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.