A pair of four month old wolf hybrid puppies were abandoned in Prospect Connecticut, the Prospect Police Department says, prompting an investigation into their origin and owners.
Local testing found the pups had a pure wolf father, police told reporters, and that the animals displayed behaviors and growth patterns unlike typical domestic dogs.
The animals were named Spartacus and Barnaby and were transferred to Howling Woods, a New Jersey wildlife sanctuary, where staff will provide specialized care and space to roam, the sanctuary said.
Jenny Dixon of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Wildlife Division said the animals require different exercise and training needs than average dogs, and Desmond's Army Animal Law Advocates representative Zilla Cannamela described the hybrids as having strong prey drives and needing room to run.
The Prospect Police Department is seeking the person or people who abandoned the pups and is tracing how the animals entered Connecticut, where wolf bred animals are illegal to keep in homes, authorities said.
In a separate park incident, Yellowstone Forever technician Taylor Rabe captured a clip of a black collared wolf pup removing and chewing a National Park Service grizzly warning sign near the Junction Butte pack's den area.
Rabe said the pup, one of six yearlings in the Junction Butte pack, left the road to rejoin pack members and became distracted by the sign, which bear managers had posted near a carcass site.
Regional Population Surveys And Management Responses
A regional survey reported a minimum of 270 wolves in Washington, a 17.4 percent increase from the previous annual count, with 49 packs and 23 successful breeding pairs, as stated in the state annual report.
The Washington report said six new packs formed or reestablished and that most wolves remain in North Cascades and Eastern Recovery Zones, with territory sizes varying by region, the agency said.
Washington managers recorded 28 wolf deaths, including 12 taken by tribal hunters and four removed by state wildlife officials, and the report listed depredations that killed eight calves and injured eight more.
Oregon reported growth from a minimum of 204 to 230 wolves and at least 30 packs, with 23 breeding pairs, bringing the two state total to at least 500 wolves, the Oregon report noted.
Oregon documented 42 wolf deaths, 39 caused by humans, and a spike in confirmed livestock attacks to 106, including 77 calves killed, the agency reported.
The two states said managers spend on a range of measures, with Washington reporting two million dollars for wolf management including funds for lethal removals, range riders, nonlethal measures, and livestock loss claims.
Commissioners and conservation officials quoted in the reports described the numbers as evidence of recovery progress and said continued investments are needed to help ranchers adapt to increasing wolf activity.
