Shadow has truly changed his personality since the pup introduction. He used to be very timid around strangers and somewhat stand-offish with some of the wolf care handlers, even bark-howling at people he didn't know. Lately, he's been very accepting of all of the behind the scenes visitors and program participants and has willingly accepted two new handlers into the wolf pen. Jen Westlund's partner, Matt Fetterer and Lori Schmidt's partner, Jim Ziburski. Shadow is very social with them both and is the first on the rock to greet. The pups like them as well. It is important to the long-term management of the wolf care program that there are several handlers that can deliver care to the wolves throughout the year. This is a great sign from Shadow who appears to be the most dominant member of the pack.
Lakota is acting like a 2-year old rather than a wolf knocking on the door of 12 years. She has been actively expanding two den holes in the enclosure. The first she started when the pups arrived, the second hole she started under one of the den boxes. Wolf care volunteer, Matt Fetterer climbed into the hole and found the first hole to be over 10 feet deep. She remains healthy and frequently jumps on and off the top of the den box, versus MacKenzie's who's hips aren't strong enough to make the leap.
During Lakota's recent illness, Lucas was observed playbowing to her and attempting to stimulate her into play behavior. He was very tolerant of her condition and frequently greeted her in the denbox. His calm demeanor has been noted since he was a pup and continues through old age.
Shadow's logs note the increased social behavior towards staff and his contentment with the pups and their interactions. Shadow is clearly the dominant force in this exhibit.
What can I say about Grizzer. Everyday is a new adventure and wolf care staff need to be very aware of Grizzer's attitude on any given day. As he learns the power associated with his size, he begins to test the things he believes he can master. Wolf care staff will be having an upcoming handling meeting to discuss the boundaries established with the pack and the individual handling techniques to use on each individual wolf. As you can imagine, Grizzer gets a few pages of the training manual dedicated to him.
Malik's knee is doing fine, this is evident by the continued racing around the pond behavior he displays (probably why his knee hurt in the first place). On Saturday, the 11th of December, Intern Erin Albers noticed a pack mob of Malik. Malik "zoomed" around the enclosure 2 times, then stopped twice and was put in a submissive position by mostly Shadow. Grizzer had him by the scruff of the neck each time.
Began to feed with Esbilac formula with an eye dropper instead of goat's milk formula because of diarrhea. Results of the vet's ananlysis of stools showed they were completely clean.
Increasing coordination-was scratching his ear with his hind foot. Chewing on a piece of cloth. Feeding behaviors continue to improve. Suckling response has been regular and strong.
Today, Groan is 22 days old and like Grizz also has exhibited head shaking with play toys, a feeding behavior seen in wolves when they are tearing open a carcass. Groan frequently displays aggressive behavior towards her littermates and handlers by growling when she is displeased.
Grizz rolled over on his back and allowed Nubee to stand over him and grab his leg. He also licked her muzzle.
The International Wolf Center advances the survival of wolf populations by teaching about wolves, their relationship to wildlands and the human role in their future.