One of the projects that need to be done in preparation for winter is draining the pond, which was done during the Workin' for Wolves weekend. It always looks very different to see the pond without water. During the summer months, minnows were placed in the pond as a means of enclosure enrichment, much to Maya's delight. She seemed to thoroughly enjoy sitting on the rock and watching minnows. But, for now, she will have to settle for running and climbing in the pond without water.
Archives
To prepare for winter in northern MN, there are many things that need to be done in and around the enclosure. One of these is to replace the automatic waterer with the heated waterer so the water won't freeze during the winter months. The heated waterers are encased in cement and are extremely heavy. Setting up the heated waterer in the enclosure was one of the projects done for by the Workin' for Wolves participants. During today's wolf care, wolf care staff found that their water pail need to be cleaned. While the pail was empty, Grizzer's curiosity took over, and he proceeded to check it out. Sorry for the clarity of this picture…..it was hard to get decent pictures during the low light this morning.
Fall and winter are always good times of the year for the wolves; the heat of summer is past and the weather and snowfall bring cooler, and more comfortable, temperatures. All of the wolves have their full winter coats, making them look very big. This is a marked change from the summer when they have shed their winter coats and look very thin. Wolf care in the winter involves checking for bites or scratches that may be hidden within their dense undercoat. In this picture, you can notice Malik's full winter pelage.
Daily wolf care at the International Wolf Center involves checking on the wolves' general health, as well as the delivery of meds (vitamins and Cosequin). When staff go into the enclosure to perform wolf care responsibilites, the wolves are encouraged to jump on the greeting rocks to give facial greetings, rather than jumping up to greet staff. During this morning's wolf care, both Maya and Grizzer were on the greeting rock. Visitors often ask how to tell Grizzer and Maya apart. Aside from size (Grizzer being larger and broader), Grizzer is lighter in coloration on his legs and face, as can be seen in this photo.
So sorry for the delay in the wolf logs. Preparation for the Wolf Symposium in Colorado Springs has taken a bit of my time. In addition, protocols and contingency plans during my absence need to be written to ensure that every possible wolf emergency is covered. International Wolf Center members and former nannies, Brian and Ellen Dietz will be driving up from Illinois to spend the weekend at the Center assisting with any pack issues that may arise. I am most grateful for their offer to help keep an eye on the pack. I plan to feed a large deer carcass to both packs on Thursday night prior to my departure. A full wolf is usually a sleepy wolf. Dr Chip Hanson and wolf care staff Matt Fetterer and Jim Ziburski will be monitoring the pack as well.
Lakota is doing well. On Thursday, the curator along with some the students from VCC used a chainsaw in the retired pack to cut up the spruce tree that was felled earlier in the year and make benches. During the last weekend of October, a program called Working for Wolves will be held, where program participants will be assisting with moving the den boxes from Lakota's mounds of dirt, and getting the enclosure ready for winter. Due to Lakota's lack of fear towards anything or anyone, she had to be locked in the vestibule while the chainsaw work was done. She's not intimidated by a running chainsaw.
This week's wolf logs were written by program participants in the 10/28-10/30/05 weekend program called "Working for Wolves", in which participants performed enclosure enrichment and maintenance projects in both the Retired and Exhibit enclosures. Written by Kristy Raines: As a participant in the Working for Wolves weekend, I was able to observe wolf behavior in response to the changes made in their enclosures. When the retired pack was moved to the holding pen, Lucas displayed the most agitation, pacing continuously around the pen. He would settle down only briefly when wolf care staff provided distractions for him, such as deer meat. This picture represents his usual behavior of carrying his food around the enclosure numerous times before eating or caching it.
This week's wolf logs were written by program participants in the 10/28-10/30/05 weekend program called "Working for Wolves", in which participants performed enclosure enrichment and maintenance projects in both the Retired and Exhibit enclosures. Written by Pam Dolajeck and Lori Rhodes: The Working for Wolves weekend was cool, but dry. Maintenance work was done in both enclosures, with the den boxes in the retirement enclosures being cleaned, moved, and new straw distributed throughout. Excess tree branches and limbs were also removed. New benches were made, making it easier for the wolves to get on top of the den boxes. When the Retired pack was returned to their enclosure, Lakota explored the surroundings and then settled into one box. She seemed content with the new changes.
During this morning's wolf check, the weather was cold, blustery, and very windy. The retired wolves, Lakota in particular, were very frisky this morning, chasing each other around the enclosure. When fresh straw was placed in their bedding areas today, Lakota tried to go into Mackenzie's corner, which resulted in Mackenzie chasing her away. This initiated several bouts of chasing, with all three wolves racing around the enclosure.
As winter approaches, the dominance interactions between the wolves are increasing. Shadow still maintains his status as alpha male, while Maya is the alpha female by default, as she is the only female in the pack. The bond between Shadow and Maya can been seen in their social interactions; they are often in close proximity to each other. Shadow has recently been observed keeping himself in between Malik and Maya.
The International Wolf Center uses science-based education to teach and inspire the world about wolves, their ecology, and the wolf-human relationship.