Wolf Run: Impressions From My First Visit

On October 10th I visited Wolf Run for the first time along with some of my classmates.  The experience was truly one of a kind.

After arriving, we were given a tour of Wolf Run. The facility is much larger than I expected.  We were shown many different enclosures, each housing several animals.  The worker that gave us the tour, Kara, was very knowledgeable about the animals, and told us all about their personalities and where each animal came from. The highlight of the tour for me was meeting Nayelli, the refuge's most personable wolf dog. She rolled around and was extremely friendly with us. I was impressed to learn that Nayelli has starred in music videos and ads for a clothing line!

Our group with Nayelli.

I also liked meeting the cats that live at the refuge!

After our tour, we got to work cleaning out the "monkey house." The name is slightly misleading, as no monkeys actually live in the house anymore, only a couple dogs.  The house was filthy, infested with spiders, and smelled terrible. We were assigned to move everything out, clean, and move it back in. This seemed like a daunting task, but after about an hour of work I could really start to see things coming together. At the end of our project we were all impressed with what we had accomplished. The house looked great, and we had really made a difference. The house is now a cleaner place for animals to live in, and it will now be much easier for workers to find supplies.

Part of the monkey house after reorganizing. 

After this experience, I am looking forward to returning to Wolf Run. This organization is truly making a real difference in the lives of the animals residing there and I'm excited to help them.

My First Steps Into the Wild

After getting in touch with the volunteer coordinator and scheduling a time, I was finally able to go to Wolf Run Wildlife Refuge and volunteer for the first time! I am so thankful that I was able to visit and help such an amazing organization. After reading and researching some of their background, I thought I had an idea of what to expect, but Wolf Run was completely different from what I thought that it would be like! It was much larger, with many more animals than I expected. I expected a large, corporate-type business, but instead was met with the homey comfort of a caring staff and devoted owner. Every person who was at Wolf Run wanted to be there. The level of care and compassion in these volunteers and staff members is beyond that of many other organizations. Because Wolf Run is non-profit, none of these staff receive payment for their services. It relies solely on volunteers, making these people extremely important to the organization.

The entire blogging staff of Into the Wild at Wolf Run visited the Refuge together, many of us for the first time. The first thing that we did when we got there was go on a tour of the entire property. We were introduced to all of the animals! There were bobcats and wolf-dogs and deer (Oh My!), along with raccoons, cats, coyotes, and a very mischievous goat. I even got to pet, play with, and snuggle some of the wolf-dogs, which really helped me to get the animal fix I have been missing. After we all got a chance to love on some of these wonderful animals, it was time to get down and dirty…literally.

Wolf-dogs playing in the yearling enclosure.

We were tasked with the glamorous job of cleaning out “The Monkey Shed,” deemed such as it used to hold rescued monkeys. Nowadays it is what looks like the food storage shed of a monkey enthusiast. Completely decorated with monkey décor, the shed was crawling with spiders. They infested every corner, and terrifyingly enough were even falling from the ceiling. We removed everything from the shed, wiped and hosed it off, and sprayed out the inside of the shed. I even had the brown-tinged tile looking white again…that is until everyone had to move everything back inside in their muddy boots. By the time we were finished, the shed looked like a place that someone could run the business out of rather than a monkey fanatics feed shed and secret hoarding stash. While I am sure that we all would have preferred to stay and love on the animals for our entire visit, we really made a difference at Wolf Run that day. Every time that the staff needs to go into the shed, they can get what they need more easily with the newly organized and cleaned environment. This seemingly small action will impact the everyday lives of the volunteers, allowing them to give the animals the best care possible. 

First Visit Into the Wild

On October 10th, my fellow Wolf Run volunteers and I went to the refuge for the first time.  Before this trip, Mikayla and I had attended an orientation day to tour the property.  Naturally, I went in expecting to see amazing wolves, big-cats, and other rare wildlife.  Even better, however, we actually ended up getting to interact and touch the animals.

This is me petting Nayelli on my
Orientation trip to the refuge.

Hannah, Celia, Kenzie, Mikayla, and I petting
Nayelli in the yearling cage.

Sweet Nayelli looking up the camera while being pet.

                                                               







As you can probably tell from these photos, this particular wolf, Nayelli, is very social. In fact, Nayelli literally melted at our feet when we started to pet her.  She and the other wolves in her cage are all very comfortable with people.  Another interesting fact that I learned about Nayelli is that she loves to be in front of the camera.  Staff member Kara, who raised Nayelli from a puppy, said that Nayelli has starred in a few country music videos and is even the mascot of an online clothing line.  Nayelli's modeling even goes on to raise money for the refuge.

Above we have the star herself, posing for the camera.  This picture was taken when our went into the yearling cage.  Nayelli was the first to approach and, of course, the last to hang around.

Here we have one of four farm cats
on the refuge, Twisty.

In addition to the wolves, we also got to meet to the refuge's chunky raccoon, beautiful deer herd, fierce bob-cats, and quirky farm cats.  Every animal is as equally important and special in the eyes of the staff, and I greatly respect the love that they have for each one.

After visiting all of the animals, we also had the large task of cleaning the refuge's "monkey house".  This shed used to house refuge monkeys, hence the name, and has since been used for food and supply storage.

The "monkey house" was extremely dirty and spider infested to say the least.  As a group, however, we were able to conquer all spiders, both large and small, and eventually clean the shed.  Overall, it probably took around two hours to completely empty the shed, clean everything off, and then neatly place it back in the proper location.

At the end of the day, we may have only cleaned a small shed on such a large piece of property, but we still made a difference in the eyes of the staff members.  By doing such a tedious job, we gave the staff members more time to work with the animals and give them the care that they may need.  We also made it much easier to get to specific supplies and tools.  If even in one instance we made it easier for the staff to care for the animals, our work was well worth it.  I definitely cannot wait to volunteer again and help such a noble cause.

A Peculiarly Obsessive Predisposition

                It was a bright, cloudy day...if that makes sense. The sun blinded us despite the fact that it was hidden behind a thin layer of clouds hanging low in the sky. My fellow blogger Hannah shut off her car, and Hannah, our fellow blogger Celia, and I stepped out into the chilling air after a 30-minute drive from campus. Hesitantly, we stepped toward the gate, embarking on our first journey as actual workers at the Wolf Run Wildlife Refuge.

                Joining up with our fellow bloggers Katie and Kenzie, we started off our day with a tour of the facility. (Groups that work together stay together.) We made our way up the gravel pathway, ooh-ing at the wildcats, aah-ing at the fat raccoon, and completely obsessing over the cutest and friendliest wolf you could ever meet.

Nayeli smiles up at the camera while getting a

belly rub. Nayeli is a wolf dog that often visits 

local schools and businesses to represent the 

Refuge.

                Then I came to a conclusion: the cuteness was an obsession. I reached the point where I was practically treating the animals as human beings. I talked to the farm cats as they walked by. I showed everyone in my Monday morning classes the animal pictures on my phone as if the animals were my own children. I cooed at the deer more than my two-year-old nephew.

Bob the wildcat looks out at his visitors through 

 the blades of grass surrounding his pen. 

                Now, I am not saying that this obsession is particularly bad. I am saying that when the tour ended, when we reached the end of that gravel trail beside the pen full of cute wolf dogs, when the leaders at the Refuge asked us to clean out the "monkey barn," we stepped up to the challenge. Despite our fascination with the animals in their surrounding pens, we drug those heavy items out of the shed, we wiped off the spider-infested desks and cages, we organized, we mopped. We got that thing clean.

                The point is that we got down to the reason of our visit to the Refuge. Yes, the animals were cute...extremely cute, but seeing them was not the reason for our visit. The reason for our visit was to help, to make a difference for a cause in our community that we truly believe in. We weren't just cleaning out a barn as a side job just so we could pet the wolf dogs some more. We were cleaning out a barn that a newly-admitted dog called his home. To that dog, to the workers who use that facility every day, we were making a difference.

                For that, I am ecstatic for my next visit to the Wolf Run Wildlife Refuge with my fellow bloggers.

An Eye-Opening Experience

Me carrying around one of the cats at Wolf Run

A few weeks ago, I had my first official day as a Wolf Run volunteer! All of the animals were completely awe inspiring, but of course I was obsessed with the cats. 

Our mission for the day was to clean out one of the small storage buildings and reorganize it. It was muddy, it was cold, and there were lots of spiders, but at the end of our 2 hours of manual labor, we had managed to make the room look 1,000 times better than when we had arrived. We even did some slight interior decorating.

Wolf Run volunteers loving on Nayelli, a wolf hybrid

Sometimes while doing service I contemplate if what I am doing is actually making a difference at all. I mean, how is tidying up a little bit going to help these animals? But by doing these seemingly small, and sometimes tedious tasks, we free the time of Wolf Run's hard-working hands and allow them to give the absolute best care to these animals who desperately need them.