Unfortunately, our website platform changed and some of our additions didn’t go through, so we are going to recap what’s been going on at the Preserve.
Like in the rest of the world, the year 2020 started out good, but quickly turned bad. As with most businesses, we had to shut down and were out of business for quite a while due to the pandemic. As it is just Becky and I, we fortunately didn’t have to lay off employees or come up with payroll- we just didn’t take a paycheck for quite a while. We were tasked with coming up with the funding for animal food, care and our normal business bills. Luckily, we are truly blessed with an amazing following of supporters from around the world who were more than happy to help. The moment we posted things were getting a little tough, donations came in to keep us afloat and the animals were taken care of.
Mid-year 2020, we were able to reopen to visitors, and I think the animals were happy to see people again. The summer was hot and the new pups Abby and Ianna were growing like weeds. They were a great addition to the preserve. Our big boy Teton was having a little difficulty chewing so we took him in to see Dr Leal. Turns out he had a bad tooth and required some dental work (yes even the wolves have to visit the dentist!). He recovered fine and is a happy boy again.
Fall 2020, our little silver fox Jasper was not feeling well and a trip to the Dr found he had a cancerous tumor in this colon. Some of the Drs didn’t give him much hope, but we decided to try surgery and see how he did. He did great and the Surgeon thought that he had gotten it all and he made a great recovery. Winter came in fast and never left. There was snow on the ground by mid-November and it didn’t melt until spring. It did help with the photo sessions, as many photogs visited for some great photography of the wolves. The Tamron lens company hosted many workshops at the preserve. Unfortunately, when February hit, we had record snow fall totaling over 2 feet of accumulation. For the first time in 24 years, I had to buy more fencing and in the middle of winter, start a fencing project to make the wolves containment fencing higher so they could not get out. It also caused us to be closed for over a month. We made it through the winter without any major damage, so we were very relieved.
Spring of 2021 arrived and we welcomed a new addition to the preserve. Our little rescue fox Boo the albino red fox was supposed to be introduced to Ella and Jasper, but Jasper would not share his girl with him, so we had to build a new enclosure for little Boo. We never leave anyone alone here, so Becky searched for a companion for him. We were contacted by an animal rehabber that had a female red fox that had been hit by a car who was not releasable. We contacted the state and were given permission to take her in. Now Boo had a new girlfriend and would not be alone. Becky named her Hallie and she is very beautiful!
As Spring arrived, the new pups Abby and Ianna started reaching maturity and sadly were getting very aggressive with the adults. After a few fights and a lot of consideration, the decision was made to move Tikaani and Kayla to a new enclosure with a new roommate, Timber wolf River, who was also getting picked on by Teton. Those 3 are now getting along fine and are very happy not to have young ones picking on them or stealing their food! We call their enclosure the 55+ community, where they can live out their lives peacefully. The summer was hot, and the wolves cooled under the trees and played in their ponds. Becky bought a kiddie pool and filled it for Sienna and Logan, the bobcat and Lynx, and they had a blast playing in the water.
Little Sassa turned 4yrs old and is doing wonderful. The Drs said she would not live past 8 months old, and boy, has she proven them wrong! One issue she has from her problems is her nails don’t grow correctly and she has to visit the Dr twice a year to have a manicure done.
August 20201, we took a blow when our 14yr old Artic wolf Orion was having some difficulty during a very hot few days. We took him to the Dr and while there, he passed away. His blood levels showed high elevations in many areas, which they told us was from an underlying problem that excessive heat just made worse. It was frustrating that we didn’t have a definite answer as to what happened, but we do have to take into consideration that he was 14yrs old and lived a long, happy life.
Sept 2021 we prepared for an other hurricane to hit our area and after the devastation of hurricane Sandy, we were quite worried. We made it through without a lot of damage and with the help of our volunteers, Alyssa and Al, we cleaned up and made repairs in no time. Another problem we faced and continue to face is the ongoing problem of invasive bugs killing trees. Much of the land the enclosures are on is old growth and do not handle the boring beetles and gypsy moth defoliation well. We are constantly having to cut down dead trees before they fall on our fencing.
Oct 2021 was another difficult month, as little Jasper (only about 1 year from his surgery) was not feeling well again. After being checked out, we found out his cancer had returned. We tried everything we could to treat the little guy but, in the end, it had metastasized into his liver and there was nothing we could do. The most difficult decision was made to help him along and we had to say goodbye. His girl Ella is now alone, and the hunt is on to find her another companion.
We now just hit 2022, and boy has time flown by. We are back into the winter and just as it was 1 year ago, we are closed again due to severe ice and snow at the preserve.
Hoping spring gets here fast and we can continue tours for our amazing supporters!!!!