is: THE HYBRIDS HOWL: LEGISLATORS LISTEN - THESE ANIMALS AREN'T CRYING WOLF I. INTRODUCTION The new age of conservation in the 1990's has literally produced a new breed of problems. Now, more than ever, Americans care about preserving the environment. Although efforts to educate people on the state of our environs have proven effective, one such effort - to dispel the myth of the wolf as a big, bad predator - may have backfired. When one sees film footage of a wolf living in the wild, one cannot help but admire the beauty, mystique, and intelligence of such a creature.' Under the premise of the Endangered Species Act of 1973,2 the Secretary of the Interior has listed the wolf as a protected species3 and hence, one cannot own a pure wolf as a pet.' In an effort to obtain the next best thing,5 people took to breeding wolves with dogs, forming the controversial wolf-dog hybrids.' Many real problems arise with the ownership of the hybrid as a pet: their natural wolf instincts sometimes lead them to perceive small children as prey, they cannot be vaccinated with an approved rabies shot, and they hamper the efforts of naturalists to enhance the image of the wild wolf for purposes of preservation.7 Owners create more problems when they 1. See DANCES WITH WOLVES (Orion Pictures 1991); WHITE FANG (Walt Disney Pictures 1990). 2. 16 U.S.C. §§ 1531-44 (1988). Section 1533 requires the Secretary of the Interior to compile all the species he has determined to be endangered or threatened in a list. 3. List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife, 50 C.F.R. § 17.11 (h) (1991). The gray wolf, canis lupus, whose historic range is holarctic, is endangered in the 48 contiguous United States, excluding Minnesota, and Mexico. Id. In Minnesota, the gray wolf population is threatened. Id. The red wolf, canis rufus, also a native to the south western United States, is endangered across the entire country except in Dare, Tyrrell, Hyde, and Washington Counties in North Carolina, where authorities released a nonessential experimental population in the hopes of increasing the depleted numbers of these animals. Id. 4. 16 U.S.C. § 1538 (1988). The act allows permits for scientific purposes under § 1539(a). 5. Betsy S. Siino, Wolf Hybrids, DOG FANCY, Jan. 1990, at 51, 53. 6. Canines constitute one of the rare groups in the animal kingdom whereby related species can mate and produce fertile offspring. William Booth, Questioned Pedigree Clouds Wolf Program; Conservation Law Won't Help Save a Hybrid, WASHINGTON POST, June 24, 199 1, at A3. Similarly, a female horse and a male donkey, members of the same equine group, can mate, but such a coupling only produces the infertile offspring known as the mule. WEBSTER'S NEW WORLD DICTIONARY 934 (2d ed. 1984). Mating a male horse and a female donkey produces a hinny. Id. at 664. 7. See infra section II.

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most