Malik still shows no anxiety towards Grizzer, actually he's quite indifferent. His abscess tooth issue is back after two months of no issues. He starts another course of antibiotic, and we will plan for a complete medical exam in April when environmental conditions are warmer and snow in the enclosure is gone. This week's photo shows him actively scraping the ground, and as in the past, he has no problem eating and breaking bones of the chicken, deer or beaver.
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Shadow seems to be focusing his communication towards Aidan. It's interesting to know who howls in what response. Malik rarely joins in, although this week's Youtube will show him in the back of the enclosure with a response. If Grizzer starts a howl, Denali will respond. If Aidan starts a howl, Shadow will respond. If Shadow starts a howl, usually all of the wolves will respond.
In the last week, we have observed an increase in play behavior between Aidan and Denali. Vermilion Community College students observing the Exhibit have recorded recent chasing bouts with Aidan chasing Denali and Denali chasing Aidan. The difference is, when Aidan catches up to Denali, he does a play bow and fore leg stab. When Denali catches up to Aidan, he tackles him and does some jaw sparring. These two do have different personalities. The other observation is that they are decreasing distances between each other when resting. Initially, Aidan would be on the main den with Denali on the Slate Den. Recently, Aidan has moved himself to the base of the Slate Den while Denali continues to rest on top of the Slate Den.
We had good success with the last course of antibiotics on the abscess, and there is no signs of issues. The weather is typical spring in Minnesota, some warm melting days, followed by cooler days with snow. The ice conditions are very extreme here and we notice Malik is sticking to preexisting paths for travel. There is a lot of snow yet to melt and we would expect the mud season will last for a while. The next task is to start to remove the large volume of straw that was used this winter.
There isn't to much new in Retirement. Shadow has decreased his howling bouts and doesn't focus on the pack nearly as much. This is probably influenced by the quiet nature of the Exhibit. Other than some chasing play bouts in the late mornings or early afternoons, Denali and Aidan are very quiet and calm. This calm energy is certainly noticed by Shadow.
Grizzer's howls continue, but can be best correlated with wolf care staff leaving the enclosure or when staffing has less hours dedicated to wolf care on site. He is very relaxed with wolf care staff in the enclosure and is receiving daily powder to his head to increase healing and willingly allows wolf care staff to clean the area. He received a bit of a trim of his hair today and had no problem with the scissors. His eating patterns are unique, as he seems to only consume chicken legs or wings, leaving the thigh and breast meat. In recent feedings of deer legs, he seems reluctant to consume large quantities of meat. We did discover this with Lakota and Malik when they were alone, it appears that the lack of competition for food might influence their behavior. Grizzer gets chicken on a daily basis and still gets small carcasses, even though they might not be consumed. We are waiting for spring melt to layout Grizzer's new habitat and hope to have ground breaking by mid-May.
Malik has been posturing far more towards Shadow and the timing seems to coincide with some decline in Shadow's food consumption as well as an increase in water consumption. The medical examination scheduled for Malik in the upcoming month will include an examination and complete blood panel for Shadow. Shadow's been showing some intolerance towards some staff, which usually means he's not feeling the best. We also know Malik to be an opportunist, and when Shadow's down a bit, Malik pushes status.
Staff have recorded that Aidan has been more likely to seek attention than Denali when staff come to the fence. This is a change from previous months when Denali was always first at the fence. Another behavior that may support the interpretation that Aidan is decreasing in confidence is whining. Aidan is becoming much more vocal towards staff that are in or near the lab. He still is very guarding of staff when they are in the enclosure. We’re not sure what precipitated the change, every wolf deals with separation anxiety differently. It appears that Denali has returned to normal exuberant and sometimes over excited behavior, where Aidan seeks passive, submissive and seems to prefer quiet time.
The Wolf Logs for the week will contain the same text for each wolf. The curator was at a conference during the week, and time is limited for Friday duties. The pack did well in the Curator's absence, it is important that wolf care is not dependent upon one individual, but a multitude of individuals that can meet the wolves' basic needs. There are 16 people associated with the wolf care program and all have their own strengths and skills that help manage the packs. Aidan continues to be confident and Grizzer is still showing some anxiety when Aidan puts his tail in a T-2 posture and follows him. There will be a Vermilion Community College Ethology class beginning some observations, and we hope to have some good data to share by the end of April.
Denali has been posturing over by Grizzer's enclosure, making Grizzer a bit nervous, but not showing any aggression towards Grizzer. Denali seems more inclined to seek attention from wolf care staff, and his posturing at Grizzer's fenceline may just be an attention seeking maneuver. Behaviorally, we have noticed Denali having some confidence issues (tucking tail and hackles) when Aidan follows him, but overall, they are spending time separately in their own space. We expect this type of separation anxiety from a social pack animal, and in our previous experience, this may go on for weeks. We continue the same daily routine for the aid of giving them some security, but wolf care staff need to be cautious about favoring either one of them, this can start more intense interactions.
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