While Grizzer is increasing social contact with the pack and staff, he has developed a new behavior that will make the wolf care staff more diligent in observations, management of the wolf yard and distractions for the pack. This new behavior relates to Aidan. It appears that when Grizzer is anxious from Denali testing, activity around the wolf yard, noise in retirement or Maya showing dominance, he is quick to redirect toward Aidan. This behavior makes Aidan extremely timid, and magnifies the weakness he portrays. This could just be a transitional phase for Grizzer, as it's only been 4 weeks, or this could be the behavior that Grizzer portrays until their is clear leadership in the male rank order. Of all the behaviors and wolves to watch, we will focus our first Wolf Watch program on the dynamics of Grizzer and probably Aidan.
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The following log was written by Wolf Watch Observer: James Peregrine<br><br> Aidan has gained confidence as indicated with the "Direct Stare' photograph this week and the Raised Leg Urination or RLU's. When Maya comes down to the front of the Exhibit after being in the woods, Aidan becomes timid with a tucked or T-4 tail. After a few moments, Aidan seeks Maya's attention by doing foreleg stabs to Maya. Denali licked Aidan's legs, a grooming behavior. This behavior lasted over 7 minutes. Overall, Aidan is semi-timid with the other wolves, but shows confidence in later points.<br> <br> Note from the Curator <br><br> As a reminder, the Wolf Watch program will be scheduled the first Thursday of the month until the pack dynamics settles into some defined leadership. For more information, check out the Program tab on the website under Seminars…
As the Youtube video revealed, Shadow had a very easy transition into retirement, but social bonds are strong, and he continues to show a lot of howling to the pack. The packs response varies, sometimes rallying, other times ignoring him. In the months prior to Shadow's retirement, Shadow was very intense with staff, growling at individuals and keeping several people on the outside of the enclosure. Since his retirement, Shadow is a complete opposite, showing very strong social engagement towards all staff that enter the Retired Enclosure. We are pleased with the relationship between Shadow and Malik, sharing den space is a good sign of social compatibility.
For those of you concerned that Malik is the lower ranking pack member again, his actions in the last week should reassure you that Malik is managing well. First and foremost, wolves are social, and the best management scenario is for wolves to live in a social situation. Malik has always been the more subordinate since Shadow and Malik were pups, but with Shadow still adapting, Malik has had an opportunity to gain a few things. One issue is food possession, the Youtube video this week shows Shadow and Malik feeding on the carcass, and Malik has no problem guarding food. Actually, in one part of the clip, Shadow waits by the carcass while Malik feeds. The other notable event this week relates to the claiming of resting places. While the webcam shows they have no problem sharing den space, Shadow did approach the smaller den rock and entered it. Malik, who hasn't even approached that den in 7 months, watched Shadow enter, came over, pushed Shadow out, and now is sleeping in this den on a daily basis. His photo shows that he is quite comfortable in this space.
We are extremely pleased with Shadow's transition. He had one rough day on the 4th of July, one week post retirement. The issues were a combination of things. The heat and humidty were unbearable by Ely standards (temps nearing 90 degrees with high humidity), the flies started to emerge, Shadow hadn't started shedding and the Curator took a day off (who up until that point had been with him every day). Wolf care staff member Jen Westlund was called in and helped calm the situation. The following week, after displaying some agitation, Shadow rubbed himself up against the fence next to a running garden hose. Staff was able to completely douse Shadow, encouraging the start of the shedding process. Once Shadow started shedding, his undercoat came off by the bucket load. We noticed an immediate response in calmness, and an increase in resting behavior. Staff also installed sprinkler hoses on both enclosures, and now allow water to mist several times a day. The wolves will walk under the mist, fully wetting their coats.
The colder weather has increased the wolves diet. A full deer carcass doesn't last long between the four wolves. In this week's video, you see Grizzer and Maya sharing a deer hide. There doesn't seem to be much competition between these littermates, although there is the occassional wrestling match.
Extremely vigorous with food. Was stressed during pup program. Was constantly pacing along the pen and trying to find escape route. Was whining to get out. Did well during program; a little anxious but was able to be distracted with pine cone and deer hide. Howled with adult wolves after encouragement from staff.
As a general rule, Denali is not very submissive to Maya's dominance. He is more likely to raise his tail, posture his long, lanky body to face off with Maya. Of course, Maya increases the dominant growl, until she eventually moves away. Although, when watching the video for this week's Youtube posting, there was a short parallel gate between Maya and Denali, which is a social bonding behavior. The upcoming months will be interesting. The Center is re instituting a program called Wolf Watch. This program occurs the first Thursday of every month, and involves training program participants in data collection, and having the observers camp out in the auditorium for a night of observation. We hope to offer this program the first Thursday of every month, and be able to interpret the pack dynamics without the influence of wolf care staff interactions with the wolves.
Maya has been noticeably calmer in the last week, and while she continues to make every effort to get Denali to roll over, she has only succeeded in making Aidan submissive and Grizzer avoid her. Certainly the role of the dominant female plays a critical part in pack dynamics, and while she and Shadow had a strong bond, his weakening condition made life more difficult for Maya. What is interesting, is the Maya has spent very little time focused on the Retired Enclosure, but seems to be putting all of her focus on the future of the pack. The Center is re instituting a program called Wolf Watch. This program occurs the first Thursday of every month, and involves training program participants in data collection, and having the observers camp out in the auditorium for a night of observation. We hope to offer this program the first Thursday of every month, and be able to interpret the pack dynamics without the influence of wolf care staff interactions with the wolves.
Shadow's been extremely social in retirement, and we have not recorded any bark howling or tucked tail response with activity in the wolf yard or actions in the main enclosure. This was not the case when he was the dominant male in the Exhibit Pack, where he displayed real leadership by threat displaying towards anything that was not familiar and bark howling as a warning to strangers. In retirement, Malik and Shadow co-exist, with very little show of dominance with the exception of Malik's possessiveness over food. We are concerned about Shadow's weight. While it is common for wolves to lose weight in the summer, Shadow's weight has dropped considerably since April. On April 29, 2010, Shadow weighed 87 lbs. The ~ 72 lb weight today is a significant concern, and certainly reinforces the decision to retire him from the stresses of Exhibit life and gain the benefits of limited competition and unlimited resources in retirement. We will implement a feeding regime to increase his weight, but we must also consider the possibility that there are underlying physical conditions to monitor. The good thing is, behaviorally and physically, he is very active, alert and calm, getting a lot of rest in the den.
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