We've certainly observed a different side of Denali in the last several weeks. A once gregarious wolf that tested everything and everyone one, is now more intimidated and quite nervous about engaging in behavior, particularly with Grizzer. There still seems to be a drive to test, but his confidence seems to be lacking. The interesting thing is that Grizzer is doing this intimidation with very little physical contact, the dominance is primarily though body language, which probably makes Denali more nervous.
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Well, it appears that Grizzer is not willing to give up any status, and it also appears that Denali is not willing to just accept a 2nd ranking role, so this means, the testing continues, and continues. During wolf care, Denali can be best described as obnoxious, and not just to Grizzer, wolf care staff get the pleasure of this exuberant young adult as well. It is hard to predict how this will be settled, but no doubt, there will probably be a stand off between these two individuals. We are offering one more Wolf Watch program on October 7th, this one should be interesting.
Maya was actively involved in the dominance activity that resulted in Aidan getting his leg caught between two rocks. As a dominant female, her intensity is much greater than any of the other males. We understand it as a survival instinct. Females in the wild can control population and litter reproduction through dominance, and even though Maya is spayed, she has a clear role in pack leadership. It is hard to watch, and we strive to find the external stresses that may increase Maya's dominance, but life on a public display is going to have some excitable moments, and wolves will redirect. Our best management strategy is to design an exhibit that has some safety zones for lower ranking wolves, provide plenty of distractions if tensions get high, and maintain the best nutrition possible to all the wolves, but especially the lower ranking pack members.
Denali does not appear to have any intent on submitting to Grizzer or Maya for that matter. His behavior has become increasingly tense, constantly pawing at Grizzer until Grizzer has enough and chases him. Of course, this chasing makes Maya seek out Aidan. If we had one key to solving this tension, it would be encouraging Denali to be a 2nd ranking male. But all of our wishing will not make it happen. Grizzer needs to be more definitive in his leadership and earn some respect. Grizzer showing no dominance towards Denali and Aidan when they were young is probably contributing to this situation.
Certainly Maya's dominance towards Aidan is difficult to watch, especially when Aidan tries so hard to be with her and Aidan willingly greets and submits to her. Maya is not an aggressive animal, but she is a dominant animal that is driven by hormonal influences that have a strong survival instinct in the wild. Female dominance in the wild is a form of population control, keeping the lower ranking females from copulating and producing litters of pups that may stress a pack resources. We know from experience that females are more intense than males, and we can't hold that against the individual wolf. I know that our job as wolf care staff is to maintain the highest quality care possible for all wolves, and in Maya's case, that includes keeping her stress levels low to keep her from redirecting to Aidan.
Aidan is doing well, he is cleaning the bite on his shoulder which helps in the healing process. He's had an interesting week; Maya still has her moments, especially after a howling session. It appears that howling stimulates Maya to find Aidan and show him some status. Aidan's getting good at finding safety zones, areas where he can face Maya and show her a threat display. The Wolf Watch program is Thursday the 7th, it should be a good opportunity to identify any underlying tension in the pack.
The following observation was written by Wolf Watch participant Cameron Feaster. <br> Denali continues to test Grizzer. If Grizzer has a button to push, Denali always finds it. It's important to note that not all of these dominance interactions start with Denali. Grizzer does his fair share of stalking and chasing or Denali as well. It appears that it will be quite some time before Denali accepts his position as second ranking male, if he ever accepts it.
Malik continues to receive antibiotics for the tooth abscess, and if there is no noticeable improvement, a short chemical immobilization, a trip to the vet and a tooth extraction may be in his future. Lakota, one of our former retired pack, actually had two abscesses in her later years, both healed with a good dose of antibiotics, so there is hope for Malik. Regardless of how it looks, it has no impact on his eating, activity or breath. If it wasn't for the swelling and discoloration, you wouldn't even know he had an issue. Wolves are incredibly resilient.
Aidan's hip injury is doing well, but a bite to the right shoulder by Maya has put him on a course of antibiotics. Life for an omega is tough, and even though we understand dominance and rank hierarchies, the human emotion always roots for the underdog. Despite the triggered bouts of intense dominance from Maya, he continues to foreleg stab her inviting social interaction. Our challenge is to identify what triggers Maya to redirect to Aidan. At this point, it appears that Denali's lack of submission and constant testing of Grizzer has the whole pack on edge. We observe Aidan's behavior to get a sense of how he's dealing with life as an omega. From our observations, his confidence is still in tact, he frequently RLU's and is very confident to scrape the ground spreading his scent.
Grizzer seems to be increasing his use of tail postures and body language to show dominance, but he lacks the follow through and assertiveness that Shadow displayed in the years he was a pack leader. Grizzer had increased his activity at the main Saturday night feedings, taking possession of the carcass and keeping Aidan and Denali at bay. Of course, Denali has been possessing carcasses since he was a pup, so this change is adding to Denali's anxiety. We started a supplemental Wednesday feeding, mainly as a distraction, but also to ensure that each wolf gets a chance to satiate each week. Denali had no problem taking control of the smaller feedings because Grizzer was full from the weekend.
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