Malik's first scent roll on a deer hide.
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Log entry by Alicia Panisiak, assistant wolf curator as she observed from outside of the enclosure. " All seems well, Lucas had minimal aggression toward Shadow. Shadow ignored Lucas. 10 minutes after equipment arrived for retirement pen, MacKenzie's right eye began to look sore; she began to hold it slightly closed. Odd since it looked fine all morning. MacKenzie and Lakota unsure of the machinery. Lakota began eating grass by the fence."
MALIK Weight: 23.5 lbs. Length: 41" Canines: 1/2" SHADOW Weight: 23.5 lbs. Length: 41" Canines: 1/2" Malik seems a bit uncoordinated and continues to work on his mobility and balancing skills. Shadow barked at Malik for the first time. Both pups are showing increased dominance towards each other at various stages. Malik and Shadow have individually gained eight pounds since the first of July. The wolf pups enjoy slices of frozen beaver tail and deer legs as a summertime treat.
Caroline S. David, DVM (pup nanny) writes: When the opportunity to become a nanny had presented itself, I jumped at the chance. Being a veterinarian, I hoped to further my education not only for my own pleasure, but to help my clients with their understanding of canid habits. My scientific interest was soon overtaken by the joy of watching these precious "furballs" who already have quite distinct personalities. Shadow is reserved and a bit shy. He has intense focus, though, and can usually outwit his brother into getting whatever object Malik may have. Malik is easy-going and easily distracted. I have nicknamed Malik "Mikhail Baryshnikov" due to his inability to maintain balance for too long – he doesn't quite know yet how to handle those enormous paws! I do not look forward to leaving, even if it means no more twelve hour days of laying in the dirt while dealing with hundreds of mosquitoes. I will treasure these memories and will always be grateful that, if only for a while, the wolves let me share part of their world.
Wolf Nanny Diane Glenny writes: Malik and Shadow are getting whiter and bigger every day. They seem to be running much faster than even a few days ago but, of course, still manage to trip often. Shadow is very persistant in getting something he wants and knows how to distract Malik in getting it. Their "tussels" over objects have been getting more serious, with more growls and lunges than before. Malik and Shadow enjoy hiding leftover food for later snacks – simulating the habit of adult wolves. Malik howled once on his own after eating a strip of deer hide. Both pups howled after waking up and greeting the other nanny with whimpering. I truly enjoyed my week at the International Wolf Center and I wish I could have stayed longer. It was a privilege to work with everyone and help with the wolf pups. While the wolf pups are truly wild animals, I can't help but compare their independence and enthusiasm to that of my Siberian husky pups.
Shadow is showing more nervousness in the holding pen, and is ready to join the main pack. He has become much more aggressive through the fence since he has been off the Chlomipramine. His introduction is scheduled for tomorrow morning. Staff are spending time near the fence with Shadow to keep him distracted and reduce his anxiety.
VCC Wildlife Management student Larisa Skujins delivered meds to all wolves today. Larisa will be working as a student intern with the Center this summer, assisting with the pups, so gaining familiarity with the wolves will be important. Larisa is not going in with the wolves, but working from outside of the enclosure, delivering water, doing enclosure checks and meds. Today, Malik submissively rolled when greeting Larisa, this usually results in Shadow taking advantage of Malik; but today Shadow showed no aggression toward Malik.
Meds to all, all wolves received good attention from all staff today. Lucas appears to have some discoloration on his one of his upper incisors, it may be enamel loss. It doesn't appear to be painful, as it hasn't affected his feeding or water consumption. Staff discovered another small lump on Lucas. These will be documented and a weekly examination will be conducted to document any changes to these lumps.
Today was the first day that former Nanny and volunteer Wolf Photographer Sherry Jokinen entered the Retirement Enclosure to get better photos for the website. The wolves are very familiar with Sherry since she has spent hundreds of hours adjacent to the fence as a Nanny for the arctics and later photographing the wolves. The wolves were excited to see her, but temperatures only reached the single digits, so the wolves settled down to the straw beds within a few hours of the introduction. A new wolf shelter was brought into the Retired Pack; Lucas marked the shelter in a typical wolf fashion, RLU.
Curator’s Note: Again, this is the time of the year when wolves reach a hormonal peak as the breeding season progresses. Although the wolves at the Center are spayed and neutered, their dominance behavior can intensify in January and February. Staff are seeing dominance issues in both the Exhibit pack and the Retired Pack. Vermilion Community College Student, Damon Haan writes: "MacKenzie and Lucas are very intent on dominating Lakota. They forced her to submit 6 separate times in a 5 minute observation period, several times, by physically grabbing the scruff of Lakota’s neck and pulling her down. This dominance seems to start after the arctics have a dominance interaction in the Exhibit Pack.
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