Lakota is doing well. She seems to be very active, with a lot of energy to run around the enclosure and jump on the mounds of dirt she created. There seems to be less construction noise across the road and that seems to make the wolves a bit more relaxed.
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Malik is doing well, but he is definitely on the defensive with Shadow and Grizzer. He has been observed circling with a low tail and pinned ears, which usually provokes Shadow and Grizzer to chase. He does get some quiet time on the straw beds and when greeting wolf care staff as this week's photo demonstrates.
Aidan appears to be the pup with the most predatory behavior. This is most noticeable when there's a chase in the enclosure, he has honed his lunging and grabbing behavior. Likely from the hours of wrestling the pups do on a daily basis. The temperatures continue to be in the -20 below range, but the pups show no problem with the temperatures. They are active all day long, and appear to both bed together in the new slate den.
Denali is best known for his food defense. He is definitely able to guard food from any member of the pack, including staff. He is not as likely to participate in chase scenes, he just stands by and watches as other wolves race by, trying to catch up and figure out the action. He remains the larger of the two pups, and is active all day long, wrestling with Aidan. His winter pelage is very thick, and he shows no problems dealing with the cold temperatures.
You may notice Grizzer has a new scar on his face, compliments of Malik. There was a scuffle last Monday afternoon, with Malik being very excitable and lunge snapping at Grizzer. Malik continues to be nervous about Grizzer's calmer behavior this winter. When Grizzer took over Malik's rank order 2 winters ago, Grizzer was very clear in maintaining his status. This left no question for Malik as to where he fit into the pack. Since the pups have arrived and Grizzer is so calm, Malik pushes Grizzer to see if he can gain rank, but is anxious about it, since there was past conflict. After the bite, Grizzer did a following technique, which is an assertion of dominance, but wasn't very aggressive with Malik. Wolf care staff are trying many things to keep the wolves occupied, and to keep the stress level down. We did two enclosure enrichments last week, one was scent based that resulted in scent rolling behavior, the other was food based that stimulated the wolves to search and find treats. A YouTube video showing both enclosure enrichment activities will be posted.
Malik is doing well, despite the dominance tension with Grizzer. He is very agile for an 8 1/2 year old wolf, and is probably the wolf with the greatest speed in the exhibit. Of course, he gets a lot of aerobic exercise springing in and out of different dominance interactions and the chases by Grizzer. Grizzer's size makes him a bit outmatched by Malik's streamline body.
Grizzer is getting more assertive with Malik. One issue we have lately is that Malik doesn't want to go into holding with the pack. This leaves him out in the main enclosure while work is being done, and a target for dominance when the rest of the pack is brought back into the exhibit. Most of this is initiated by Grizzer, but the pups follow Grizzer and that puts Malik on the offensive. Even a separation for a short period of time will result in the wolves attempting to reestablish rank order. In an effort to reduce this issue, protocol will include treats being scattered throughout the exhibit before the pack is let out. The hope is the distractions will reduce the focus on Malik. We can't force Malik to go into holding, if it continues to be an issue, then protocol will change to reduce the holding time for the pack until we get through the peak of the hormonal season.
Malik sustained a knee injury last week and has had a course of anti-inflammatory and antibiotic treatments this week. The scuffle was between he and Grizzer. It started out with Grizzer wrestling with the pups, then Malik coming in for some grab bites and foreleg stabs on Grizzer. When Grizzer had enough, he chased Malik and pinned him to the ground, grabbing the front of Malik's knee with a small, yet painful puncture bite. Malik has had ACL issues since he was a yearling, so any knee problem is significant. He responded extremely well with the anti inflammatory and was back to racing around the exhibit on the next day. Malik's life would be easier if he wouldn't take advantage of Grizzer when the pups are wrestling with Grizzer, but he sees this as an opportunity, and he goes for it. Wolves are all about looking for opportunities and using them to their advantage. Malik continues to be an active member of the pack and seeks support from Shadow.
Shadow has been having a good winter. We continue to make sure there are no negative issues in the wolf yard to cause him some anxiety. The snowblower has been in near daily use this winter, and Shadow has taken the lead in getting the pups acclimated to the noise. Initially, the pups were very anxious and ran from the sound, but lately, when Curator, Lori Schmidt fires up the snowblower, Shadow's been playing and distracting the pack to the point that they don't even notice it anymore. I'm not sure it this is intentional, or if he is so relaxed this winter that nothing bothers him and he takes the sign of the pups anxiety as a time for social interaction. Regardless, he's a great pack leader and while we know a wolf going on 9 years of age may be a short timer for retirement, it's hard to imagine this pack run by anyone else.
Malik is doing better after some focused behavior towards him last week. He was calm enough to go into holding with the pack before Saturday nights feeding and he seems to have calmed his tendency to grab bite at Grizzer when Grizzer and the pups are wrestling. In an effort to give Malik some more private space to rest, straw beds have been placed in the lower portion of the enclosure. Of course, as soon as the new straw beds were placed, Grizzer, Shadow and Maya marked them and the pups rolled in them. Malik didn't go near them, but if we consistently create the space, he should find comfort in them. We are preparing for the coldest weather of the season this week, temperatures in the – 40 degree range with colder wind chills.
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