Grizzer – Fall is in the Air

Grizzer lives in the East Side Retirement area that has less moisture due to topography and a lack of pond overflow that is characteristic of the Exhibit Pack.  These dryer soils seem to show the autumn colors in full force in retirement, while the vegetation around the Exhibit Pack pond remains green.  While photographers appreciate fall colors and eventual leaves falling, the change brings more open enclosures and to some extent, more vulnerability for wolves, especially the older wolves.  If Grizzer gets overwhelmed by the activities around the wolf yard, in summer, he could always retreat to the back of the retirement area and be literally out of sight.  Now, the breaks in the canopy are creating a bit more alertness and we need to be more sensitive to the activities within the wolf yard.  This is one of the reasons that we wind down the “Behind the Scenes” tours until next spring.  Grizzer will have some challenges during the upcoming Working for Wolves program in October.  We are carefully determining the extent of the work projects that we need to do prior to the weekend by wolf care staff  versus work that can be done during the Working for Wolves weekend.  We are excited about the weekend and know that it will result in a  tremendous improvement in the lives of Grizzer, Luna and the Exhibit Pack.