Just saw a clip on TV on 3 grey wolves in Alaska. All were wagging their tails during human interaction. Maybe not so cut and dried as you make it appear.
I will offer some more info on this
"In my personal experience".......................
Dogs, domestic dogs, can show human type facial expressions such as lifting of the eyebrows, smiling etc
They do not naturally do this however and are learend responses from observing humans body language.
Emulating us so to speak to communicate their own feelings with us.
The wild wolves, likely did the same, learned human responses and copied them to communicate
Since they started interracting with the humans
I would say they would not otherwise
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It also depends on the wild percentage present
I have one above 70% she is like an NVC prisoner, will not take a bribe, offering her a steak does not make her your friend, she could care less, her attitude is "Leave it, I'll get to it when I want, IF.... I want, now just walk away"
She did not show any emotion, facial, or body wise, for YEARS
Always had the most serious stoic look on her face
When happy when sad when hungry etc. I could never tell if she was enjoying our interactions or was about to attack.
Being a Wolf, she would normally just stare "Through you" with a look of intimidation.
That's their M.O. - to intimidate.
And this is a pet we're talking about, if you want to call it that.
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I say Wolves dont make good "PETS" within the definition of what we think of as a pet
If you want to call a Bear a pet, then that's a pet only because it is under human ownership.
She dislikes being petted, and merely "Tolerates it" knowing she has no choice.
I had to teach her what affection is, a pet, a hug, etc because she took anything like that as a confrontation or an attack if moving toward her.
(Move toward a wild Wolf that is not backing off and you will get the idea, even if all you intend to do is pet it)
It has taken 10 years, to teach her, and finally be able to walk up to her and pet her without getting bit
And you must tell her what part of her body you are going to pet first, such as Head, Ears etc.
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anything raised in captivity, is a different story
Anything less than 70% is a different story
My 55-60% percenters, will wag their tail, lift their tail, like and accept and even may crave affection.
It is surprising the amount of behavioral difference in just 10% the more wild an animal is.
So we must consider what differences might there be in a so called WIld animal....
......... if somewhere along the line a Dog had gotten bred into their pack.
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Due to my having wolves for over 20 years of course I do much research always trying to learn one more thing
I have read that it is very unlikely nowadays for any Wolf, to be 100% Wild anymore.
Even Zoo animals rarely have 100% Wolf DNA......because over the years a dog has been bred in the mix....somewhere along the line.............even in the wild. Just due to the urge to propagate the Species during mating season, if a dog is available, then they''ll take what they can get.
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If you notice in the Pics here, The higher percentage mom, always has the same facial expression.
She is like a disciplined Military Soldier, always serious and ready. (Thats why I like her)
Her pup, just one generation difference, shows smiling, wagging of the tail etc. And in that pic the mom is happy and having fun, but you'd never know it by her body language.
Up until just a couple years ago.....The only time I really saw her smile or get happy,
is when she's about to attack , she is just like Jack Nicholson in
"The Shining" with the attitude of "HERRRRRRRES JONNY!!!!"
So a Wild Wolf or Coyote is very unlikely to smile at you,
If they do, I'd get ready to defend yourself or bail.
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One reason I own so many Wolves is to help educate people in the Hybrid breed.
They are a different animal even though Canine, and should be understood and treated as such.
The main thing being, a Wolf is not a Dog, anymore than a Coyote is a dog, anymore than a Hyena is a Dog.
So not to say it is impossible for them to Wag or whatever, just that it is rare and not likely
Same as barking, for the most part Wolves do not bark, they CAN bark, but they choose not to for various reasons, mostly to not alert other animals of their presence, be it other predators or prey, they remain silent.
