Written by Weekend Nannies Cindy Ludwig and Debbie Shepard: Aidan was reluctant to participate in the programs, likely due to large, noisy crowds with a lot of movement. Aidan, being the more predatory pup keys into movements in the crowd. Wolf care staff attempts to entice the pups into the program, but nothing is forced; if the pups don't want to participate, they don't have to.
The following log was written by Nanny, Deb Lewis: Aidan was very active during the afternoon Pup 101 program. He is nimble enough now to jump up on the auditorium window ledge. While there, he tried to catch a fly on the glass. He paced the window ledge and made a few attempts to get past a nanny to escape the pen. His attempts were foiled by nannies distracting him with bits of meat.
The pups are slowing down in weight gain, as metabolisms begin to change, they will still have spurts of growth, gaining 1/2 lb increments, but not on a daily basis.
The following logs were written by outgoing Team Leader Theresa Williams:<br> Today after a program (referencing Friday's program), the pups decided that the picnic table was a great place to take a nap. Aidan has figured out how to get up and down off of it, while Denali has been doing if for a couple of days. His fear of large crowds seems to be getting much better during the programs as he is not as anixous. It appears that beaver is still the food of choice.
Logs written by Lynne Haines and Sherrel Grabler:<br> Both pups were happy to see wolf care staff and nannies this morning. The pups ate most of a deer leg over the night. Aidan was not interested in eating gruel. Later he regurgitated a small amount of straw and fur. Aidan tried to cache a pig’s ear, then began digging in the dirt by the wolf lab. During the Behind the Scenes Program, Aidan was relaxed, keeping an eye on the audience from his perch on top of the picnic table. He also displayed a head-shake while grabbing Denali by the throat. Aidan occupied himself during the 11 am program by eating chicken, cheese and chasing a bug while Denali slept. The 5 pm program was a little more active, with Aidan trying to entice a deer leg away from Denali, but ultimately settling on a pig’s ear. Following the program, the pups were active, with Aidan chasing Denali, followed by jaw sparring, squashing, and standing over Denali.
This weight is a bit subjective to a wiggly pup that just ate 14 ounces of beaver. We think he gained weight, but not likely to have gained 2.4 lbs. This measurement was taken at 7 pm at night, the first time Aidan really settled down for the day, but he was still the "little fiery one". Aidan's logs written by Nanny Theresa Williams; <BR> Aidan has had another food preference change. He now prefers to have Beaver to eat and by the weight gain he has had the last couple of days it shows. He still watches and pays very close attention to everything and everyone around him. During the programs he may be chewing on something but he is definitely paying attention to sound and movement. Several times he has eye stalked people moving in the audience. This morning was very windy and a piece of paper stuck to the outside of the door was moving and it held his attention for a bit along with the crows overhead. The den in the rear of the enclosure is a fun place for both the pups to play and jump in. It has also been a favorite place to sleep over the weekend when it was warmer. The staff are trying new things to try and get the pups to stay on the web cam longer for the viewer. A new ‘fort’ has been put in the wolf yard for the pups to crawl under and it is a great place to cache treats.
There was an error in the weights yesterday, we changed it in the logs, and will be double checking these before posting. Attila is hard to weigh, as he is more active even when he sleeps. The following was written by Nanny Team Leader – Steve Lokker.<br> It's fascinating to observe the patterns of the way the pups sleep. They seem oblivious to the petting, stroking and conditioning of their ears, paws, and teeth to human handling. The pups sleep soundly and deeply through this physical contact and the familar sounds of the lab doors. But they are instantly awake, alert and on guard if there is a new or strange sound or sudden movement. It's almost as if their hearing and sensory abilities remain on full alert when they are sleeping. This seem particularly true of Attila.
Attila has a varied response to the public programs. If the Exhibit Pack is howling or excessively whining, he goes into the auditorium nervous and tries to climb the wall to get to the ledge and paw at the window toward the Exhibit Pack. During the 1 pm program, the pups were carried in because it was pouring, they were given the deer tail and the soft pad. They spent the whole program stealing the tail from each other and growling/biting each other. Attila chewed on the tail with his back to the audience, showing no fear of anything. Of course, the pack didn’t get up because of the rain, so that probably helped. Attila isn’t as interested in the elk meat as Red Paw, but he will consume it with gruel. Attila is best consuming formula from a bowl. Attila continues to display some dominant predatory behavior. After the 11 am program, the pups were in the wolf yard for about 20 minutes, and Attila stalked Red Paw several times with a full ambush, rolling Red Paw over on his back.
Attila has been observed stalking, ambushing and doing dominant stand-over behavior toward Red Paw. Generally, Red Paw ignores it, but as his photo shows, sometimes a pup has to do what a pup has to do… Attila displays a great deal more predatory behavior, keying into noises, movement and anything out of the ordinary with a low posture stalk. Red Paw attempts to stalk, but he goes down in a crouch, then doesn't move, and Attila ambushes him before he can actually the stalk. Both pups are excited to see the main pack on a daily basis and both pups howled to the pack this morning.
Attila is 46 days old today. The following logs were written by Team Leader Steve Lokker. " When our Nanny team arrived last weekend, we were introduced to two wolf pups that were striking in their looks, developing their instincts, and… tripping over their very large paws. Today, less than a week later, Attila is showing the coordination of a young wolf. After more time exploring the expanse of the outdoor wolf yard, his stumbling attempts to run have grown into a more graceful and confident looking stride. Despite being noticeably smaller than his brother, Attila has the look of a sleek and swift young wolf, who's appearance will be classically gray wolf and aesthetically pleasing.
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.