Malik has been getting involved in the daily chases throughout the enclosure, but he’s careful to stay behind the crowd instead of in front of them. He’s been very relaxed with the wolf care staff lately, generally an indication that he’s not too stressed about the dominance throughout the exhibit. Malik’s video shows this relaxed body posture.
We have observed an increase in Malik's dominance towards Shadow. His confidence is typically increased when temperatures decrease. Shadow seems to take it in stride, and an assertive chin rest gets the results that he needs. Malik seems to be the one most likely to watch and sometimes stalk ravens that attempt to scavenge on his food.
This week’s logs are written by “Workin’ for Wolves program participants Theresa Williams, Ann Briem and Lee Williams. Of the four wolves in the ambassador pack, Malik was the only one taking an active interest in observing the program participants working in the holding pen. He freqently approached the fenceline, walking up and back a few times before returning to the woods or on up the hill. At Saturday night's "What's for Dinner" feeding program Malik was the first to enter the holding pen and investigate the new work. In this week's video you'll see Malik howling with the pack on a large rock near the upper pond. When there is a pack howling, he tends to stand alone and howl, while Grizzer and Maya rally with Shadow.
Malik continues to show more acceptance of a possible change in male rank position, although he will still take an opportunity if Shadow’s compromised. In this week’s video, Malik learns to avoid Shadow and Grizzer if Shadow’s in command, because it usually means Grizzer will redirect to Malik. Overall, these dominance rituals are noisy in terms of growling, but there has been no indication of hard bites between the males. This is very different than female ritualized dominance, which is much more physical.
The weather here has turned cold, with morning temperatures for the last several days ranging from -25 to -30 below zero. Wolf care staff have increased the amount of straw in the enclosure to give the wolves more insulation. Wolves in the wild bed in the snow for insulation, but in captivity, the snow is compacted, leaving it ice cold. Malik fares the weather well, he is most often on top of his den. Being alone has some advantages, on the coldest morning of the weekend, wolf care staff fed all the wolves extra meat. While the main pack had to compete, Malik had his fill and more. His Youtube video footage this week shows a satisfied wolf doing a facewipe after feeding on 10 lbs of beef and 3 lbs of chicken.
Malik has gained a lot of confidence since retirement, even to the point that he is posturing, and chasing when the pack interacts, especially Grizzer and Denali. He seems to think he could get involved, and has been looking at our fence heights (thankfully, they are over 12 feet tall), and actually jumping in excitement and touching the top overhang. Fortunately, this is a low snow year, who said a 10 year old is too old to jump… obviously, not Malik. This change has actually been a good thing, while we don't want him testing the fence, and we know that his safety would be an issue if he ever went back in with the pack, we are happy that he feels part of the pack and can show this level of excitement. Although we rarely post Youtube video with staff and wolves interacting, we do have a clip of Malik, showing the excitement that he expresses when visiting staff. Psychological care is as important as physical care.
Sorry for the delay in the logs, the spring semester started at Vermilion on Monday, and the Curator has a full teaching schedule on Monday and Tuesday mornings. The Priority for time at the Center was placed on the wolves, leaving other duties to wait until Friday. We will transition the logs to be posted on Friday's throughout the spring semester. Malik has really gotten comfortable with the staff visits, often rolling over for a full belly rub, something he never did in the exhibit pack. He's also fond of feeding times, and the fact that he doesn't have to share anything except with the raven population, which he is all too happy to chase. We have noticed one change, when there is dominance in the Exhibit Pack, he puffs himself up with high tail and races along the fence. He psychologically thinks he can get involved in pack dominance. It certainly gives him a confidence boost, rather than tucking his tail and running, which is what he did while a member of the Exhibit Pack. After he's postured for a while, he lies down in sphinx rest, with his head held high. While there may be a physical separation, psychologically, he's showing himself as a spirited pack member.
Malik is the opposite of Shadow. Shadow appears to be aging every day, Malik appears to be regaining his youth, and displaying very excitable behavior. When his favorite staff people arrive, he raises around the pen like a juvenile, very excited and content. This must be what a stress free life feels like. I hope Shadow regains some of this energy when he gets to retirement.
This is just a reminder that the wolf logs are now posted on Friday rather than Monday due to a change in the Curator's teaching schedule. The last posting was Friday, January 29th, but on February 1st, the January postings are automatically moved to the archive section, which is why the main log screen has appeared empty since the 1st of February. To see archive data, just click the month/year that you would like to review and you can see the log postings. Malik had some fun this week, he stole the hat off the Curator's head, and raced around the enclosure until a pigs ear distracted him. He was very stimulated with the attempts to get the hat back, play bowing and inviting the chase in very social behavior. As is typical with wolves, the next time the Curator came in with the same hat, he focused on it, and made more attempts to repeat the fun events of Monday, but to no avail.
As the main pack has more dominance, Malik gets more focused and excited. He has been racing around the enclosure anytime he hears Maya's dominance, which is good for his physical health. It's questionable if hearing dominance in the other pack is good for his psychological health, it may bring back some anxiety. In the Youtube video this week, he has a short howling bout, as you can hear the rest of the pack in the background.
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.