Aidan- Confidence to be a Leader

If you are a frequent viewer of our webcams, you may have noticed a significant change since last week.  Our pack leader Aidan appears to have lost confidence when dealing with the pack.  He has reverted back to using a safety zone of the main den to avoid testing, reminiscent of his early life in the pack.  As a yearling, Aidan was the pack omega and often forced to stay near the confines of the densite due to Maya’s dominance, now as an aging pack member, he seems to be displaying similar behaviors.  I am posting a video on the Center’s Youtube channel that shows a clip of this behavior as a yearling and what we have been monitoring in the last week.  This may be a temporary winter dominance issue or may be a transition into retirement for Aidan.  Wolf Care staff are assessing the situation throughout the day.  Staff are discussing the behaviors of each wolf to determine the best management action.  It does appear that Aidan still wants to lead this pack as indicated by his ear and tail posture when the pack is moved to an adjacent holding area, but less confident when the pack is active around him.  Aidan has a special affinity for Grayson, who has been observed going into the den with Aidan at various times throughout the week.  This is a challenging time for staff to ensure we are making the right decision for the pack and for Aidan.  We have a wolf care webinar on Friday, February 2nd where we will discuss our management plan.  If you are interested in being a subscriber to all 12 webinars or as a single webinar viewer, the registration is online at https://wolf.org/programs/webinars/