Axel – Paws for Traction

We didn’t get a chance to weigh the pups this week, our usual Friday weighing times were postponed due to the first winter storm to hit Northern Minnesota.  Initially the pups were a bit intimidated as this storm came with some pounding sleet and wind before it developed into the “Inch an Hour” accumulation that left us with 16 inches of snow.  But with a bit of excitement from the adult wolves, Axel and Grayson quickly joined the pack in some activity.  Notice the wide spread of Axel’s front foot that helps create traction on some slippery conditions.  It’s the size of a wolf’s paw and the ability to spread that paw like a snowshoe in deeper snows that makes them an efficient predator. 

Luna – Focus Like No Other

Luna’s been benefiting from the increased staff interactions and the lack of competition from pack members.  Whether the activities around the yard involve humans or wolves, she finds a vantage point to watch.  She shows very little anxiety with activities which is a contrast to Grizzer and even the Exhibit Pack members. It may be the stark contrast between her golden eyes and the darker pelage, but her focus seems intense.  It was this intensity that caused us to re-evaluate her interactions with the pups on the introduction day and it is this focus that has us taking her introduction to Grizzer at a slow pace.  We did manage to get Grizzer and Luna to meet face-to-face for the first time today.  It was a good start.  Luna did some posturing and immediately established her status over Grizzer by doing two consecutive chin rests.  Grizzer showed no dominance and while her intensity kept him at bay like a magnet, we have hope that future interactions will increase the social behavior that we know is part of their nature.

Aidan – Regaining his Youth

We have noticed a significant change in Aidan’s activity level.  As we have written many times in the past, Aidan has some auto-immune issues that have required a special treatment and medications around the weekly carcass feedings.  We are always concerned about his health, but prior to the pup’s arrival, his activity level seemed to be on the decline and his digestive tract seemed to have more issues with bloating.  Since the pup’s introduction, we are seeing a spring in his step and a more youthful activity level.  He is often observed intervening when Denali and Boltz get too rambunctious, possibly protecting the pups, but more likely protecting his status by not letting the subordinate males get too confident.  This is a good age to deal with pups and one of the main reasons why we do pups on a 4-year rotation.  Aidan and Denali will be 9 year of age next spring and we have discovered that if we waited too long to introduce, the pups can take advantage of them.  At 8 years of age, Aidan is young enough to set the level of dominance and stern enough that the lower ranking wolves don’t question it.  

Axel – a Canid Grin

It has always been a challenge to identify Axel and Grayson.  We use a subtle coloration of a saddle on Grayson’s back to tell them apart from a distance, but if you get a head on view, Axel is easy to distinguish based on his unique facial expressions, especially the canid grin.  The canid grin is described as a social and often stimulating behavioral expression that can lead to encourage wolves to greet, or in the case of 7-month old wolf pups, wrestle.  So, if you can’t see the pup’s pelage, how do you ID them? Axel’s nose does appear more elongated giving him a more triangular face (although both have very blocky muzzles compared to previous pups).  Another notable characteristic is Axel’s animated expression that is usually accompanied by some type of animated action.  When he greets, he has an excited twirl with an open mouth and a connection of teeth.  If a wolf runs by, he is quick to grab a tail or if it’s a wolf care staff, Axel will grab a set of keys or a string on a coat.  This isn’t new behavior, but an extension of the attitude we saw when we met this pup.  We are discouraging this behavior, as the saying goes.. if it’s not welcome behavior from an adult wolf, it’s not welcome from a pup.  Axel continues to be the larger of the two pups and is nearing 80 lbs of weight as he enters his 7th month of age. Here are his weights since our last post.

Date Weight Weight Gain
10/21/2016 69.6 lb 2.2 lb
10/31/2016 74.3 lb 4.7 lb
11/4/2016 76.2 lb 1.9 lb
11/11/2016 78.2 lb 2 lb

Boltz- Setting some Limits

Initially when the pups were introduced into the Exhibit Pack, Boltz was protective, guarding and didn’t show much for dominance towards the pups.  Since they are now over 70 pounds, Boltz seems to be setting some limits.  At this point, Grayson seems to be the pup that gets some of Boltz’s focus, but Aidan seems to be quick to intervene and establish a few limits of his own.  In a recent interaction over some frozen beef liver, Boltz tried a little testing, but Aidan had an intensity that quickly brought Boltz back in line.  Despite of few of these ritualized dominance displays triggered by the frosty mornings, the pack is still very calm and Boltz has a much greater social interaction with the staff.

Denali – Another Source of Activity

After experiencing the damage from this summer’s windstorms, we decided to be proactive and remove two trees, a large diameter white pine that had died and a second tree that had lost nearly all of its upper branches.  The risk for falling limbs was a concern potentially impacting the wolves as well as the fences.  We left a 20 foot bole of one of the trees as a back drop, but felled the other tree log near the rocks.  This gives the pups a height advantage when climbing on the rocks and improves their coordination.  For Denali, it’s also another spot for hidden treats.

Grayson- A Calmer Response

Grayson is much more gentle in his greetings with wolves, his interactions with staff and with most of his surroundings.  The pups are transitioning to larger carcass feedings on Wednesday and Saturdays, but still get smaller portions of beef and chicken 4 or 5 times a week.   Grayson enjoys the extra time with staff and the extra food resources.  He is comfortable with separation from the pack, but not as comfortable with separation from Axel.    If we had to pick the strongest social relationship for Grayson at this time, Axel would be first, followed by Aidan.  Denali and Boltz can still overwhelm Grayson with their exuberant activity. Grayson continues to gain weight at as steady pace with Axel, but it is likely that he will always be the smaller of the pair.  Shadow and Malik were ~95 pounds as adults and both Axel and Grayson should be close to that weight by May of next year.  At this time, here are the weights since I last posted the logs.

Date Weight Weight Gain
10/21/2016 60.6 1.4
10/31/2016 65.6 5
11/4/2016 68.8 3.2
11/11/2016 71.4 2.6

Grizzer – Trying another Den

Grizzer and Luna met face-to-face today, but before we released Luna, Grizzer got a chance to explore her new den.  The meeting went well and I will feature the video on this week’s Youtube, but everything we do for Grizzer must be done in moderation.  At 12 1/2 years of age, stimuli is good, but in moderation.  You may also notice that Grizzer has been a bit anxious lately and resting in a new area of the webcam .  This is primarily due to some construction projects.  The Working for Wolves crew started a new storage area that serves an added benefit of providing a visual screen for Grizzer.  While the long-term benefit is good, the short-term construction can have an impact.  We are almost done with the project and Grizzer and Luna can settle in for a winter of interactions. 

Axel – Larger in Size and Attitude

Axel has often been seen instigating play with Grayson this last week. He is very confident in engaging play with Grayson. There was several IWC programs going on and Axel was very observant and interested when the program participants were in the Lab or close to the wolf yard. He did not seem fearful, just very curious.  When Axel is put in the holding for a brief time during wolf care he noticeably wants to get back into the main pack as soon as possible. Axel enjoys a drink from the pond on these nice fall days.

Aidan – Always Watching

Written by Wolf Photography Weekend photographer Alan Hensley

The alpha characteristics of Aidan shined through- responsibilities, diligence and mentor-ships. Aidan could be seen from surveying his pack from a high vantage point to controlling the behavior of Axel and Grayson. Last to eat, Aidan would be seen ensuring the predators did not interrupt the feeding of his pack.