Animal control officers captured an animal that looked like a "wolf or wolf hybrid" on Madison's West Side this morning.

"Did it look like a wolf or wolf mix? Yes," Patrick Comfert, lead animal control officer for the Madison Dane County Health Department, said of the animal picked up in the 500 block of Charles Lane around 9 a.m.

But Comfert said the agency didn't conduct DNA testing, which would offer conclusive evidence of the animal's genetic makeup.

The animal was taken to the Dane County Humane Society and picked up by its owner this afternoon.

Comfert said his office and law enforcement were flooded with calls Wednesday night and today from neighbors saying they had seen a wolf, including some who said it was howling.

Wolf hybrids, also known as wolfdogs, are not common, he said.

"We've seen them, we've encountered them," Comfert said. "We don't recommend them as pets."

Joel DeSpain, spokesman for the Madison Police Department, said the dog's owner, Gregory Weber, 52, who lives in the 200 block of Falles Court on Madison's near West Side, was arrested Wednesday night on tentative charges of domestic disorderly conduct, domestic criminal trespassing and domestic use of a dangerous weapon after he threatened a 78-year-old woman while armed with a knife.

While Weber was being arrested, he told officers he "was very upset that he had lost his dog ... through the rear window of his pickup truck," DeSpain said.

A phone number listed for Weber was not in service, and he could not be reached Thursday.

Animal control officers began looking for the animal early today. They were able to capture the animal a short while later and put it on a leash, Comfert said, adding it seemed shy and responded to treats.

"It didn't act aggressive," he said.

Having a wolf hybrid is illegal in Madison, but allowed in Dane County, Comfert said. But Weber won't be cited for possessing an exotic animal in violation of city ordinance, he said.

"If he claims it's a dog, we go with that," Comfert said, adding the DNA testing is expensive and "extremely complex."

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