Aidan – A Unique Bond

In this photo, Grayson is paying homage to Aidan.  Note Grayson’s flat ears, crouched body while licking Adian’s face; a classic sign of submission.  Grayson has a strong bond with Aidan and certainly spends more time in appeasement behavior than his littermate Axel or any of the the other pack members,  This is certainly in line with Grayson’s more gentler approach to interactions.  We even notice that Aidan does less dominance over Grayson than he does over Axel.  Of course, that’s probably because Grayson doesn’t need much dominance.  The Vermilion Community College Wolf Ethology students will start their data recording sessions in March and we suspect their behavioral data will support our interpretation of a strong bond between the current pack leader and the pup that came into the pack with a host of social anxiety.

Axel – Chin Rests

Axel is displaying a chin rest on Denali as a show of passive dominance.  As you can interpret from Denali’s response, (ears pricked and turned sideways and lips slightly curled), this posturing from a 9-month old pup is less than welcome.  We knew Axel had confidence on the first day of the pup introduction when he successfully fed on a turkey carcass with Denali.  This confidence continued throughout the winter as Axel matured.  There are many observations of Axel’s passive, yet effective signals of status.  Chin rests, stand overs, persistent competition over food resources and overall persistence with Denali’s space and possessions.  There are some similarities between these two. 

Denali – Expressive when Guarding Possessions

In this week’s Youtube clip, there is a video sequence showing the interactions between Axel and Denali that led to this facial expression.  Denali prefers the height and comfort of the pump housing, especially if fresh cover hay is prepared.  This is a great place to rest away from the melting snow, the inquisitive ravens and usually in full warmth of a february sun.  It’s a place to cache bones for a mid-day snack.  The only challenge is that the rest of the pack wants the same space.  In this photo, Denali shows an alert response with the start of a lip curl towards Axel before Axel climbs on the pump housing and attempts to possess not only the space, but all of Denali’s possessions.

Grayson- a Gentle Look

The personalities of the pups are certainly emerging as winter transitions to spring.  Grayson’s facial expressions are very unique.  There is something about his eyes that appear to have a more engaging and softer tone than his littermate.  With that face, seems to be a mirrored behavior.  He is a gentle greeter, not displaying the in-your-face muzzle biting and grabbing that is a typical Axel greeting.  When Grayson is excited so interact, he displays a short howl before running over with tail wagging to greet.  Grayson continues to lag behind Axel is size.  We will be weighing the pups on their 10 month birthday on March 2nd.

Aidan – I Don’t Think So…

Log written by Kim Wheeler, Executive Director, Red Wolf Coalition, Inc.  During my visit at the Center I had the opportunity to see Aidan’s impressive skills at keeping his pack in order.  If you watch the web cams or have the opportunity to visit in person, you will see that Aidan always has a watchful eye on what is going on with all the exhibit wolves.  Aidan was quick to step in if playing got out of hand, especially if Boltz was involved.  Denali was the focus of his attention one day and I witnessed him dominate and roll over Denali on two occasions.   At almost 9 years old, it is amazing to watch Aidan keep up with the pups as they run through the exhibit.  He is a great pack leader. 

Boltz – Opportunistic

This weeks log written by Kim Wheeler, Executive Director, Red Wolf Coalition, Inc.  During my visit at the Center, I had the opportunity to watch Boltz play with the pups.  His play time is often cut short when Aidan steps in to put an end to the fun.  Even though Boltz is often the focus of Aidan, he still finds many opportunities to engage with the pack.  I witnessed Aidan dominate Boltz through a very stern dominance action, and then 30 minutes later they were resting next to each other in the hay.  Just another example of the cohesive nature of this pack.  At 4.5 years old, Boltz is a fit and handsome wolf. 

Denali – An Oversized Pup?

This weeks logs are written by Kim Wheeler, Executive Director, Red Wolf Coalition, Inc.  During my visit to the Center, I had the chance to watch Denali engage with his pack mates. He truly is an over-sized pup.  He often sought out a pup for play and a chase around the exhibit enclosure.  Like Boltz, Denali’s chases and playing with the pups is often cut short by Aidan.   Aidan seems to give Denali a little more space than he does with Boltz, when playing with the pups.  Denali is in good health and runs through the enclosure just like the pups.  I wonder if he has found the fountain of youth?  

Grayson – Intimidation?

This weeks log is written by Kim Wheeler, Executive Director, Red Wolf Coalition, Inc.  During my visit to the Center, I had the opportunity to watch Grayson interact with his pack mates.  Grayson has not only grown in size, current weight 77.8 lbs, but also in confidence. Grayson had a weight gain of 1.6 lbs from last month.  I witnessed many play bouts that were initiated by Grayson, that ended in a chase of Axle.  Grayson and Axle can be found resting near, and sometimes on each other.  Grayson still seeks out Aidan and seems to find comfort with Aidan when he needs it.  This week Grayson and Axle turned 9 months.  

Grizzer

Grizzer – Thickest Coat of the Bunch

This weeks log written by Kim Wheeler, Executive Director, Red Wolf Coalition, Inc.  During my visit to the Center, I witnessed Grizzer’s thick coat first hand.  Grizzer was very social with wolf care staff this week.  At almost 13 years old, Grizzer still has a deep howl and he lead several howling sessions with all the wolves on site.  His favorite time to howl seems to be 5:00 AM!  Grizzer and Luna seems to be settling into life together and he continues to enjoy the den in the pack holding area.  It gives his a great view of everything going on in the wolf yard and exhibit enclosure.  

Axel – T-1 Tail

This weeks log written by Kim Wheeler, Executive Director, Red Wolf Coalition, Inc.  During my visit to the Center this week, I had the opportunity to watch Axel interact and initiate play with his pack mates.  At 9 months old, Axel weighs 92.8 lbs.  This is a gain of 3.6 lbs from last month. Axel has always been a confident pup and is even likely to take on Denali for food.  I witnessed Axel lay on and poke at a sleeping Denali until he got up to play with Axel.  Axel and Grayson continue to spend a lot of time playing with each other, which can lead to many chases around the exhibit enclosure.