Started pond pump today, Malik and Shadow began digging at pump box. Staff was instructed to watch for signs of them showing interest in the leaf net or filter through the door to the pump housing. Most of the pump housing is covered in rocks so the wolves can't move them, but there is a doorway where water circulates to the pump, and if the wolves lay down and stretch their leg, they can reach the leaf net, designed to catch leaves before they reach the pump. It's always a challenge to out-think the wolves and guess what they are likely to bother. Now that Malik and Shadow have entered their second year, I hope the term Terrible Two's doesn't apply to wolves.
Assistant Director, Gretchen Diessner, delivered CVC's and monthly heartworm treatment, Ivermectin to the wolves. Good use of auxiliary holding pens, all wolves well. Mackenzie was chemically immobilized to draw blood and test for a thyroid condition and exam her right eye. In the last few weeks, there has been an increasing amount of lipid deposits at the center of her cornea. Mackenzie will receive eye drops daily to alleviate any irritation or pain. Annual vaccinations to all wolves, except Lucas, who was reluctant when approached with a syringe. Rather than force him, the staff will wait and administer at another time.
Nancy Jo Tubbs vaccinated Lucas today, no problems with injection. Malik had a negative experience in the holding pen near the garage construction project. Staff need to be very careful when isolating the wolves around the garage, the holding pens are needed for daily maintenance and medical care, so the wolves need to have a positive experience in the holding pens.
Shadow showed signs of dominating Lucas, riding up on Lucas's shoulders, resting his head on Lucas' back. Lucas is very nervous with this new behavior. Both Mackenzie and Lucas begin following Shadow around. There's a lot of tension between the alpha's and Shadow. Lakota is visited by wolf care staff and shows more interest in eating food than visiting people.
Lucas is growling and showing dominant body postures and high tail positions towards Shadow, but is still jumping away from Shadow. Lakota gets a meat slurry broth due to colder temperatures to encourage her to drink. Feeding program – Malik, Shadow and Lucas on deer initially, Lucas growled and teeth barred when Shadow fed near him. Shadow barred his teeth slightly and Lucas left the carcass without further interaction.
Vermilion Wildlife student Damon Haan spent the day observing the pack. He observed the following interaction. For most of the day, while I've been out by Lakota's pen, I've noticed that Lucas has been watching Shadow like an eagle. Lucas will just stare at Shadow while Shadow seems oblivious to Lucas' stares. Also, most of the time, Lucas slept with Mackenzie while Shadow would sleep a distance away from the others.
Upon release, from the pack holding area today, Lucas and Mackenzie aggressive dominance toward Shadow. Shadow growling back in response and snarling, puts a paw on Lucas' back. Lucas aggressive dominance in response, Shadow pulled paw off and walked away." Lucas appears more confident in his ability to respond to Shadow, but seems to be slowing down. His energy level is decreasing.
When in the main pack, Lucas and Mackenzie aggressively dominate Shadow when he receives any attention. So, the Wolf Curator, Lori Schmidt, spent time with Malik and Shadow in the small holding area to give them some additional attention. Good interaction with both although Shadow is much more interested in interacting with the Curator than Malik who seems more timid and has some avoidance behavior when interacting.
As the weather warms, the wolves have been spending more of their time sleeping during the day. They have not begun to shed their winter coats and even daytime temperatures of 50 degrees make for uncomfortable conditions. Since wolves have a fur coat instead of sweat glands across their body, they avoid overheating by remaining inactive or by panting to evaporate heat off their tongue. Today, all wolves are sleeping when staff enters the enclosure. Lucas got up and was observed limping on his front left leg, but that diminished during the staff visit, another sign of being 9 years old (Mackenzie, Lucas and Lakota turned 9 on April 24th). All wolves were calm with good interactions.
Garage project has started adjacent to the wolf enclosure, in response; Lakota became slightly stressed and began compulsively licking her old foot wound. Students from Vermilion Community College, Natural Resource program, volunteered time next to the fence to calm Lakota down. She became much more relaxed later in the day and fell asleep while the construction workers were within feet of her enclosure.
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.