Wolf Gallery

In my continuing effort to bring the wolves of Wolf Haven closer to others, I present you with some stills and videos of some of our friends.

Still Photos:

• Photo Gallery 1
• Photo Gallery 2

Digital Videos:

Still photos through the chainlink rarely show the wolves in their glory; video gives you a little bit better idea of who they each are. Most of these have the audio intact, which consists largely of me babbling at the wolves like puppies - sorry about that, but I can't help it! I don't really think about what I'm saying, I just want to talk to them. And I sound pretty silly at times. The audio may begin and end at odd spots, because I've edited most of these to cut down on the size. There are a couple that are really huge, though. There's also a lot of camera wobble, as I run back and forth, jump up and down, playing with them.

You will need a plug-in or media player such as QuickTime (which is free) to view these .mov files.

Audio Only:

• Howl at the Sanctuary (786 KB): While I was in the sanctuary late one fall afternoon, a nice howl got started. I managed to catch some of it, and you can hear how the wolves all have differing and distinct voices. The coyotes are also audible, with their yippy-yappy barky howls.

  Video & Audio:

• (12/8/02) Teka Howling (2396 KB): A short film of Teka howling, although she's a little hoarse and out of tune from howling all day. Her voice is much lower and rougher than usual, and her howl is shorter. Notice how she dances around a little bit; she frequently stamps all four feet, and almost loses her balance, because she gets so into her howling. I hope to be able to capture her true voice and passion at some point, but for the meantime...
• (12/8/02) Teka Howling and Listening (7719 KB): When wolves howl, they typically howl once, pause to listen for responses, and then howl again, depending upon what they hear, or don't hear. In this clip, you may be able to hear other wolves in the background; Teka is responding to them.
• Little John asking for scritches (5063 KB): When the wolves want some affection, they often ask for it by rubbing back and forth along the fences. They also rub to help themselves shed in the spring, and, I'd imagine, to scratch their sides.
• Princess playing (2643 KB): This is a quick movie showing how Princess likes to "hide" until noticed, and then springs out and "attacks," running back and forth along the fence. Shel'll run back and forth until she exhausts her prey, before finally going back and lying down; not bad for a 12-year-old!
• Longer Princess playing (24,348 KB): A longer version of Princess initiating play, with more running back and forth.
• Up close and personal with Little John (2968 KB): A few moments with LJ, his big feet, and his pretty eyes.
• Aurora and Akela after a nap (4068 KB): Two of our older, more reserved wolves.
• Our Bachelors, the California Boys (8705 KB): This was the first time I saw them this morning, and Cherokee came bounding up to say hello, which always makes me so happy. These guys were pretty slow to warm up to me, but one day, it was like a switch had been flipped and they just loved me. As soon as he hears my voice or catches my scent, Sequoia starts whining excitedly, and the other two enjoy our little romps, too.
• More Boys (11,733 KB): More playing with the boys, running back and forth, all of us wagging happily (fellow volunteer Jim pointed out that when I speak about happy wolf behavior, or talk to the wolves, I wag my tail, too - oy.) A lot of times when we play, they're so synchronized in their movements that they look choreographed - you can see a little bit of that here, although I admit it's a little difficult, because of all the camera motion.
• Marius (3069 KB): A quick view of Marius, currently in mourning for his departed Morning Star.
• Group area (3381 KB): The area where we hold our Howl-Ins, concerts, storytelling events, and educational displays. You can hear our large resident raven population a bit in the background. There's unfortunately a large white stripe from the sun in a bit of it.
• Teka showing her dominance over Wolfy (Very large! 32,735 KB): This is a long, but really good display of how Teka keeps Wolfy in line. Here, she isn't putting him down to the ground, or showing aggression; she's merely reminding him that she is the absolute Top Dog. You can hear some low growling, notice the raised fur on the back of her neck, erect tail, and body posture. Also notice, Wolfy doesn't really seem to mind very much; this is why they're a match made in heaven. :-)
• Short Teka Limping (3802 KB): A fairly quick view of Teka faking her limp.
• Quick shot of Teka & Wolfy sniffing something in the air. (3689 KB).
• Teka and Wolfy (5601 KB): Teka and Wolfy check in with each other before he returns to his nap, and she to her pacing.

There will likely be more in the future, stay tuned.