MacKenzie's favorite time of the day is when wolf care staff refresh her straw bed in the corner of the enclosure. She can curl up in a ball and keep an eye on not only the retired enclosure, but the Exhibit pack as well. Lately, staff have noticed more anxious behavior towards the exhibit pack. This might be due to the increased hormone levels or the increased activity in the Exhibit pack. Staff will watch these interactions to ensure that Mac doesn't get too excited. One thing about being up and monitoring the Exhibit pack, Mac gets lots of exercise and looks great.
Started Mackenzie on a 5-day topical antibiotic for her right eye, she is reluctant to have Curator, Lori Schmidt apply ointment, but eventually allows it.
There was some concern a few weeks ago that MacKenzie was seeming more stressed than ususal. We attempt to keep the Retired enclosure free from group traffic to give them the rest they need as they age. A crew laying out a new powerline was working back behind the enclosures and seemed to cause MacKenzie a bit of anxiety. Staff watched her pace a bit more than usual. This is a concern for older wolves that they may begin to have adaptability issues as their senses deteriorate. Fortunately, MacKenzie returned to her usual dominant female self after the crew left. On Friday's, MacKenzie always gets her own food delivered from the curator before the other wolves are fed. It's our way of showing respect for her status, she's come to expect it and seems to enjoy it.
There are no significant behavioral issues to report this week. All wolves seem to be enjoying the fresh snow which seems to fall daily. The only issue is the depth of snow and the height of fences (especially the retired enclosure). The wolf care staff are continually shoveling the winter waterers, paths and gates to ensure that day to day operations can continue. This week's log photos are reminder's of the days, months and years of care that's been delivered at the IWC. When winter arrives (as it has this year), the work can sometime seem overwhelming. Staff often talk about the good old pup days (we forget how much work pups are when the snow flies) Enjoy the pup pictures…
Meds to all; arctics bouncy and good greeters to staff today. Lucas was dominating MacKenzie with high tail and riding up on her twice and shadowing (following her extremely close) for approximately 2 minutes. MacKenzie submissively rolled over for Lucas. All retired wolves submissively rolled over for greetings from handlers. Tension between MacKenzie and Lucas subsided as the wolf check went on."
All wolves received Rabies and Parvo/DHLPP vaccinations today administered by Wolf Curator, Lori Schmidt and Program Specialist, Jen Westlund.
MacKenzie is doing very well. Of all the wolves in retirement, she seems to have maintained her dominance hierarchy. The other wolves aren't too concerned about status. Of course, Lucas is the only male, so there's nothing to worry about and Lakota has always been submissive to MacKenzie. So, I guess MacKenzie is the only one with something to lose.
MacKenzie is doing well, she enjoys the snowfall, but at this age, prefers the straw beds in the denboxes. Of all the retired wolves, she has the strongest interest in the actions of the Exhibit Pack. She has a bed in the far corner of the enclosure and watches the actions daily. Her eyes are doing well and no signs of sore hip joints, the cosequin is working well.
MacKenzie seems to really come alive during the winter months. Watching her during Saturday's snowfall, one would guess they were observing a 2 year old instead of a wolf nearing 12. MacKenzie enjoys doing the "snowplow" in new snow. She puts her head down, slides her head along the ground pushing the snow like a V-plow, then falls to the ground on her back. In this weeks photo, there's remnants of snow on her nose after she plowed a few inches of snow.
During Lakota's illness, MacKenzie was not as social in interacting with Lakota, but she did refrain from her usual dominance over Lakota. There were only 2 or 3 observations were MacKenzie showed any dominance over Lakota and all occurred after Lakota was given an IM shot and she responded by running away from the staff. MacKenzie's eye condition seems to be greatly improved since the treatment in October, with no noticeable issues since the exam.
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.