Sara Natividad
snatividad@mustangdaily.net
Members of Poly Paws and other student volunteers explored the wolves and hybrids of the Wolf Habitat and Rescue (WHAR) facility Sunday, donating their money and time to the foundation.
The visit included a tour of the different wolf enclosures where students were allowed to touch a few of the “social” wolves and help clean up the wolf memorial site.
As Kris Krutsinger led the group toward the center of the wolf facility during the event, a man walked toward them with a large wolf named Lucian. The male hybrid — a dog/wolf mix — seemed pleased to be let out of his confinement, but his mate, Lily, howled with disappointment.
Lily is a “hands off” hybrid, which means the trainers do not touch her at all. She’s a stubborn dog who has been difficult to manipulate and communicate with from the very beginning, according to the trainers. She only has a small amount of wolf in her, but she channels her wild dog spirit. Lily is a perfect example of how wild hybrids can be and how important it is that they are provided with the proper environment and care, they said.
“She was a great challenge and learning experience because we can’t touch her, ever,” said Krutsinger, who is the CEO of WHAR. “In the end, Lily taught us as much, if not more, than we taught her.”
Lily is just one of the wolves in WHAR that needed the training and habitat WHAR provides. There are currently 13 canines in the facility, and the facility is preparing for the arrival of another hybrid in a week, Krutsinger said. Some canines have made far advances in their training and are social enough to be put up for adoption, but others like Lily will spend the rest of their lives in the facility.
The establishment takes in canines that have either been abandoned or whose owners could no longer take care of them. They do not breed because there are already so many without proper homes, Krutsinger said.
Although the canines are all fixed, the trainers try to pair them together. Wolves need companionship and the trainers try to find the canine at least a buddy, if not a mate. The attachment the mates have for each other was evident when Lily saw Lucian being walked back to her pen, stopped her ferocious barking, and excitedly wagged her tail as she greeted him.
The “poster” hybrid for the program is Cherokee, whose luscious fur and calm demeanor makes him the ideal candidate for photographers. Cherokee lost his male mate a year and a half ago and has not bonded with any other canine since.
“Yes, I did say male,” Krutsinger said. “We liked to call him our West Hollywood wolf because he’s about as gay as they get.”
After the students learned the unique stories of each canine, the group posed with the Alpha male, Shiloh. The trainer used various hand signals to calm the wolf, lead him to a picnic table and jump on top of the table so that the students were able to gather around him for a picture.
When Shiloh was finally situated on the table, the trainer fed him treats and continued to do so when he obeyed the commands.
The most important part in training is to make sure not to lie to them, Krutsinger said. If a promise is made, as in a reward is given for a particular action, it is crucial that a reward is given for this action every time.
Director Coordinator for Student Community Service Diane Twitchell said her favorite aspect of WHAR is the education the organization provides for the proper care and ownership of wolves and wolf hybrids.
“I think we all learned that having a wolf or wolf-hybrid as a pet is not easy, and they are a huge responsibility,” Twitchell said. “Just because they are cute and fluffy doesn’t mean they act just like a golden retriever.”
After the students ate lunch, they helped plant flowers around the graves of the deceased wolves and clean up the memorial site.
“It felt great to be able to help fix up the memorial for some of WHAR’s favorite wolves,” Twitchell said. “I could tell that our work was really appreciated and it meant a lot to them.”
One of the graves was the owner’s daughter’s dog that passed away, agricultural systems management junior Susie Parrish said.
After the group finished the memorial, mixed tears of joy and longing poured out of her eyes.
“It was really touching seeing how we can make a difference by doing something small,” Parrish said. “I encourage people to volunteer in any way. The smallest action can be very rewarding.”