Nancy Gibson, naturalist and International Wolf Center Board Member cared for the Arctic Wolf Pups from the time they were 10 days old until they moved to the Center in Ely at approximately 2 months old. She will continue to write updates on the arctic pups development. These rare Arctic wolf pups were born in captivity on May 8 and will become permanent residents of the International Wolf Center in Ely, Minnesota in July. The two males each weighed a pound at birth and have already almost tripled their weight. The red-collared pup weighed 2 1/2 pounds and the blue-collared one weighed 2 3/4 pounds at ten days of age. Their eyes are just beginning to open and soon their blue eyes will be noticeable. They are eating 2 ounces of a special formula primarily made up of fresh goat's milk every four hours. They can't hear yet, but their sense of smell is good. The two pups are also quite vocal with small rumblings known as "comfort" noises. The red-collared pup made his first attempt at howling at 11 days of age and he remains the most vocal of the two pups.
Nancy Gibson, naturalist and International Wolf Center Board Member cared for the Arctic Wolf Pups from the time they were 10 days old until they moved to the Center in Ely at approximately 2 months old. She will continue to write updates on the arctic pups development. These rare Arctic wolf pups were born in captivity on May 8 and will become permanent residents of the International Wolf Center in Ely, Minnesota in July. The two males each weighed a pound at birth and have already almost tripled their weight. The red-collared pup weighed 2 1/2 pounds and the blue-collared one weighed 2 3/4 pounds at ten days of age. Their eyes are just beginning to open and soon their blue eyes will be noticeable. They are eating 2 ounces of a special formula primarily made up of fresh goat's milk every four hours. They can't hear yet, but their sense of smell is good. The two pups are also quite vocal with small rumblings known as "comfort" noises. The red-collared pup made his first attempt at howling at 11 days of age and he remains the most vocal of the two pups.
Nancy Gibson writes: The two male pups had their first vet visit on May 22. They looked quite "vigorous" according to the vet. Their weights have increased to 3.5 pounds for the red-collared pup and 3.8 pounds for the blue-collared wolf. Their collars had to be loosened one notch to accomodate their rapid growth. The diet has increased to 15 ounces of formula per day. Their eyes fully opened on May 20 at 12 days of age and they cut their front teeth that same day. The other sharp puppy teeth have emerged since then. Vocalizations have increased substantially the last two days, however their hearing has not developed yet.
June 2, 2000 The pups made their semi-weekly visit to the vet on June 2 to get weighed and checked. The blue-collared pup weighed in at 5 pounds and 11 ounces and the red one weighs 5 pounds and 7 ounces. This is a typical weight gain of wild pups. They now measure 21 inches from the tip of the tail to the nose. Both of the pups are moving faster with a good trot if they smell their formula. In addition, they are begining to enjoy the outdoors more by wandering away from the handlers about ten feet and then returning shortly thereafter with a series of whines for reassurance. They will be taken outdoors more each day to simulate what they would be doing by their den in the wild. They are playing more with each other with play biting and growling which begins the survival training process.
CVC to all but Lakota. Lakota remains up in the upper den hole and is reluctant to come out. Rather than traumatize her more by forcing her out of the den in order to move her to the pack holding area (see 2-14-02 log entry) staff decide to give her some time to come out on her own and continue to feed, water and monitor Lakota. Curator Lori Schmidt (LS) delivered vitamins to Lakota later today; Lakota is very defensive about any wolf or human at the entrance to the den hole. She instantly growled at LS as she was offered food and vitamins. When Lakota feels more comfortable, she will be moved to the pack holding area for some rest and recuperation."
At 1 pm, Lakota was chemically immobilized and moved out of the main enclosure and into the pack holding area. The use of an anesthetic is necessary for captive wolves to reduce stress in transport and is even the protocol for intensive medical exams which require a blood draw. Lakota had a smooth immobilization, and was up within 45 minutes. Dr. Chip Hanson, Center veterinarian conducted a physical exam on Lakota and found her to be in good physical condition with a bite wound on the neck and what appeared to be a self inflicted licking wound on the paw. It is not uncommon for wolves in high stress to begin licking at a spot so intensively that they lick the spot raw. Lakota received her annual vaccinations at this time, a seven day dose of antibiotics and will have specialized care in the pack holding area.
Lucas took advantage of the cooler weather this morning to come out of his den. With the welcome absence of the biting flies, he found a piece of deer left from their last feeding and decided to finish it off.
Very exhuberant greetings from all wolves. Lakota was able to approach and greet staff with no aggression from Mackenzie. Lakota's wounds are nearly healed, no sign of further aggression from the other wolves.
Dr. Chip Hanson makes two farm calls today to check on Lakota and participates in a discussion of pack status and dynamics with Dr. Larry Anderson, Dr. Dave Mech, Gretchen Diessner (Center Assistant Director), Walter Medwid (Center Executive Director) and Curator Lori Schmidt. At this meeting, there was a general consensus that Lakota has had enough. Many days, the yearlings ignored Lakota, but there were those days when Lakota would look so submissive, with tucked tail, that her body posture seemed to stimulate the yearlings to stalk her and chase her. The more vulnerable she looked, the more they would stalk her. When Lakota ran, the yearlings chased. As Veterinarian Dr. Chip Hanson stated, these animals are hotwired as predators, it's difficult to stop them from chasing something that runs in front of them. The more vulnerable Lakota looked and the more she ran, the more the yearlings chased. This is a difficult cycle to stop and it may only be a matter of time before a more life-threatening injury would occur. The decision to remove Lakota was made. Lakota will be moved to the pack holding area and will likely be able to have regular visits from Mackenzie and Lucas as they showed no signs of aggression toward her, even when she was ostracized to the top of the pen. While the best case scenario would include her returning to the pack after the breeding season hormones decrease, there is a high probability that the yearlings would not allow her back into the enclosure. These details will need to be determined in the upcoming months and will be based on the behavior of the pack. Please be assured that Lakota will receive the best physical care and socialization from the wolf care staff during this time of transition and into the future if it is determined that she will retire from the main exhibit. She has given 9 years to the display and is probably due for some rest and relaxation.
Entered enclosure to do daily wolf check and located Lakota in an underground tunnel/den at the top of the enclosure that is densely camouflaged by balsam fir trees. She appears to have claimed this spot and readily defends herself from all the other wolves when they approach the den hole. Wolf Center curator placed straw in the den hole and examined all wolves.
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.