An animal believed to be a wolf that was killed in the Franklin Basin area last summer was actually a wolf and dog hybrid, according to officials with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game.

After a sheepherder shot the animal east of Preston on July 6 after it reportedly killed a lamb, genetic tests was conducted by the Wildlife Health Laboratory in Caldwell. Those results — which were delayed after the first sample was insufficient — were released last month, and showed that one of the animal’s parents was a purebred German shepherd.

Toby Boudreau, the Southeast Region wildlife manager for IF&G, said his office receives occasional reports of “wolves” that turn out to be huskies, but this was the first time he was aware of that a hybrid had been identified as having killed livestock in the area. Idaho law requires wolf/dog hybrid owners to arrange inspections by IF&G biologists, although Boudreau said “most people probably don’t go through that” permitting process.

Some of those animals end up being released into the wild, as was apparently the case with the 94-pound, male wolf-dog in this case. The animal had worn hair on its neck indicating it probably wore a collar, Boudreau said.

“The most shameful thing here was that clearly this was a domestic animal that somebody let go and it ended up dead,” Boudreau said. “There’s responsible pet ownership and unfortunately there’s that small percentage of owners who aren’t responsible.”

Boudreau said cross-breeding wolves with dogs “is a popular activity,” although it is illegal in many states.

The discovery changes nothing for the sheepherder who shot the animal, Boudreau said, since it is legal to kill dogs or wolves that kill livestock. The sheepherder contacted U.S. Wildlife Services within 24 hours, and the animal was brought to the Fish and Game office in Pocatello on July 8, which officials said made the shooting legal under state law even if it had been a wolf on the Endangered Species list.

IF&G officials ask anyone who sees a wolf to fill out the Wolf Reporting Form online at fishandgame.idaho.gov/cms/wildlife/wolves.