Trans-direism or species dysphoria?
By Jennifer Stoeckl, MAT - Dire Wolf Project CEO, May 26, 2025
Oh, boy!
I’m definitely going to get myself in trouble in THIS email!
If you haven’t unsubscribed already (considering your still here reading this latest email), find the button before it’s too late!
Cuz… I just can’t let them get away with species fluidity!
I swear I tried to move on.
I really DID!
I even had a different email all lined up for this morning that I wrote Friday night.
It was going to address a completely different topic so that we could have some semblance of sanity from the mega-controversy for at least a few days.
But then they went and raised the stakes again.
What is WRONG with people?!
Why does EVERYTHING have to be about social constructs these days?
I’d really like a rest from the crazy for a while.
How ‘bout you?
But, alas, today I must present to you the rebirth of the resurrection of the genetically altered Aenocyon dirus—or, at least, its modern cosplay cousin.
You see, Colossal Biosciences has now walked back the walk back from last week.
Ordinarily, I would just let it go.
The drama is pretty much overrated and tiresome now.
As you know, I live and breathe this genetic science stuff, but they are even making my head spin with their insane back and forth logic.
After lead scientist for Colossal Biosciences, Dr. Beth Shapiro seemed to indicate that the company now agreed they did NOT officially de-extinct the dire wolf, this weekend a spokesman for the company has clarified that:
”In our press release, we stated we made 20 gene edits to grey wolf cells. Grey wolves are the closest living relatives to the dire wolves, as we showed in our paper. With those edits, we have brought back the dire wolf. We have been using the concept of functional de-extinction from the beginning. Those are the facts and nothing has changed.
”We have also said that species are ultimately a human construct and that other scientists have a right to disagree and call them whatever they want to call them. Khaleesi, Romulus, and Remus are the first dire wolves to walk the earth in 12,000 years.” -emphasis added
So let’s call this what it is, then:
transgenetic trans-species identity.
In other words, trans-direism.
Remember, as I reported on Friday, Dr. Beth Shapiro even stated, “…if it looks like the animal, then it’s the animal.”
Sound familiar??
Where, oh where, have we heard this argument before?
Let’s unpack that logic by applying it to human controversy, shall we?
If a human alters outward appearance features, hormone levels, and physical presentation to match another sex—society is increasingly compelled to affirm not just identity, but objective reality.
So, by this logic, identity is defined by external expression and intent, not by immutable, original structure (e.g., XX vs. XY, or ancient Aenocyon vs. modern Canis).
Colossal is using that same transgender framework essentially saying:
“We edited a wolf until it looks like a dire wolf. We affirm it. The media affirms it. Let’s all howl together and move on.”
Well—if identity is no longer tied to the historical blueprint, but instead to outward resemblance plus social affirmation, then Romulus is a dire wolf, because he feels dire on the inside and looks dire on the outside.
It's trans-direism, my friends.
Or perhaps species dysphoria.
And let’s be honest—Colossal isn’t in the business of genetic truth.
They’re in the business of narrative engineering.
Their wolves identify as dire, the mainstream press affirms them as dire, and now the public—scientifically illiterate as they often are—is lapping it up like it's fresh mammoth marrow.
But we cannot allow this to go unchallenged.
This hits too close to home for us.
And it harms our own credibility simply by association.
See the pattern?
Both systems use identity assertion, external changes, and emotional branding to redefine fundamental biological categories.
But here's the truth:
Morphology ≠ Identity.
A few edits ≠ Resurrection.
And wearing a prehistoric costume
doesn't make you a dire wolf.
This isn’t science.
It’s speciological performance art with a $225 million budget.
A real dire wolf had millions of years of evolutionary context, prey drive honed for giant ground sloths, and jaws made to crush bone.
And not just because it looked cool, but because it was built for that niche, in that time.
You can't microwave that with CRISPR and call it the same animal.
That’s like saying you resurrected a Roman gladiator because a guy named Kyle from New Jersey put on a tunic and screamed “SPQR” at Comic-Con.
And what about the small population of people who have a percentage of traceable Neanderthal DNA? Should we identify them as Neanderthals because they already have altered DNA?
What if these individuals were to grow out their hair, neglect to brush their teeth, and carry a club? Then would they be true Neanderthals?
If Colossal’s dire wolves are "real," then identity is truly just cosplay with enough edits and applause.
And hey, maybe that's what the modern world wants, a Snapchat filter for biology.
But in the Ice Age of truth and logic, where mammoth bones still mark the past, identity is earned, not worn.
And until they bring back the dire wolf's ancient soul, hunting instinct, and mitochondrial lineage…
Colossal's pups are nothing more than the drag queens of the canine world.
Now I know some of you might be thinking I must be off my rocker completely for comparing Colossal Biosciences’ so-called “dire wolves” to transgenderism.
That’s fine. I accept your opinion.
In fact, I honor the dissenting argument so thoroughly that I, myself, wrote a rebuttal from the opposing perspective as if I were a PR representative from Colossal Biosciences.
You can read the argument I crafted against my own trans-direism claim at the link below:
https://direwolfproject.com/dire-wolf/trans-direism/
MOVIE MONDAY
Howls of joy—I'm back on schedule, packmates!
This week’s film is one you won’t want to miss…
- Follow Henry’s journey as he emerges from the shadows of rescue into the light of trust, step by careful step. His transformation is nothing short of inspiring. You’ll feel it in your chest like the echo of a distant howl.
- Then, step inside the den during Jody’s 5-day visit to Dire Wolf Project headquarters—where laughter, learning, and legacy mingled in every pawprint.
And oh… just wait until you lay eyes on the magnificent companions we have now. These aren’t just dogs—they’re the proud apex of everything we’ve built together. The best we’ve ever bred. Each one, a rare spark of Ice Age spirit reborn.
And even though they look very similar to dire wolves on the outside, no, that doesn’t make them dire wolves.
Jennifer Stoeckl is the co-founder of the Dire Wolf Project, founder of the DireWolf Guardians American Dirus Dog Training Program, and owner/operator of DireWolf Dogs of Vallecito. She lives in the beautiful inland northwest among the Ponderosa pine forests with her pack of American Dirus dogs.