Boltz – The Importance of Sibling Bonds

Though Luna and Boltz are not related by blood, they were indeed raised together, and in their puphood formed a sibling bond. This often results in more play behavior between the two, but at times it can also mean support in the pack. We saw this same behavior between Maya and Grizzer, two siblings from the 2004 litter. When Grizzer was the dominant male of the exhibit pack after Shadow’s retirement, Maya would continuously reinforce Grizzer’s rank by dominating the other wolves in the exhibit. It is very possible that Luna will do the same, should Boltz begin to climb in his rank.

Boltz – May I Please?

Boltz shows a great submissive approach to gain acceptance in the male rank order.  Wolf Care Staff member Don Gossett captured this photograph of the male rank order in the Exhibit Pack, from right to left, Dominant Male Aidan, 2nd ranking male Denali, and bottom of the rank order, Boltz.  Boltz shows all the right body language to be accepted as a lower ranking pack member.

Boltz – Social Until He Sees a Bug

It always amazes me that these young adults can be so intent on testing and looking for every opportunity to climb social rank, but when a bee or a hoard of flies is overhead, they run for the hills.  This is the response Boltz has been having as the biting files (the ones that chew their ears have emerged).  The good news is that his ears don’t have one fly bite, the bad news is, no-one sees Boltz during viewing hours.  We are working on a solution, and Boltz seems willing to accept Cedar Oil spray which keeps the hoards at bay.  Combine this tolerance with the fact that so far, the summer seems to have at least one day a week with a high in the 60’s and we are managing just fine.  I don’t know where the summer went, but it is going fast. 

Due to Boltz’s shyness, it took a while to get his weight on the scale, but here is his weight progression since his fall pup weight.

10/18/2012 Boltz – Pup 85.5 lbs
6/5/2013 Boltz -Yearling 102.5 lbs
6/13/2014 Boltz – 2 Years 111.9 lbs

 

Denali – Behaviors Usually Reserved for Juveniles

Let’s just say, the title says it all.  Denali hasn’t seemed to grow out of some of the juvenile displays of dominance like squashing your packmate. Boltz seems to willingly accept this behavior, after growing up with Luna as a pupmate, it might be a welcome relief to have a “Pupmate” that socially engages without teeth.  Regardless, there seems to be little strife between these two males who are clearly subordinate to Aidan.  We did get Denali to shed most of his undercoat.  It seemed to come out in a 48 hour period.  Fortunately, we had a strong wind, and the undercoat that we didn’t save for hair samples (the retail store will be selling vials of hair), blew away in the wind and probably became some good fiber for a birds nest.  We did weigh Denali in June and he is weighing in at 134.5 lbs.  nearly equal to Aidan, but with Denali, we know he can put on the pounds with a full meal.

8/29/2008 Denali – Pup 55.7 lbs
4/22/2009 Denali – Yearling 108.03 lbs
4/29/2010 Denali – 2 Years 107.36 lbs
6/5/2011 Denali – 3 Years 124 lbs
6/4/2013 Denali – 5 years 130.1 lbs
6/13/2014 Denali – 6 Years 134.5 lbs

Not sure why we missed his weights in 2012… the weight scale is a large metal scale designed for pigs… it can be intimidating for wolves, usually Denali is the first on the scale, but it is a major event to get the wolves to stand still long enough to get a read on the digital box. 

Boltz- Vaccinations require trust

Of all the wolves on site, Boltz is the least trusting of our handlers.  This is no fault of his own or of the staff, just the fact that we didn’t meet him until he was about a month of age, and by that time, the critical bonding period of the neonates has passed.  We are working on building his trust, and are able to vaccinate as needed, but he is less tolerant of brushing behavior than any of the other wolves.  Once he figures out how good it feels, he may be more willing.

Boltz – Cautious Expression

Boltz seems to have the most cautious expression of all the wolves in the Exhibit Pack.  We definitely notice his tendency to react to external stimuli and ultimately show some fear avoidance behavior to anything new, but we also see that Aidan has a lot of tolerance for Boltz when he’s anxious.  Rather than seeing that anxiety as a weakness, Aidan seems to show stronger social behavior in what appears to be reassuring to Boltz.  We do see a stronger interaction between Aidan and Boltz than we do with Aidan and Luna.

Boltz- On the Move

While some captive wolves meander, Boltz always makes his movements across the enclosure as efficient as if he were strolling across a forest habitat.  He has the characteristic wolf gait, showing the efficiency of this mobile predator.  Of course, Boltz is only two years old, so he’s got the energy to gait, versus some of the retirees, who would rather meander.

Boltz – Direct Register

This weeks photo shows an interesting adaptation of wolves which is that they have a direct register gait. This is useful in deep snow to conserve energy, as their feet align in a straight line rather than compressing snow separately with each foot.

Boltz – Testing his Limits

Mild mannered Boltz, who gains sympathy because he seems to be on the bottom of the rank order, seems to have developed a bit of a hormonal surge that has him doing ride-up and mounting behaviors and in this photo, he is displaying a foreleg stab towards Luna.  All of our wolves are spayed and neutered, and we have witnessed this before (in Denali and Grizzer).  Thing will calm down as Boltz reaches 3 years of age, but at this point, Aidan seems to have everything under control.

Boltz – On the Move