In Retirement, we noticed some behaviors that make us think that Shadow’s not feeling well again. Malik is posturing, presenting a high tail and did a lunge bite towards Shadow with no response from Shadow. When Malik starts to take advantage of Shadow we know something is up. At this point, don't intervene on Shadow's behalf, past experience tells us that Shadow will work it out when he's feeling better, but we do need to get a sense of what's causing these bouts of discomfort for Shadow.
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The text for today will all be the same for each wolf. Why? Well, for the first time in my nearly 27 years of wolf care, we are sump pumping the water in the wolf yard. The snowmelt and day of rain has left a 10 inch deep layer of water. This usually happens in April, when temperatures are near 40 and the ground is still frozen, but in April, we know it will drain in a week. It is January and the weekend forecast is for temperatures in the single digits Fahrenheit with a wind chill and more snow coming. If we let this pond freeze in the yard, we will have a serious safety issue for wolf care working on slick ice. The wolf enclosures all have good topography and other than wet from the rain, they have no issues with standing water. They’re just standing on the edge of the fence watching us pump and sweep as the roof keeps dripping. Hence, I don’t have a lot of time to write wolf logs. All wolves are doing well and the warmer temperatures have been kind to Luna.
The text for today will all be the same for each wolf. Why? Well, for the first time in my nearly 27 years of wolf care, we are sump pumping the water in the wolf yard. The snowmelt and day of rain has left a 10 inch deep layer of water. This usually happens in April, when temperatures are near 40 and the ground is still frozen, but in April, we know it will drain in a week. It is January and the weekend forecast is for temperatures in the single digits Fahrenheit with a wind chill and more snow coming. If we let this pond freeze in the yard, we will have a serious safety issue for wolf care working on slick ice. The wolf enclosures all have good topography and other than wet from the rain, they have no issues with standing water. They’re just standing on the edge of the fence watching us pump and sweep as the roof keeps dripping. Hence, I don’t have a lot of time to write wolf logs. All wolves are doing well and the warmer temperatures have been kind to Luna.
The pigmentation in Aidan's nose has completely returned after a diagnosed issue of Discoid Lupus. This auto immune disorder may be triggered by stress, and if that is the case, then the pups introduction has been a stress reducer for Aidan. Although, there are times when the video doesn't portray that sentiment, this week's photo reinforces that stress free attitude.
We've been noticing a lot of interesting facial expressions from Boltz, especially when Luna is involved. He uses a combination of eye stares, ears pricked forward and head turns when Luna seems to be pushing the limit of his tolerance. Even though these displays are frequent, we usually see Luna and Boltz resting together, and Boltz using Luna as a pillow on many occasions.
During this cold spell, our biggest concern is Luna and how the metal plate is affected by cold temperatures. She is very active, running, jumping, wrestling and scent rolling, and seems to be most affected by long periods of rest. The Vet Care team will continue to discuss the long-term management of her situation and the wolf care staff will continue to watch for any signs of discomfort. At this point, she is doing better than we could have hoped and we know, as the days get longer, the sun angle delivers more heat from the sun every day. January is our most challenging month and it's already the 20th.
I discovered a cache in the Retired Den, not because I saw it, but because of Malik's reaction when I was putting fresh straw in the den. If he's guarding a cache, he is prone to posturing and today, grabbed my boot as I went into the den. It's always important to observe the subtle signs that can magnify into bigger problems. Fortunately, Shadow watches them too, and asserted some dominance over Malik. I don't believe Shadow was protecting my boot, I believe Shadow saw Malik in a more dominant posture and decided to nip that behavior before it became an issue.
Shadow seems to appreciate the straw beds more than any other wolf. When adding straw, I often have to spread it while he's on the den, and as soon as we finish, he's contently lying in a thick pile. We are aware of the retired camera issues and we had a repair person here on Friday. We finally have a reliable computer system, but the signal was flickering due to a weak signal. The coax cable runs 90 feet along a fence line to get to the lab wall, then 100 feet underground to get to the building, then runs 20 feet before it's split into the auditorium TV's, then another 125 feet where it's split in the DL room for video broadcasts and Youtube. In the technology world, that's a long run and a lot of splits. It seems to be acting up in subzero temperatures, which is the first run along the fence. Please bear with us while we try to get this functioning. We appreciate the emails and calls, and we will communicate via facebook when we have the problem solved.
The logs will be the same this week. We had snow on Monday that required a lot of effort to gain access to all the gates, water containers and dens. Thanks to Danielle and Linda for helping in that Monday morning check. We also had to redistribute straw beds for all the enclosures, a task that can only be appreciated during the spring Working for Wolves program when we have to remove all that straw. We are very pleased that Shadow and Malik are back to their usual invite chase behaviors and both have fully recovered from the gastrointestinal virus that occurred a few weeks ago. Grizzer is more social than ever and staff continue to have relaxing checks on a daily basis. Most of the extreme sub-zero weather is behind us and even if we do have a cold night, the days warm up quickly. Rank order traits are starting to emerge in the Exhibit Pack with Luna showing Denali that she will jaw spar despite his over-towering height advantage. Fortunately for Luna, Aidan watches from and pins Denali if things get a little intense. Spring fever starts kicking in for staff and wolves alike as the warm days of March seem to stimulate some strong social behavior (at least for the wolves).
Shadow clearly reveals some dominant behaviors that aid in identification. Shadow is usually on to of the den in the highest vantage point. If there's a wolf on the move, it's likely Malik and if there's a wolf on guard, it's likely Shadow.
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