What is involved in socializing the pups and why do it?
Socializing wolf pups involves a spending a large amount of time with them early in the socialization period, with the time scaled back gradually when the pups are older. We plan 24-hour-a-day staffing, including a nanny program, in which people help care for the pups during the first few weeks when they may be bottle fed every three to four hours and need stimulation to help defecate and urinate. Later, wolf care staff and nannies will rotate two eight-hour shifts daily (16 hour total coverage) to assist with pup care and programming needs. We socialize the wolf pups so they feel more relaxed in their enclosure, can be examined for injuries, handled and medicated as needed. • How difficult is it to raise wolf pups? Raising a wolf pup is more challenging than caring for a dog pup, since wolves don’t instinctively accept humans, and can be very skittish of new or unusual things in their environment. They are also vulnerable to adverse temperatures and disease. They must be socialized to
