Contractors recently finished a solid wood fence blocking the view of the wolf enclosure near the temporary entrance. Within days, the educators noted that Shadow no longer seemed to lay on the top of the hill staring at the entrance door, which we knew was a cause for anxiety. He is now relaxing throughout the enclosure, and we are grateful to the International Wolf Center Board Members who personally donated money to complete this fence, and to Board Member Paul Anderson for drawing the architectural design. This effort could make the difference on the reduction of redirected aggression toward Malik. We know Shadow is more relaxed, and that makes Grizzer more relaxed. There is one thing to record from an observation today, after getting up from the den, Shadow did a standing urination. It could be something, or it could be nothing, but this dominant wolf in most other observations, does a Raised Leg Urination, a standing urination could be a sign of a change in confidence, or it might just be that he had to go. But, this is the subtle things we have to watch for in observations. One note to all wolf log readers, we are experiencing some difficulty with video editing software. The curator has purchased a new computer and an upgrade of software, but it may not be arriving for a few days. Please be patient, we know the importance of the video, and will solve it before the next YouTube is due on September 1st. In the meantime, a podcast is being produced today, discussing the behavioral observations of the summer Ethology and Pups at One Year participants.
Shadow has been really enjoying the time the pack spends in retirement. He races around the enclosure, swims in the pond and climbs on the den. Although, he still doesn't appear ready for retirement, when the transition occurs, he should do well. Shadow continues to be a source of focus for Aidan, when Aidan is very stressed, he seeks Shadow out, and often does a behavior called "Obnoxious Submission", where Aidan paws, licks, jumps and generally gets in Shadow's face. Shadow responds by dominating Aidan, showing Aidan that he has a place in the pack.
As we reported last week, Shadow's weight is down to 84.66 lbs. When staff handle him, they notice his frame is very bony and he is starting to lose muscle mass. His attitude is still very strong, but the years of being dominant are taking their toll on his physical structure. With the additional feedings during the week, we hope this increases his food intake. It's not uncommon for a wolf at this age to begin to show physical declines, it's just hard when he isn't showing a mental decline that would lead him to retirement.
This week's video of Shadow shows the kind of anxiety that external noise creates on a wolf exhibit. His ear postures change rapidly, going from ears perked forward in interest, and ears back in intimidation. It's his job to guard the pack, and with people on the roof, the sound of nail guns, backhoes, ladders, people talking, and the daily visitors to the Center, he's having a hard time of it lately. The construction should be done by October, around the same time the Center moves to weekend public visitation hours. The other factor that is challenging is the heat. While July was one of the coolest months on record, September is starting out very atypical, daily temperatures during late August and early September are in the upper 70's and 80's, with high humidity and limited wind. While wolves can adapt to heat in the summer by staying inactive and panting, as well as shedding their undercoat. The problem at this time of the year is that the wolves have begun growing back their winter undercoat, so heat in September is a problem. October will be a welcome month, construction is done, and hopefully snow will be right around the corner. Shadow's video on that day will be much different.
In preparation for the transition to the new log format, we will be posting a YouTube video on a weekly basis, rather than the 20 second clips linked in the weekly log posting. This format should give a better appreciation for the tone of the pack, rather than the individual wolf. There may be a 1 – 2 day delay in the YouTube video posting after the wolf log postings. Shadow has gained at least 3 lbs since July, and we hope to increase his weight with new protocol of evening feedings mid-week. Last week, he again claimed a beaver and was able to eat immediately upon feeding. His tension level is high, but manageable, as long as we don't do anything in the wolf yard that is too noisy or too unfamiliar.
Shadow has had a break from the construction, crews were off Thursday- Sunday. There is a noticeable difference in his attitude. After October 1st, the Center is only open on Friday's and Saturday's to the public. While there may be school groups and the Center offices are still open during the week, the decreased traffic at the back door will help as well. On Sunday's, there will be no staff except wolf care staff on site, giving the wolves their first real restful day of no disturbance for hourly programs since May. Now that Denali is testing more, Shadow is working double time to keep both Denali and Grizzer in line.
In the year 2002, MacKenzie, Lucas and Lakota were reaching 9 1/2 years of age, and were spending a fair amount of time with a low tail, spinning around to avoid anyone behind them, and generally showing body language of wolves losing their place in the pack. Now that Malik and Shadow are this age, we are watching for those signs, but are not seeing them. Yes, Malik gets chased if tension is high, but Shadow is clearly in control, dominating all the pack members in a ritualized manner that keeps all the other wolves in a submissive posture towards Shadow. We would expect to see him increase some threat displays as he gets older as a defense mechanism for an aging animal that isn't as physically strong. This is no the case for Shadow, Shadow had a full session of dominance on every male in the exhibit on Saturday. This may be a bit of compensation for the knee injury he had last week, although there's no physical signs of problems with his knee. He was actually initiating chase behavior on Friday night, very excited when interacting with the pack.
Shadow is maintaining his status well and while Grizzer has been observed in a few tests of Shadow's dominance, he has also been observed willingly submitting to Shadow. Shadow takes it all in stride and as the temperatures have moderated, he's been spending a lot of time instigating social play behavior within the pack. He's very dynamic when he starts these bouts. He will toss pieces of birchbark in the air, display a few play bows, run full force toward another wolf, only to leap away at the last second. These behaviors are a good indication of his confidence and overall compatibility with this pack. His video this week shows him watching the other wolves from the top of the den and showing his confidence as he goes to greet the pack.
The text and video for the rest of the Exhibit Pack logs is all the same, when the temperatures increase, the wolves become less active. It has been a bit of a challenge to give visitors a good sighting of the wolves when daytime temperatures have increased over 80 degrees on a regular basis. The wolf care staff use a sprinkler system on both enclosures to decrease the ambient air temperature by several degrees. The wolves are also called down to the front of the exhibit 3 times a day to draw them into the sprinkler and get a physical check on them. The videos this week for Maya, Grizzer, Malik and Shadow all show a typical summer day for wolves, stay cool by finding a good piece of cool dirt in the shade.
Shadow has been very responsive to wolf care staff and daily checks lately. His behavioral patterns are clearly influenced by the activity in the wolf yard. The Behind the Scenes programs ended on August 15th, and it’s like a whole new wolf has emerged. His confidence is increased and his social interactions with the pack have increased dramatically. This could also be timed with the end of the summer heat, but we are taking all precautions to make sure we don’t do anything to upset the balance of this pack prior to pups arrival. For the Spring Working for Wolves, we’ve changed from open registration to an application process to ensure that we have people with prior experience around the wolf yard in the weeks prior to the pup’s arrival. In Shadow’s case, it’s not just prior experience, its prior positive experience. I know for some people it’s hard to understand why we have such standards for programming, such as prerequisites for the nanny program, applications for a working for wolves program, but the reality for us in wolf care, is that we have to keep pack compatibility prior to the pups arrival and during the pup socialization process. The wolves have to come first, and one thing we have learned when working with wolves for nearly 20 years at the Center is that wolves have a lasting effect from a negative experience. Please bear with us as this exciting time of pups arrive, we will try to accommodate everyone’s wish to be involved in the process, but we will always do what’s best for the wolves.
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.