Grizz is 63 days old today. Grizz slept with his packmates in the center of the pen, unphased by howls and whining from arctics. However, later, Grizz howled during a group vocalization started by the arctics. Grizz dislikes being woken up from sleep, and growls whenever he is moved. As the warmth of the days increase, pup activity levels during the day decrease.
Nyssa is 56 days old today. Nyssa was being chased by Grizzer and Maya, running with her tail down and Grizzer and Maya ran with tails up. Nyssa seems to be the target of mob attacks in the outside enclosure. However,Nyssa got the deer popsicle (frozen water with a piece of deer hide in it) away from Maya and fought for it until both Maya and Grizzer gave up.
Today Grizz was 65 days old. Grizz was very anxious during the programs today, most likely due to the heat. He was distracted by a frozen deer leg but continued to pant. Grizzer's aggression towards nannies and staff has calmed somewhat, but he still needs to be forced to submit every once in a while. Grizzer's appetite has increased, and he has been finishing his entire bowl consistently.
Maya is 65 days old today. Maya was dominating Grizzer during the 5:00 program today. She was standing then sitting on top of him while biting his ear. Maya seems to be very responsive to the arctics, constantly coming to the fence when they whine. Maya has started to show more aggression toward Grizzer, but tends to submit and back down to Nyssa.
It was very warm today, and Grizz was panting during the programs. He enjoyed chewing on ice and the frozen blanket. When he's back in the outdoor enclosure, he either climbs in the den hole or finds a fresh pile of dirt to lay in. Weights and measurements are more difficult to acquire on puppies with so much energy, and irritation from the heat. ((a zero measurement means they were too active to be accurately weighed)
Today Grizzer is 69 days old. When working with pups from different litters, there's always a concern about bonding between the pups. Nyssa is one week younger and her development is naturally behind the others. Each week, staff monitor the logs to make a comparison between the pups weights for their age. At 61 days, Grizzer was 21.4 lbs, Maya was 20.4 lbs, Nyssa was 20.2 lbs, while Malik and Shadow were 19.5 lbs. So even though Nyssa's smaller, she's on track with her packmates and ahead of Malik and Shadow at that age. There seems to be as much interaction between Grizzer and Nyssa as with Maya.
Maya is 70 days old today. A session with Lori Schmidt's dog, Jake, was scheduled to condition the pups to the dominance of a larger canid, prior to their introduction to Shadow and Malik. It also gets them more exposed to the presence of the dogs on site, which are common for other programs such as dogsledding. Maya was timid with Jake and showed a tucked tail response. She would approach, but would run with a tucked tail if he dominated her. After Jake left, she confidently explored the lab and interacted with her packmates. Grizzer and Nyssa willingly greet Jake and actively submit without fear.
Today Nyssa is 65 days old. Nyssa is becoming very explorative, even though she seems to be timid of new things. She is constantly testing her environment, finding toys in almost everything she gets ahold of. She was observed stripping birch bark right off the tree with Grizzer, and then played with it for almost an hour. She continues to be affectionate towards staff and nannies, greeting strangers as well as familiar people with vigor.
Today Nyssa is 51 days old. Nyssa greeted arctics well in the morning, and chased Grizzer and Maya around the pen. She showed mob behavior with Maya towards Grizzer. She was startled by the wheelbarrow during the pen cleaning, and tucked her tail and ran away. However, she returned swiftly and greeted wheelbarrow pusher enthusiastically. Nyssa did well while the pup pool was being cleaned. She investigated the hose and walked around the edge of the pool. She seemed to be more timid than either Grizz or Maya. She seems to be comfortable with the 'dogloo' that is in the outdoor enclosure, often sleeping in it during the day.
Today Grizzer is 66 days old. He has been doing better during programs, but still shows signs of anxiousness when people move or leave early. He has been spending a lot of time sleeping in his den. During the evening, a thunderstorm passed, but Grizzer did not seem phased by it at all and slept in the dogloo throughout the night.(a zero weight means they were too active to be accurately weighed)
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.