Grizzer did get his rubbermaid wading pool, but it's not he same as a pond. I have been making measurements to see if we can accommodate a bigger wading pool made of concrete, without compromising his space for running, jumping, digging and overall Grizzer activity. He wasn't much of a swimmer in the main pack, he just liked to splash. I'm certain we can create something that will meet his needs.
When Denali does get attention from staff, it's usually short lived. Aidan is very observant to the interactions between staff and Denali and Denali is wary if Aidan is nearby. This is a complete change from last year when Aidan was bottom of the rank order and didn't have as much attention. It will be interesting to see the dynamics between these two after the pup introduction.
Denali greeting the pups with submissive ears and enthusiasm. He was much more animated and did several playbows compared to Aidan who was much more guarding. I see Denali in a role of being the stimulator of social behavior, probably similar to the role Grizzer played in 2008. It will be important for Denali to show a few more boundaries than Grizzer did.
We nicknamed the male pup Bolts, because his partner is named Peanut, we thought it was appropriate to have Nuts and Bolts. He also gets out of a gate faster than any pup we've ever worked with, so Bolts has two meanings. We plan on incorporating daily logs with video starting next Monday. This pup is very inquisitive, but a bit reserved around the human aspects of the Exhibit. He is older and was 21 days when we picked him up, which is at the far end of the social window. We will have a lot of work to do in the next month to ensure that this pup has a reduced flight response to the activities in a public facility.
Shadow was very stimulated by the presence of the pups and did a full investigation when staff entered his enclosure. He showed great tolerance of the pond crew, and once he had his wood chips, settled down on the den to watch the activity. We are featuring a great photo of Shadow with a darker muzzle. His name Shadow was submitted in a name the pup contest, and ironically his muzzle is darker than Malik appearing to have shadows.
Peanut is estimated to be 19 days old today. We are making every attempt to post logs each day. The challenge of early pups is the need to maximize socialization, but the Pup Care program (which incorporates 5 – 6 people per week) wasn't scheduled to start until late May. So, wolf care staff are doing double duty on pup care to ensure the pups get the highest care possible, which means that wolf logs are pushed to the 3 am shift. Peanut is doing extremely well. She is eating a ground meat mix and is not shy in the food bowl. We struggled with a bottle transition, so her formula is still delivered by syringe, but her most likely consumption is lapping formula from the staff's palm. This is a slow process, but great for maximizing socialization. She is a vocal pup, responding with good dominance when Bolts gets to be too much. We do protect her from interactions that seem too intense, but this only seems to give her more confidence to assert a higher tail and louder growls when she does get to pin Bolts. To give you an idea of her growth, staff recorded the following weights: <li> 4/23 – 6.1 lbs <li> 4/22 – 5.8 lbs <li> 4/21 – 5.5 lbs <li> 4/20 – 5.3 lbs <li> 4/19 – 5.0 lbs <li> 4/18 – No weight taken <li> 4/17 – 4.4 lbs <li> 4/16- 4.1 lbs <li> 4/15 – 3.9 lbs <li> 4/14 – No weight taken <li> 4/13 – Pick up day 3.0 lbs
Bolts is estimated at 29 days of age today. He weighed in at 9 lbs today and is showing steady weight gain, but is highly affected by changes in staffing. When new people arrive for training, he is reserved and may be reluctant to eat. This is a very critical time for pup development and one missed meal can be crucial. Wolf care staff are always on site to ensure that the pups get their physical needs met. As we addressed earlier, he is a bit more reserved than Peanuts. We are very fortunate that he responds so positively to Oscar, and we can reduce the anxiety significantly with a little Oscar distraction. Bolts is not shy with wolf care staff and he readily recognizes the core staff, it's just the adaptation to new people. This is characteristic of wolves and is one of the biggest differences between wolf and dog pups. His weight development is as follows: <li> 4/23 – 9 lbs<li> 4/22 – 8.6 lbs<li> 4/21- 8.4 lbs<li> 4/20 – 8.0 lbs<li> 4/19 – 7.5 lbs<li> 4/18 – No weight taken <li> 4/17 – 6.7 lbs<li> 4/16 – 5.9 lbs<li> 4/15 – 5.9 lbs 4/14 -No weight taken<li> 4/13 – Pick up Day 5.4 lbs
Denali has been benefiting from the pups on site, not from the pups directly, but in Aidan's response. Aidan is so stimulated by the pups that he seeks out Denali, licks his face and rolls in submission. We even have video of Aidan wrapping his paws around Denali's neck. Needless to say, Aidan's chasing of Denali has diminished and they are doing much more playbows and social wrestling.
The name the pups contest is featured on our website, and as wolf care staff that work with the pups throughout their entire life, we appreciate names that fit the personality of the wolves. So, to describe Bolt's personality: He is extremely social with the people he knows the best, showing a great deal of excitement towards the core wolf care staff. He is also a bit shy towards new things, but is willing to explore and investigate. He's a climber, finding any high vantage point he can with his youthful and sometimes unstable legs. When he met Aidan and Denali through the fence, he showed very social interactions, licking, whining and tail wagging with both wolves. He is easily calmed by Oscar and will look to Oscar during a stressful situation. As time goes on, we will continue to post comments about personality and will feature characterisitics on Youtube. His behavioral firsts include howling to the pack, scraping the ground after urination, submissive roll over to Oscar, checking all fence corners for any openings and tug of war with Peanut. We weigh the wolves every day to monitor their health and condition. Here's the weigh gains since the last posting. We like to see .2 – .4 lbs gain a day, but this can vary with stimulus and stress. <li> Weights<li> 4/24 – 9.5 lbs<li> 4/25 – 10.1 lbs<li> 4/26 – 10.2<li> 4/27 – 10.3<li>
Even though the pups did not directly approach Grizzer's enclosure, he patiently waited at the edge of the fence while they interacted with Aidan and Denali. The influence of wolf pups does not have to be direct contact. The smell of pups and formula on the wolf care staff is enough to get Grizzer to roll over and scent roll anywhere the wolf care staff have touched. Grizzer remains extremely calm in this whole transition of pups on site and the flow of people in and out of the lab to care for them.
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