maya – Nov 10, 2008 12:00 AM

Maya is under the influence of a hormonal surge. Even in a spayed and neutered exhibit, the dominance of a female can be very intense, which is why we are only managing one female at time. Maya has become a bit intense with the pups, especially Aidan. These are short-lived burst of dominance that are loud, have some hard muzzle-biting, to keep the pups in their place. Why Aidan over Denali? We’re not sure, and I don’t think Aidan is either. But, she is doing her job keeping the pups from climbing rank, and that helps Shadow. The female dominance role is so critical in the wild to reduce the rate of multiple litters, so Maya’s behavior is just part of the behavioral instincts that keeps wild wolves functioning.