During yesterday's "What's for Dinner" program, Malik was chewing on a beaver, when Maya came running down from the hill and tried to take it away from him. Malik defended his beaver, but Maya got away with him, leaving Malik with no beaver. Then he tried to take one of Grizzer's two beavers but was unsuccessful. Today Malik had a distended stomach, that indicated that he fianally got some of the beaver
Malik seems to enjoy his new mist hose. He's comming down on the hot days more often and stays underneath it. We want to thank Andi Nelson for suggesting the commercial mist. Wolf curator went to the hardware store and bought a garden hose and design a similar divice that only costs us 10 dollars. By this picture, you can tell that Malik and Shadow are enjoying it.
Malik has been spending time sleeping in the sun during these cold spells. People often ask if the cold weather is hard on them, in reality, they are built for cold. It’s the hot days that are troublesome for a wolf. Staff put plenty of straw in the enclosure for the wolves to rest on. The angle of the sun in February makes for warm comfortable days in the straw.
Curators note: Pups are generally allowed to have a great deal of freedom in their actions when they are growing. Adults (especially alphas) appear to be very tolerant with the pups antics and generally allow pups access to food over other lower ranking pack members. Some theorize that this demonstration of parental care for the pups may be hormonally driven, others theorize that it is all part of an integral process of social bonding that keeps the pups bond to the pack strong. Regardless of the motivation, it's apparent that the pups have a lot of leeway when they are young, but as they mature, they must take their place in the rank order. It appears that this time has come to the Center's Ambassador Pack. Previous logs have shown more and more dominance displays to the pups, but it wasn't until the most recent feedings that we actually saw a noticeable difference around the defense of food.
As the weather changes, so does the clothing requirements of the handlers. The pups are getting familiar with wool gloves on handlers hands, and all of the extra "hide" the handlers need to work in the enclosure. The pups have been videotaped and photographed with the backdrop of red maple leaves and the yellow hue of Aspen, but it was the first snowfall of the year that made the staff get the cameras. The first snowfall of the year came on Friday afternoon, October 6th. The entire pack was stimulated and were observed rolling in the snow and jumping at low hanging branches which resulted in snow dropping on their heads. The pups are well suited for winter conditions and their thick pelage seemed to shed the wet snow with much more efficiency then the adults.
Malik doesn't seem to fight the lower ranking position much, he generally ends up there because he falls over and doesn't attempt to get up. In other situations his less coordinated efforts seem to appear to be a factor (foot stuck in the door, falling off rocks, falling in holes), we wonder if he gets older and more coordinated, will the dominance encounters turn out differently?
Malik had a medical exam today as part of the Exhibit Pack management plan. He was given an excellent condition status, with no notable problems with his hips or physical condition. He appears to have gained weight since last fall, he was 86 lbs in November '04, now weighs 89.5 lbs. Malik's medical exam team members included: Team Leader, Andrea Nelson, Joyce Wells and Susan Meyers.
The wolves were very playful this week as the weather got cooler. Nighttime lows were down in the 20's and the pups seemed well suited for these nights. One of the Wolf Care staff described the pups as "rammy". Malik got his foot caught in the gate trying to get into the pack holding area. After several seconds of distress, he freed it. Those paws are getting bigger and don't fit in the places that they used to. Of course, Malik's whining in distress brought Lakota immediately over to see if she could take advantage of his situation, but the Wolf Curator stepped in and helped Malik maintain control.
As winter approaches, staff need to begin acclimating the wolves to winter clothing. The pups have been especially interested in the rag wool fingerless gloves worn by some of the staff. The acclimation process will be ongoing until the pups begin to associate the gloves as part of the handlers "hide". This process may take a few weeks. The wolf curator has begun more detailed physical exams on the pups to get them conditioned to paw inspection for winter ice buildup, hide and undercoat inspection for any signs of bite wounds and mouth/teeth inspection for evaluation of general physical condition. Both pups are developing well, but during the 10/30 wolf check, Malik was observed to be favoring his rear left leg. He showed no sign of tenderness with intense manipulation of the leg, but he avoided full weight on the leg. Given the high energy level and spirited play bouts between the pups, the limping was considered to be minor, possibly a pulled muscle or bruise, but it was noted in the log to be monitor by staff. After the second day with no improvement, the wolf curator phoned Ely Veterinarian Chip Hanson for a site visit and consultation. A preliminary exam showed no definite diagnosis, but the possibility of an injury to the ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) based on the way he was walking and standing. Dr. Hanson prescribed a five day dose of anti-inflammatory drug and Malik was to be observed for changes in his condition. The staff is currently monitoring his condition and will report back to Dr. Hanson by November 6th at which time, he will re-examine to attempt to confirm a diagnosis.
The concern over the omega position is on everyone's mind. Will Lakota fill that role based on Mackenzie's protection of the pups or will Malik become omega based on Shadow's tendency to end up the victor of dominance interactions? Only time and further observations will be able to answer that question. This week, Lakota was observed in extremely high tail during a Malik mobbing. The times when Lakota was the center of the pack's attention, she seemed to be the instigator of the attention by displaying a play bow in front of Mackenzie and Lucas, then making a dash for the protection of the den opening.
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