Aidan-Prancing with the Pack (Some of the Pack?)

We have moments when Aidan shows some strong pack cohesiveness with Denali, Grayson and even at times Axel, but as soon as Boltz arrives, he reverts back to intimidation and retreat mode.  There are definite correlations to the temperatures, and as you can see by this week’s photo, the snow gets everyone excited.  Aidan is prancing with Denali as the younger wolves are running along the fenceline.  I posted this video clip on last week’s Youtube. Aidan had a vet check last week and there were discussions about the growth that has been irritating his front leg.  At this point, we are measuring and monitoring the growth size and growth rate as well as the irritation factor.  The Veterinarian prescribed an antihistamine, since mast cell’s can be a result of a body’s response to allergens and inflammation.  Aidan has had a history of auto-immune disorders dating back to 2011 with his first diagnosis of discoid lupus, so this has been an ongoing management issue for staff.  

As far as the testing of Aidan’s status, this seems to be diminishing, although the colder than average April has kept things a bit tense a big longer than usual.  It seems like the arctics are having face-off behaviors with Boltz which makes us think there might be some rank establishment among the three younger wolves.  Rank isn’t something that’s settled in a day, it is a combination of behavioral occurrences that build over time and are influenced by hormones and certainly cooler ambient temperatures.  To say that the pack is testing, does not infer that testing interactions are the sole interactions of the pack.  Even on a daily basis, the wolves can go from testing dominance to a “nose to nose” greetings and end up resting in social groups with the same individuals that had earlier experienced conflict.  Wolves don’t hold a grudge or want to get even with each other. Aidan was the wolf that lead the social bonding with the arctic pups on their introduction into the pack and despite the testing, Aidan and Grayson still have a strong bond; On Saturday, the staff reported all wolves but Boltz were resting on the pump housing together.  That’s not a very large space for 4 large wolves, so they must have been feeling compatible.  We look for evidence in every interaction, so we have the ability to understand wolf intent.