Wolf Dog Dad Playfully 'Runs From Responsibility' of His Pack of Pups

There’s no question that the early days of parenting can seem overwhelming. I remember standing in the hospital after we checked out with our newborn and realizing with no small amount of horror that they were just going to let me take this tiny little creature home to care for, all by myself.

The dog in this video looks a little overwhelmed, too, but in his case he appears to be surrounded by not one baby—but a whole pack of them.

Mako, a white canine described by his owner as a “wolf dog” (a hybrid of wolf and domesticated dog that are legal in many places in the country) is shown running from, playing with, and playfully correcting what appears to be at least eight puppies in this adorable video.

Related: Baby Wolfdog Adorably ‘Calls’ for His ‘Little Human'

Eight! Man, I don’t blame you.

The video shows him sitting on the couch while the little pups line up along the edge, their front paws up on the cushions, their tails wagging furiously. He leaps over them, but can’t escape as they chase him around the room and eventually surround him.

Little puppies have needle-like milk teeth and don’t know their own strength as they play, so this is the part where I’m sure poor Mako got a few sharp nips. He corrects them, with growls and bared teeth, making them shy away from him.

How Dogs Correct Other Dogs

The behavior may look frightening, but these “corrections” are actually a natural part of canine parenting. In fact, if you look closely, you can see that Mako is taking great pains to keep his jaws opened wide so that he doesn’t actually bite the little rascals with his enormous and powerful teeth. He’s teaching them, in his own, doggie way, to be gentle and play nice.

Some dog parents will even use their jaws to gently “hold” an unruly pup in place for a few moment, the same way a human will put their kid in “time out” to calm them down.

Play Growls Between Dogs and Puppies

Though it may look intimidating to people, a lot of Mako’s behavior here is just standard puppy playtime, in both wolf and dog breeds, as well as these kinds of hybrids. Even his little growls are not the growl he might turn on an intruder , but actually “play growls” — the dog equivalent of baby talking, “Who is a fierce puppy?”

If you don’t know the dog, it can be hard to differentiate, but it’s higher pitched than their normal vocalizations, and more whiney too. You can hear that instead of long, sustained growls, his are short , and sound a bit silly.

Of course, the most obvious sign that Mako is just playing around comes at the end, where he gives up entirely trying to correct his puppies and lays down in the middle of the floor, rolling over on his back and showing his belly.

He’s taught the babies boundaries and appropriate behavior, and then he’s demonstrating it, too. His lessons are definitely sinking in, as a few of his pups start to copy him, rolling over on their own backs and trying to be “just like dad.”

It’s a sweet scene of a canine family who is just trying to learn the ropes, and one that every new parent truly understands.

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