Animal Shelter Saved Huge Dog But Only Found Out The Unbelievable Truth After A DNA Test

When the call came in, this woman dropped everything on her schedule to head to Broward County. Upon getting there, she was shocked to see the size of this dog. She felt sick when she stared into the yellow eyes of the animal. She knew that beneath the sleek black coat were powerful muscles that could do harm to everyone in the vicinity. Right away, the woman knew that someone lied to her, which was eventually confirmed by the DNA results. However, she was hoping that the poor animal was not going to be the one to pay for this mess.

A Longtime Animal Lover

Nancy Smith is such a huge animal lover that she founded an animal sanctuary of her own. It was her goal to help all the animals in need. The sanctuary offers a great environment and rehabilitation for the creatures that they take in. She hand-picked the members of the team and ensured that everyone was driven and passionate. However, not a single one of them has encountered anything like this in the past.

A Heart Of Gold

Brittany Allen started working at the shelter a decade ago. As soon as she saw this new rescue, she knew the steps that she had to take. This might very well be the most intimidating animal that she had ever seen in her life, but there was an instant connection between them! However, anger took over her body when she learned what happened to him before he was taken to the shelter.

She Got A Strange Call

One day, Nancy Smith received a weird phone call. This happened only one day before she drove out to the East Coast of Florida to pick up an animal at the Broward Animal Shelter. The caller did not want to disclose his identity and informed her that he had to surrender his pet. When asked why he only told her that this animal grew “much larger” than any of them expected…

He Was Not Prepared

According to this person, he thought that he knew what he was in for. He already did his homework, looked up reviews, and got used to the needs of an exotic canine breed. Aside from that, he already brought everything for the animal: collar, bed, engraved tag, shampoo, lead, the works. This was the reason that he thought he was ready for such a big commitment. However, he started to worry after the creature outgrew the lead, collar, and bed. This was where the story started.

More Than He Could Handle

Even though he knew that Yuki was going to be huge as an adult, he was shocked to see how big the canine was growing. The animal was already five feet tall by the age of 8 months! It was already bigger than what the breeder had in mind. Not long after this, Yuki could no longer live inside the house thanks to his size. The man created a shelter for the canine in the yard, but this was a temporary solution.

Time To Get Help

Yuki might have only been a puppy, but he was already big enough to scare the man. He was showing certain features that they did not see before. He had huge claws and large teeth, which scared the breeder. Eventually, this man realized that he got more than he bargained for. It was time for him to face the music. This was how he ended up calling Nancy Smith and asking the animal sanctuary for help.

It Was Urgent

Nancy listened to his story but informed the man that they were already at full capacity. She promised to let him know when a slot opened up. However, this was not good enough for the caller. According to him, his “friend” bought the dog from a breeder and only later realized that it was too much to handle. The day after that, Nancy received a call from a place known as Broward Animal Shelter.

Calling Nancy For Help

Over the years, the people at Broward Animal Shelter had taken care of hundreds of animals. However, this animal was different from most. They were quick to figure out that they could not handle the creature, which was tied up outdoors. And so, they Nancy and asked her to come over as soon as she possibly could. Before anything else, they wanted to bring the creature to safety. After that, they would call the authorities.

A Huge Beast

When Nancy finally arrived at Broward Animal Shelter, she saw something that she would never forget. She found a huge beast pacing in a cage. His huge jaws remained open, and his claws were splayed out on the concrete. His hot breath steamed the air when he panted. After seeing the size of his teeth and head, Nancy felt chills down her spine. The animal stood at five feet and four inches, so there was no way that it was a dog or a wolf. After talking to the staff member, she could not believe what she heard.

Yuki Was Dumped Outside

Nancy spoke to the staff and found out that they discovered the poor creature tied up outside of the shelter. The employees recorded him as a “stray.” It was too big of a coincidence to be unrelated to the phone call that she received the previous day. Right away, she knew that she was looking at the animal that the caller was talking about. It would look like the person just could not wait for a space to open up at her animal shelter and did things his own way. This was a very irresponsible thing for him to do!

She Was Furious

Nancy felt a surge of pity for this animal. It was clear that the owner did not do enough research on hybrids before he got one. This poor creature now had to pay the price for his careless actions. While she was furious about what happened, she led him to the van. She first made him go through a DNA test to see if her suspicions were right. However, she was rendered incredulous by what she learned from it!

His True Personality

Fans of Game of Thrones would probably think that Yuki looked like a Direwolf. He was in pretty good shape when compared to the other animals that are taken to the animal sanctuary. It was quite surprising to learn that he was outgoing and friendly. Even though he looked scary, the team once considered turning him into an ambassador for the sanctuary.

Undergoing A DNA Test

Nancy and the rest of the Shy Wolf Sanctuary team ran a DNA test on their new rescue. This was what confirmed her worst suspicions. When they got the results, they found out that Yuki was indeed 3.9% German Shepherd, 8.6% Siberian Husky, and 87.5% Gray Wolf. This meant that he was a high-content wolfdog, which is illegal to either breed or owns in the state of Florida.

The Truth About Wolfdogs

If you go through history, you will know that humans have always had a fascination with wolves. This is probably the reason for the rise of the wolf-dog hybrid. Uneducated buyers and breeders try to make a breed that is as beautiful as a wolf but still as friendly and loyal as man’s best friend. However, a lot of these people do not know the consequences of their actions both to the wolfdogs and to themselves!

Too Risky Of A Gamble

It is very risky to make a wolf-dog hybrid because you never know what traits the result is going to inherit. There is no way to tell which side is going to be dominant. The pups might look like wolves but retain the personality of a dog or the other way around. This is the reason why some states do not allow the ownership of a high-content wolfdog. These are not the only things that could pose problems as well. Most often, a lot of owners realize what they have gotten into far too late!

Nowhere Else To Go

Wolfdogs and wolves both need plenty of space to run, more food than a regular dog, and need to be trained even more intensely. If you are used to having regular dogs, it is going to take some getting used to the maintenance of these creatures. Wolfdogs are usually too tame to live in the wild but are too wild to remain in a dog shelter. When they are abandoned, it is hard to find a new home for them.

Abandonment Issues

Ever since Shy Wolf Sanctuary opened its doors two decades ago, it has seen a huge rise in the number of abandoned wolfdogs. At the moment, it rescues 20 to 100 wolfdogs from different parts of the United States. The very first rescue the team has ever made was a 3-legged leopard, but wolfdogs are now the most abandoned exotic animals in the establishment. Nancy was already thinking about looking for the previous owner, but something happened to change the life of Yuki before she could get around to that.

His Changing Behavior

Shortly after Yuki arrived at Shy Wolf Sanctuary, he was going around outside when his leg caught on a palmetto. It ended up leaving a wound on his knee on the right rear leg. In the end, he had to undergo five surgeries before the injury was fixed. Around this time, the team at the animal sanctuary noticed that the poor creature was starting to act more aggressively in his cage.

He Had Trust Issues

Despite everything, they started to get to know Yuki more as his personality developed. After a little while, he would let a couple of women come into the cage. He did not trust a lot of people, but he trusted Brittany. It was a good thing that the two of them had each other at the very least. At the time, however, no one had a clue that he was going to turn into an internet star! How did this even happen?

Becoming An Internet Star

One day, Brittany put up a photo of Yuki on the Facebook page of the animal sanctuary. The photo revealed the true size of the canine. He clearly dwarfed Brittany, who stands at 5’4.” Not long after she uploaded the photo, it made rounds on social media. Many netizens were shocked to see the size of this wolfdog. In fact, some were so incredulous and claimed that it must have been photoshopped!

Making Rounds On The Internet

Britney had the perfect response for these accusations: “It’s just his fat angle guys. We all have one.” Soon enough, the photo went viral. People from different parts of the globe left comments on the photo. Everyone could not believe that Yuki existed! “They definitely are creatures that demand respect. It would be a much different encounter in the wild than what I do with these guys. The animals I work with have never been in the wild and never will be, so they are more socialized,” Brittney said.

Raising Awareness About Wolfdogs

“We show off their adorable moments in the hope of helping people identify with them at least and maybe change their fear response into a healthy respect through education,” she went on, “… And also giving an animal a chance at a decent life when otherwise they would be euthanized.” While people were delighted by this photo, the sanctuary soon had to deal with some terrible news. What was it?

Not Acting Like Himself

For quite some time already, Yuki had not been acting like his regular self. He was not eating as much, and he did not appear excited like he once was. When a team member showed him his favorite toy, the canine did not show any interest. The staff could see that he was moping in the cage and only engaging in playtime every now and then. They knew that it was time to see what was going on with him.

The Terrible News

Sadly, the team found out that Yuki was suffering from cancer. What made it even worse was that it was a terminal condition. Even though they have dealt with such a thing in the past, they hoped that Yuki was going to survive. After all, he was clearly a fighter. After some time, the team just wanted to ensure that they would make the most out of the time they had with Yuki.

Leaving His Mark

Yuki first arrived at the shelter in 2008. He has already left an impact on the staff and guests in the years that he has spent in the shelter. People always fell in love with him thanks to his cheeky and outgoing personality. He has been living there for 12 years now, so we are not surprised to hear how many people he has won over since then. However, his mark on Shy Wolf Sanctuary extended even further than the adoration of his fans.

Making An Impact

“Today, Yuki is one of the most interesting animals in the sanctuary. He is not an easy guy to get to know, but he does have a small number of volunteers he has bonded with,” explained Jeremy Albrecht. He went on, “He has gained the nickname ‘Woowoo’ because when he sees any of his chosen volunteers that is the noise he makes, beckoning that the volunteer comes to spend time with him.” Ever since the photo of Yuki and Britney went viral, more visitors and support have come in for the sanctuary. To this day, Nancy Smith and the rest of the team continue to raise awareness regarding the plight of wolfdogs! This would have been a harder task if they did not have Yuki with them.