maya – Jul 27, 2009 12:00 AM

Maya's dominance over Aidan hasn't calmed much this summer, but we have identified the triggers that make her excited. One is howling, a pack rally leads her to demonstrate her status. Other scenarios that are problematic for Aidan is the excitement of the daily med deliver in a meatball, the excitement of all the wolves jumping at the fence makes Maya redirect. We noticed another scenario that we must be mindful of; If Maya doesn't go into the pack holding area and Aidan does, she waits to dominate him when he comes out. We have this same problem with Malik and Grizzer. Our goal is to get all the pack into holding, so no one wolf is separated out, but Maya continues to be timid about the sliding gates overhead. One bad experience with a gate can cause a lifetime of negative conditioning. One other notable Maya situation is her unusual shed pattern. For whatever reason, she holds on to her undercoat around her neck, making it look like she has ruffles. She also has some residual guard hairs on the tip of her tail that doesn't shed. It makes her look a bit odd, but it makes it easier for observers to identify her.