Written by program participants, Ann Beyer and Lee Williams. Oh boy, did the pups have a busy afternoon! With the heat and humidity, Denali rested a lot until early afternoon. During the 3 PM program he slept by one of the nannies. Once out in the wolf yard, Denali got introduced to the pool, but wasn’t particularly interested at first, getting in later. During the 5 PM program, Denali vigorously defended a beaver tail, and stood over Aidan whenever Aidan stole it from him. After the program, the pups had play time in the pup enclosure exploring the den. He also stole a cache from Aidan and ate it. There was a lot of chasing each other in the wolf yard, with head shaking while biting Aidan. There also was quite a bit of interaction with Maya at the gate.
Written by program participants Gail Ramee and Andi Nelson: The pups are 60 days old today! Denali was getting the best of Aidan in most of the wrestling today. This morning he repeatedly pinned Aidan to the floor in the Wolf Lab and succeeded in stealing a deer leg from him as well. Denali is getting more and more of his “guard hairs in, and they are a darker gray color and softer than the rest of his fur. Denali is also eating chicken along with gruel, and is ripping and tearing small pieces off the chicken breast when being fed by hand. He continues to have a strong appetite and weighs 23.8 pounds.
Written by Kristin Radermacher – Taken form the pup logs. Today during the 5p Pups 101 program the pups chose to take naps just outside the door. They go outside frequently to run and dig and greet the adults. The nannies continue handling the pup's ears, feet and teeth to make it easier for the IWC staff to care for them as they become adults.
The database has been having some issues, so to catch up for this week, I will be posting only the images and weights. The pups are doing well in programs and enjoying their time in the outdoor enclosure. We are working on some behavioral methods to keep them on camera, but they have a lot of space to roam and do like to spend time in their denbox.
The pups did well with the 4th of July sounds, as well as the sound of the natural thunderstorms that role through this time of year.
The following log was written by Nanny Heather Hoff:<br> The pups are on their fourth night alone outside in the pup enclosure – no problems so far. Denali can and will sleep through most anything – including many of the Pup101 programs. The pups are most active early in the morning and around dusk. When the exhibit pack begins to howl, Denali is faster to respond and howl along than Aidan. Wolf care staff constructed a pine branch “hut in the wolf yard – both pups enjoy using it as a refuge when being chased by the other. This morning during a Behind the Scenes program, Denali tried to climb on top of the hut – unsuccessfully.
Wolf care staff only recorded weights on the weekend, no photos, video or data.
Written by Working for Wolves participants Cathy Gray and Michael Mallory: Denali continues to test pack mates. While Shadow ignored much of Denali's testing this weekend, Maya and Grizzer rolled Denali into a submissive posture at which point Shadow joined them and the three senior members of the pack stood over Denali as he submitted.
Denali has taken to the spring ritual of brushing. Initially, he tried to eat the brush handle, especially the nice new "Ruffin It" brushes that were donated (he likes the rubber handle). We are breaking him in to the process and the tools, and within a few weeks, we hope to have all of the undercoats removed. Temperatures have been in the 80's, almost unheard of in Ely, Minnesota in May.
Denali has been quite active, and much more testing of not only Shadow and Maya, but of staff as well. This testing behavior involves him jumping up or riding up on another wolf or human, and generally showing some interest in gaining some status. Shadow's response is fairly instant dominance, but it seems to be wearing on Shadow's tolerance.
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.