The Alaska 9 (otherwise known as the brats!)

Things have been very stressful around the Alaska 9. They are coming of age and unfortunately had to be split up. We knew this was a possibility and were fighting against the odds trying to keep them together. The lack of parental guidance and strong alpha leadership in their formative months finally prevailed. Ginger, Billy and Sita formed their own subgroup and they are the ones that have been moved to a different enclosure. Oakley, Torq, Bruja, Banshee, Falcon and Kweo are still in the newly built enclosure. The good news is they have all been spayed and neutered.  No one was permanently injured and they are all doing well. 

It has been a very physical and stressful time for Paula and she absolutely could not have made it without the volunteers going the extra mile and helping during this time of crisis. Bayfield Animal Hospital was amazing, coming to the refuge to help and accepting animals when we could catch them and get them there. Having 2 wolves at the same time in your recovery room is not an experience all vets are willing to deal with!  The volunteers worked in the cold and mud, building holding pens, catching wolves, helping with transportation, care taking while they came out of sedation and even removing stitches. Watching the wolves get reunited and seeing their relief and joy was a heartfelt experience for us all. A special thanks goes out to Ben, the pack's "other brother," who came down from Denver for 10 days to help with the pack. He made such a huge difference to all of us, and the wolves were overjoyed to see him and immediately felt safer because he was here.

Now some new decisions have to be made. Our original plan, if we had to split the pack, was to divide their big enclosure up.  But, the six require all that space in the new enclosure and a common fence line is not an option due to the rivalries. We certainly were not planning on another large fence project this year, but it may be necessary. The three's enclosure is almost large enough, but it is one of our original pens, 11 years old, and the terrain is very boring. 

We will keep you posted on the continuing drama that is the norm in a large group of teenagers!  For now we are grateful they are settled and healthy and doing well.