Lucas is doing well. I do notice his face continues to lighten up as he ages. He's also less intimidated by Lakota than in the past. When we feed, we generally give MacKenzie her own leg so she can go in her corner bed and eat (the rights of an alpha). Lakota and Lucas then share the remainder of the carcass. Lakota still shows a dominant face, barring her teeth and letting out a growl to whoever passes by. Lucas used to be intimidated, but in the last few feedings, he's starting to ignore her. I wonder if his hearing's not as keen that he doesn't hear the warning growl or if after nearly 12 years, he's had enough of her threats. Regardless, Lucas tends to feed right with Lakota.
Maya is doing very well, and seems to be most likely to greet in a submissive posture. Between the two females, Maya is the best choice for the dominant female when it comes to ease of handling. While Nyssa readily approaches staff and does allow for handling, she is still a bit skittish. Often the pack dynamics tone is set by the dominant wolves, so it's nice to have a calm dominant female.
Lakota aggressive/growl to MaKenzie, Lakota also showed raised tail over MacKenzie, MacKenzie didn’t respond to Lakota’s posture. MacKenzie's paw has healed and she in no longer limping, but it appears Lakota’s been asserting herself more since MacKenzie’s injury.
Shadow and Malik had a lot of aggressive posturing and dominance aggression over a fresh beaver; Shadow stole Malik's beaver and started to eat both beaver. Fortunately, staff feed enough beaver to allow both to eat, although one wolf usually has to wait."
All wolves received Rabies and Parvo/DHLPP vaccinations today administered by Wolf Curator, Lori Schmidt and Program Specialist, Jen Westlund.
Lakota wobbly on rear legs, particularly her left rear leg… Showing signs of strain when walking. Staff will monitor her condition – and offer an anti-inflammatory for the next few days.
Nyssa is settling into pack life after her first experience with the intensity of female aggression during the winter season. She dealt with some of the dominance attention by remaining a bit separate from the pack and not drawing attention to herself. But, now as things calm down, she's back to a bit of play behavior and is observed bedding down with the pack mates.
Shadow is a very intense wolf. Whatever he does, he seems to do it to the highest level, whether it's dominance with Malik, bark-howling at Behind the Scenes groups, disciplining puppies etc., he displays great behavior. Shadow is very adept at wolf on wolf interaction, but put a strange human behind the scenes and he is extremely timid. Shadow prefers to have the visitor experience through the protection of the auditorium window.
Curator, Lori Schmidt fed the gift packet of treats and cookies provided by Alpha Member Jan Makowski. The arctic wolves ate them without stopping to taste them, in contrast, the retirement pen was much more interested in scent rolling on them before eating them. Overall, the gift packages were a hit, if nothing more than to create a distraction on a day with limited human attention. Thank you Jan…
Vermilion Community College students Matt Erickson, Damon Haan, and Tym Sauter assist Curator Lori Schmidt in placing plywood on pack holding area for the purpose of giving Lakota privacy and protection from the pack when she's placed in the pack holding area. The yearlings are curious as the students work and a watchful eye must be kept on all tools.
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.