Written by Working for Wolves participants Kathy Rundquist and Wendy Watson: In contrast to last winter, Aidan is regularly coming down off the upper hill and is frequently seen in from of the observation windows. Always remaining aware of Maya's presence, he is initiating social interaction with all pack members including Maya. His increasing confidence is evident through ear pricked forward position, tail wags and foreleg stabs.
Aidan's been more interactive with staff, even though his insecurities may lead to some jumping and grab biting. If staff spend enough time, he usually relaxes and becomes less of a target to the pack. It's a confusing issue, it's his nervous behavior that is perceived as a weakness by the rest of the pack, particularly Maya. But, being a focus of the pack makes him nervous. The best thing we can do is keep him calm and relaxed, and life is much better for him. In this week's photos, Aidan displays a behavior we call "Ears Pricked and Turned Sideways", a show of alertness mixed with a little intimidation. Of course, Maya had just strolled by before the photo was taken.
Aiden continues to show good focus on the deer leg during programs. He is showing some shyness towards male handlers and we are working on improving his acceptance of males in general. This is a slow process and will include giving the pups t-shirts with their scent and having them bring new treats every time they enter.
It's the start of the 25th anniversary celebration weekend, and the Youtube Posting will be delayed until Monday to show some of the weekend events. Aidan did some interesting threat displays towards Grizzer. Grizzer approached to greet, and Aidan made him back off by a curl of the lip. Certainly, this shows Aidan gaining some confidence, but there is still the issue of Maya's redirected aggression. This week's photo shows Aidan right in the mix of social activity with the pack.
Sorry for the delay in logs, the curator attended the North American Moose Conference and Workshop for the last few days. Aidan has had some interesting dynamics in the last week. He was observed doing a raised leg urination followed by a scrape of the ground to broadcast his scent. This is characteristic of a confident, typically more dominant wolf. In the wild, where marking and communication are more critical than in captivity, it is typically the dominant pair of wolves that display this behavior. In the Exhibit Pack, we do not see as rigid of a rule about RLU displays, but it still denotes an animal that is displaying more dominant behavior. RLU alone is not significant, but if you review the photos in the last few logs, as well as the photo this week, there is a trend in behavior for Aidan to try for more status. In this week's photo, Aidan is attempting to do a grab bite to Grizzer while Denali has Grizzer occupied.
Sorry for the delay in logs, there was an extreme thunderstorm here that knocked out the server for the webcams and caused the lab computers to be in the shut down mode for a while. The pups are active and healthy, and we are in the process of setting up a portable webcam to keep up with them as their time indoors is diminishing. They want to be out and play in the wolf yard. I received an email inquiring about the pups and Lakota. We will not be placing the pups with Lakota, for two reasons: # 1 – they scare here.. she sees them at the gate, and they get nose to nose contact, but when they start to wrestle and growl, she backs off. # 2 – Shadow is very possessive of the pups, as the Nannies have experienced. We have some good cohesive behavior between the pups and the Exhibit Pack, if Shadow or Maya see the pups interacting with Lakota, they may peceive them as hers, and may be less enthusiastic about the introduction. So far, Lakota likes coming to the fence to be part of the action, but she also likes to the freedom to walk back into the Retired enclosure. When the pups are sleeping and in the lab kennel, Lakota gets free reign of the wolf yard, and she sniffs everywhere the pups have been.
Attila had a great appetite for the night shift last night, eating 9 ounces of gruel. This is a change for him, as he can be a light eater. The outdoor exercise before and after programs can be a stimulus for a better appetite. There is much more submissive pawing at the adults and both Attila and Red Paw continue to submit readily to the adult wolves and to staff. One of the more noteable behaviors today is the increased evidence of predatory behavior displayed by Attila. He is very focused on sound and fast movement. His first response is to tuck his tail, bolt away, then turn around and face the source with ears perked forward. He is also noted to be doing more running and snapping at Red Paw, but Red Paw shows very little concern about this.
The logs will all be the same today. We’re doing some improvements to Malik’s enclosure, so Malik gets all of my time today. This past week has been busy getting the Exhibit enclosure ready for a Chamber of Commerce mixer on Wednesday night. Windows were washed, straw was removed, the summer wood chips were added and the pond waterline thawed with enough time to fill the pond. Of course, the upper pond line is still frozen in the concrete, so the waterfall isn’t flowing, but the main pond has been a source of stimulus for the pack. When it finally thawed, the weather was 70 degrees and sunny, and all wolves romped in the water, followed by a Grizzer/Denali chase though the woods. Aidan is still getting some dominance from Maya, usually followed by one of the excitable chases though the woods, but as the photos show this week, Aidan is engaging Maya in social behavior. He does a double foreleg stab while she is on the top of the den. We have noticed some instability with Shadow after he was chasing Grizzer and Denali, he seemed to have a dizzy spell, was off balance, before planting his paws in a wide stance and gaining his stability. As with any aging wolf, we will watch Shadow closely. The YouTube video this week shows the Chamber of Commerce mixer, giving the view of a visitor to the Center. Malik had a good week, enjoying the well shaded tree cover in his enclosure.
Aidan has good days, where he is free to roam throughout the lower enclosure, still mindful of Maya, but less stressed, and he has bad days… Where Maya gets a mind set that Aidan shouldn't leave the den. Yesterday and today are bad days for Aidan. Although, to put it in perspective, it is pouring rain here, and Maya is keeping him in the dry den with straw, so I guess even a bad day has some good points. Earlier during wolf care, Maya and Aidan were actually sleeping in the den together, making this a difficult relationship to understand. At the end of the YouTube video this week, a visitor provided a series of 4 photos of Maya and Aidan interacting, the ear posture of Aidan was initially anxious, but then he turned his ears to the "Ears Pricked Forward" position, showing a sign of confidence.
If you have been watching the web cams, you may have noticed Aidan on the Greeting Rock cam. He's been feeling more confident as Maya's intensity has decreased. Maya still has her moments, specifically when the pack is drawn into holding for maintenance work. In this week's Youtube video, you will see Aidan enjoying the cool sand of the upper enclosure den that the wolves created.
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