grizzer – May 18, 2008 12:00 AM

Grizzer’s response to the pups at the fence has been very interesting and leaves us cause to wonder how he will interact with his future pack mates. He displays high pitch whining, licking response and an almost obsessed look when the pups approach. This could be very good for the introduction if he takes some ownership in the pups. It could also mean obsessive behavior that may get a bit intense. The introduction is months away, but these daily fence visits will be observed carefully to gleam any indication of future issues. Other than the pup activity, the pack is very calm, and Grizzer and Malik have very few dominance interactions at this time of year. The presence of the pups seems to have stimulated Prolactin hormonal development, with the best indicator of this being the calm behavior. Grizzer was the first wolf to start the shedding process, where wolves lose the dense undercoat, leaving the permanent guard hairs as the dominant coat in summer. This makes wolves look extremely thin, including Grizzer.