shadow – Nov 5, 2007 12:00 AM

Before wolf care staff enter the enclosure, it’s important for them to observe the body language and behavior of the pack before entering. Staff members don’t want to walk in on any active dominance session and find themselves dealing with more than a regular wolf check. This occurred on Friday, November 2nd. When we arrived for wolf care, Shadow was staying toward the back of the pen with very submissive ears, when staff entered the enclosure, he was reluctant to come down for a greeting, but after a few minutes, he seemed to relax and interact. Grizzer had some excitement levels with staff, so he seemed pretty clear that the issue was probably between Grizzer and Shadow. In contrast to Malik who gets more aggressive in defense, Shadow seems to get more subdued when Grizzer tests him. This will be something interesting to watch in the upcoming months.