Grizz is 33 days old today. The pups were put in the outside puppy pen adjacent to the main exhibit. ML & SD showed excitement and greeted the puppies with whines and wagging tails. Pups were also excited with wagging tails as they greeted the arctics throught the protective hardware cloth fence. Pups spent some time exploring the pen, but Grizz became excited and anxious, vomiting .5 oz formula. Grizz was also digging under edge of concrete pad. During this time, the retirement pack got their first physical look at the pups and MacKenzie showed aggressive dominance toward Lakota and Lucas.
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Nubee is 26 days old today. The pups were put in the outside puppy pen adjacent to the main exhibit. ML & SD showed excitement and greeted the puppies with whines and wagging tails. Pups were also excited with wagging tails as they greeted the arctics throught the protective hardware cloth fence. Her coordination is increasing, she was able to crawl out of a hole in the outdoor puppy enclosure. She's also initiating dominance interactions over Grizz and Groan. She even growled at Shadow thru the fence. Shadow didn't respond negatively. He just continued to whine at her.
Today Grizz is 34 days old. Grizz is becoming more active as he is chewing and biting at toys, logs, people, and stuffed animals. He is also becoming more vocal with his handlers and packmates. Grizz was anxious in response to Groan during pen cleaning. Growled at staff members but submitted after being rolled over. He was taken into new pup facility. He played, ran, and got into the pond. Grizz explored the most of all the pups. He would come back for reassurance and go off exploring.
Groan is 34 days old today. She is still exhibiting dominance over Nubee and Grizz. Groan also howled when she heard a squeaky toy. Groan was extremely anxious during pen cleaning. She began to be anxious after the door was opened. She paced the edges of the pen and whined loudly, howling slightly at times. Staff hypothesizes that she was anxious to get outside to freedom. Groan was taken into the pup enclosure today. There she interacted briefly with Malik and Shadow, whined a bit, and explored a little. Groan then sought refuge with a nanny.
Visitors frequently ask about the Name the Pup contest and how/why the names were chosen: The nickname Grizz was chosen from the minute the pups were picked up at the game farm. Grizz has a grizzled gray appearance to the start of his guard hairs and is getting the classic wolf ruff around his neck. Wolf care staff were happy to see one of the names selected for voting was Grizzer… Garnett was also selected for the Name the Pup Contest. Garnett is representative of Kevin Garnett, Minnesota Timberwolves superstar and 2004 NBA MVP.
Visitors frequently ask about the Name the Pup contest and how/why the names were chosen: As Nubee grows and increases her mobility, it’s time to recognize that she’s not a Newborn anymore… The Name the Pup contest judges selected three potential names for Nubee. KoKo (which happens to be the name of Grizz and Groan’s mother); Nyssa (pronounced knee-sa) which was described as Scandanavian for “Mischevious Elf and Teaka which reminded staff of the unique coloration of teak wood. Given Nubee’s recent exploits in dominating Grizz and Groan while they’re sleeping, the Mishevious elf description is looking more fitting each day.
Grizz is 49 days old. Grizzer has been very restless, often pacing from one place to another. Staff was successfully able to use music as a calming stimulus for Grizzer and his littermates when they were worked up during the early morning. When Grizzer gets worked up he keys in on the window as a source for escape and repeatedly tries to get at the windowsill. Grizzer has shown little interest in weaning formula which could be the result of a recent tapeworm diagnosis. The tapeworms are currently being treated with a dewormer not only in Grizzer, but his littermates as well. Grizzer sometimes seems willing to come to Nyssa's aid when she is being dominated by Maya, but when Maya is being dominated by Nyssa, Grizzer joins in on the domination. When staff brought in the weighing materials Grizzer tucked his tail and ran to the opposite side of the corner. Due to his intense fear response, staff did not attempt weighing him at that particular time.
Maya is 83 days old today. She played in water from the hose during the hottest part of the day. In one program, she walked to the crowd and greeted them with flat ears and low rear. She tried to nip at toes through sandals. Then she chewed on a deer leg with Nyssa and Grizzer.
Nubee has been riding up on Grizz. She is showing greater control over tail position and movements as well as her ears. Nubee did well during the first program. She tried to dominate Grizz & Groan, and became very vocal when they tried to dominate her. She also explored the pup pen and the rock. She appears to be relaxed and at ease during the programs. Nubee did well during the second program. She played with Grizz and Groan and explored the pup pen. She was also interested in smelling the rubber Kong stuffed with deer meat. Nubee was a little anxious during the last program and wanted to climb into Donna's (a member of the wolf care team)lap. She explored the pen a little and played with Grizz & Groan.
Nubee is 27 days old today. Nubee is initiating dominance interactions over Grizz and Groan. Nubee was anxious in response to Groan during pen cleaning. She was very active and showed much greater motor control. Her ears are also more erect. Nubee is also growling at staff but submits after being rolled over. Nubee was anxious during a presentation today and was not interested in anything but getting out of the pen. She briefly chewed on the beaver tail but Groan and Grizz took over. She was removed early due to excessive panting. Nubee was taken to the new pup facility. Nubee whined and briefly greeted Shadow and Malik. She then went down into the pond hole, climbed out, then sought refuge at the side of the pen with Groan and the nanny.
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