Aidan – Wolf Ethology Observations

This week’s wolf logs are based on observations by our Biology 1476: Wolf Ethology participants

Laurie Groskopf – Aidan was disturbed by the high winds today, causing stressed behaviors. The cooler weather relaxed the pack and some social and play behaviors ensued. Aidan enjoyed grooming from staff, but remains stressed by crowds. Each wolf took a turn gnawing on bones from the deer carcass, and little competition was evident. Luna squashed Aidan several times, and he displayed social behavior towards the other wolves, soliciting interaction. Everyone feels better in cool weather!

Tara Morrison – Aidan seemed not to like the wind last night, but was still playful at times with the other wolves. He did seem somewhat stressed though, yawning frequently. He played tug-of-war with Boltz over pieces of the deer carcass for about 10-15 minutes. He seemed to enjoy the grooming he was receiving from staff during the webinar. He displayed somewhat submissive behavior to Luna when she squashed him.

Luna – Irritated with bugs

Luna recently developed a hot spot from licking at a bug bit on her leg. It’s important to remember that one of the many reasons we socialize our wolves is for hands on care without the need of anesthetics. We’ve been applying some medications to the spot to allow her to heal with relative ease. The socialization process helps to allow this hands on care with highly trained staff who have worked with these animals for an extended period of time.

Grizzer – Back to the top

Wolf care staff are pleased to announce that Grizzer has returned to his normal weight and social activity. We are seeing more restful sleeping patterns, as well as much more social greeting with staff when conducting wolf care. As you can see in this week’s photo, we have been frequently weighing Grizzer to get a sense of and loss/gain of weight as we treated him with new medications. We are extraordinarily thankful to all of those who have supported us in the care of our retirees at the International Wolf Center.

 

Denali – Dealing with the summer heat

Wolves are built to withstand extremely cold temperatures, but summer heat can be a challenge for them. We recently added a pile of dirt to the enclosure that has been an excellent source of relief for the wolves. Wolf care staff often water the dirt down to retain some coolness and moisture for the wolves to rest on, and as you can see in this week’s photo, they take advantage of it.

Boltz – Hiding from the flies

We’re still working with some anxious behavior from Boltz due to his phobia of bees. Insect season has really come into full swing, and the sound of buzzing around him can make Boltz very intimidated. Recently he has spent most of his time in a dug den in the back of the enclosure. All of the sand and dirt can serve as protection for him from the bees and flies. He does spend time in the open seeking social company however, today he came down when a storm rolled in to rest beside Denali under the eaves in front of our observation area. Though the winds and thunder were relatively intense, visitors were given an excellent view of the pair through the storm.

Aidan – Prolactin has come late

A nurturing hormone referred to as prolactin often spikes right around the time of year that pups are born, but we’ve seen a delay in this surge for spring 2015. Now we’re beginning to see signs that the hormones have finally arrive, albeit a bit late. Luna and Aidan have been observed spending more time with one another, in a calmer manner. Luna can still become very excitable and go into bouts of obnoxious submission to Aidan, but more and more frequently we have been witnessing calmer interactions between the two.

Boltz – Some Summer Phobias

I have said this many times, Boltz has some shyness that we will never overcome because he was nearly a month old when we met him.  But, the shyness is not just a socialization issue.  Boltz seems to also have an issue with bees.  He was stung when he was younger and that negative event has made him obsessed with the noise of buzzing flies, bees, hornets (unfortunately, we have a lot of the aforementioned). This makes it even harder to work with him because he is so panicked by the summer bugs.  You will notice he is less groomed than the other wolves, anything coming over his head makes him a bit nervous.  So instead of brushing, we pluck his hair.  We are working on his trust, but at this time, the only thing that works is if Boltz has Denali at his side.  These two wolves have a very strong bond.  We won’t give up, he may well be the future pack leader, so we want to increase our bond and his confidence.   He does have his favorite staff, so we know there’s hope. 

Denali – Will he Ever Shed

Denali may know something about climate that eludes the rest of us.  He has retained most of his winter undercoat and while we brush him every day, his pelage is thick and ready for winter.  I know we just experienced the summer solstice and it’s a downhill slide towards winter, but really… there will be a summer in Ely, Minnesota, so lose the hair.  Of course, he has less bug bites than everyone else, so maybe he does know something that eludes us.

Luna – Summer Look

Luna has shed most of her summer undercoat on her body, butt that leaves her with partially shed neck hair that contrasts with her dark pelage.  We think she’s striking.   We have a local photographer who attends our Thursday night and Saturday morning “Photographer’s Only” sessions and he recently captured some beautiful Luna images.  Actually, all of his photos are amazing..  Check it out http://www.elypix.com/Wolf/i-s54mqrR

Aidan – Fit and Trim this summer

You may recall last fall we took Aidan to the clinic (under immobilization) and had an ultrasound and x-rays over concern for his distended stomach.  The vet results, too many treats for enrichment, he just got fat.  So, this year, we are careful about the noon enrichment program and are avoiding a lot of treats and Aidan is better for it. He is active, has a spring in his step and seems to feel better about the pack dynamics (meaning, Luna).