"The walls and furnishings were adorned with Wolf, Malamute and Husky pictures. Cats also arrived in numbers to greet me like a long lost friend. ."

Wolf Park

One cold and frosty morning while I was trotting across the open field at Wolf Park, I could see to my left the Bison slowly munching away on the grass that now looked a little lifeless in the late Autumn sun. My attention was drawn by the sound of an entourage of children who were enthusiastically following Jill Moore like the Pied Piper of Hamlyn. She was busy imparting information about wolves and pet dogs. The children had just visited the wolf enclosures and I could see the uncontrolled excitement on their frozen faces as they were making comparisons between their own pet dogs and the wild wolves. Chatter included "That wolf was cleaning himself just like my spaniel" and "They seemed so friendly just like Bosco my Boxer." The comparisons continued as the children had just experienced a touch of the wild, tamed, but not domesticated.
Meantime, the lake wolf pack was mingling in the rays of a weak sun and some sat while others just stood gazing at the children through the fence. The Alpha Male wolf, Orca, stood magnificently surveying his subordinates in the same way that my friends four miniature dachshunds behave - Bo Bo the Alfa Dachshund also surveys his pack in his living room. Bo Bo may be little with very short legs but he feels no less a wolf and leader than Orca.
Jill's home is a large single story building, typically American, dressed with white clapper board, but what is clearly not typical is the large ensemble of pets which appear to be around in every nook and cranny. The land outside was divided into large dog enclosures with a couple of Huskies in one pen and other Northern Spitz breeds in others, and this was all set in flat mid West Corn country. The adjacent field was packed with a large corn crop ready for harvesting, broken up in all directions by pockets of autumnal trees. The temperature was below freezing and this appeared to be appreciated by the suitably coated Spitz breeds.
As I entered the house, I was met by a six month old Malamute bitch who had a most beautiful temperament. The walls and furnishings were adorned with Wolf, Malamute and Husky pictures. Cats also arrived in numbers to greet me like a long lost friend.
All told, there were five Huskies, three Malamutes and two Canadian Inuit Dogs ( or Eskimo Dogs) , five cats and Tonka a Wolf Hybrid. Jill shares the house with Monty the park's official wild life photographer who is, no doubt, one of the worlds top animal photographers. He was responsible for the walled gallery of photographs of canines, wild and domesticated, in the house.
Dog trials & Shows
Many people would genuinely wonder and ask why educating children on the Wolf in captivity would help them understand their own pet or working dog. Well, I believe the answer is that the more information we learn about how wolves interact and communicate and see the world around them, the more dog owners understand their own dog's actions - whether a pet or a show dog. It is quite common at Breed Shows to see the odd altercation between dominant or less confident dogs and although most experienced handlers deal appropriately with this behaviour it is worth remembering that our dogs are simply reacting like Orca the Alpha Wolf. They are making sure that every other wolf in whatever colour, size or hair length knows who has arrived for the big day. The experienced show dog probably takes it all in its stride but the new show dog is using his wolf self preservation skills to dominate or be dominated and to effect an impression. Hence we see the little Yorkie growl and warn off the huge mastiff. The bodies may be different in size but the brain works in the same way.
When dogs assess each other as, for example, when a Beardie Collie tries to impress another breed with his body language and is ignored, he may then get grumpy or feel insulted. The other breed equally is looking for rank and status signs but these are masked by the overwhelming profusion of coat. Ear positioning be they flat or erect are messaging signs to the wolf - the show dog must be really confused when faced with a Spaniel who's ears are to say the least a touch un-wolf like. This is confusing for both parties and mistakes can then made. Wolves, of course, have no such obstacles to assessment. This is what makes me realise how much we have modified and tempered our dogs' minds through breeding.
Children & Dogs
Visiting schools far and near is part of Jill's routine and she explained to me that though the main thrust of her work is educating children about the North American Wolf she also answers the many questions the children ask about their own pet dogs. She covers safety and handling and describes how the dog's mind works and how domestic dogs evolved from the Wolf. She imparts her knowledge with great skill.
British children, unfortunately, do not get the opportunity to have such interesting lessons from hands on experts, which is a pity because the bite count on children in Britain would drop rapidly if our children had good information dogs in general and their own in particular.
Jill's typical talk would include a slide show with a lecture during which time many beautiful Wolf images are shown. The children's ages vary between five and 18 years of age and sometimes University Students. The Wolves at the park are given names so that the children can relate to them in the same way as they do their own pet dogs. The Wolves are tame but not domesticated and young children are not allowed inside the enclosures; however, they are encouraged to collect literature and take home special pictures of the Wolves.
The Canine Myths.
A part of the lesson includes folk tales which have over the centuries wrongly maligned the Wolf in its natural world. Nearly all these tales have originated from Europe and been encouraged and created by the various religious and farming communities in those countries and then exported to North America.
A common example is the Wolf in Little Red Riding Hood stories. Jill explains the fierce prejudices of the first European settlers in the USA and how that contributed to the wolf's demise. Her job also helps her explain to the children how they can misunderstand Wolf/Dog behaviour and she uses some of the excellent wolf pictures taken by Monty Sloan. One shows a close up of two wolves adjacent to each other, mouths agape, fangs on display. She asks the children what they see and usually, as expected, they see aggression with two wolves fighting or about to fight. In fact both wolves are friendly pack members who happen to be playing though displaying their weapons of offence in a benign way. There is no aggression at all. Children looking at a picture of a wolf showing all its teeth will express fear. Then Jill explains that they are playing, the children's perception might therefore alter. In the Park these lucky children can see wolves playing in the sunshine and generally being natural wolves. They can learn at first hand about order and rank and biological facts including wolf language, rituals and domestication and also how dogs have been developed to become domestic pets from wolves.
The same kind of misunderstanding can occur among too many people who have fixed stereotypical views on many pedigree breeds like Dobermans, Rottweilers and Bull Terriers to name but a few. Exaggerated stories by the press have maligned many breeds of dog unjustly and so the myths are perpetuated they are the modern little Red Riding hood breeds.
One man and his dog
Children who listen to Jill's talks learn important facts about their pet dogs as a result of the Wolf Park's Scientific Studies of the resident Wolves. Most children recognise the ubiquitous Border Collie. Jill explains what actually is happening as the Collie goes about his skilful way of work inherited from the Wolf. She explains that in a wolf the hunting pattern is in three stages. First, the wolf will stare and identify the prey. Second, they will stalk and possibly give chase and test bite. Thirdly, if they can, they will grab the prey animal, kill and eat it.
A well bred and trained Border Collie should firstly Give Eye (stare) and identify sheep (prey).
Secondly, they should rush towards and flock and they occasionally test nip their sheep "prey".
Thirdly, the final prey killing stage has been modified through selective breeding and training, becoming what is termed the loop back and begin again.
And the sheep are thus herded, as selected by man. I always wondered as a boy why so many sheepdogs bit the sheep on the rear when herding and often to the trainer's annoyance. Well, if you watch the wolves at Wolf Park chasing the Bison, they test nip or bite simply to observe the reaction of their quarry and assess the chances of a successful kill.
The children can now consider how the Wolf hunting repertoire is also in their dog. This will help them train their own dogs and if they see their pets pursuing other animals like the neighbour's cat they will also understand why it is chasing it in the first place. They can now take steps to redirect or teach their dog to fetch a toy ball or engage in some other safe chase/predatory game. In fact the child now knows that their own pet doesn't hate cats but is as helpless to control itself upon seeing a moving cat as they, the children, are at being offered chocolate but not being allowed to eat it. The fact that young children too often get bitten by dogs is because they too exhibit behavioural actions which to most dogs appear like prey. It is worth knowing that these sudden movements accompanied by screeching and excitable tension have triggered aggression in some pet dogs with disastrous results.
All this work is enthusiastically carried out by Jill with little financial reward but in the knowledge that her work and dedication help wolves, children and pet dogs live in greater harmony together.
Animal Artist Jill Moore
There appears no end to Jill's talents and she is also an accomplished artist. From the age of three she began drawing and painting following in the steps of her mother, who is also a painter. When I first arrived, I was gazing at all the wolf emblazoned sweat shirts in the park shop, many of which on closer inspection were obviously hand painted by Jill. Her paintings are on hanging plates, stones and calenders too. As the Wolf Park is a non profit making organisation, the money from the art sold is ploughed back into the centre.
Jill's paintings are sold world wide and she strongly believes that through these images she is helping to educate people in the knowledge that if the wolves' natural wilderness is preserved and man learns to live next to this beautiful animal we shall be preserving animals in the natural world which we all share.
The pet dog in all its breeds, shapes and form, can be found in millions of homes world wide. It out numbers the wolf greatly and is destined to increase in popularity as more countries enter the more affluent world and become wealthy enough to own the worlds' favourite and most trainable pet. Information about Jill's work is also available on the Internet as well as in the fact sheets produced by Wolf Park.
Many of the wolves at Wolf Park are adopted by people from every corner of the Globe. This valuable money is spent on the wolves and on research. If you feel that a beautiful wolf painting or picture should adorn your walls then contact Wolf Park for details.
Mushers.
On my last few days at Wolf Park the weather became even colder, the wind came down from Canada and Wolf Park changed from plain green to white overnight. This was the day I began interviewing Jill and discovered her other passion - Mushing - or to you and me sled dog racing. The land around Lafayette is flat and the light covering of snow awakened the innate behaviour of the northern breeds at Jill's home.
Wahosi a large female Alaskan Malamute
Monty's West Siberian Laika has many of the Malamute traits but, of course, is much smaller in size. She is beautiful and like all the dogs has an excellent temperament considering the general isolation of the house. The Siberian Huskies remind me of Hyenas with their excited chattering when they know something is about to happen.
At my behaviour centre in Hertfordshire I have seen and advised a number of clients against owning the Northern breeds even though I think they are incredibly attractive. They are for the novice dog owner more demanding to handle compared to other breeds. Huskies need experienced people, they are very strong characters and have energy levels which need to be controlled and satisfied. The males especially inherit very strong wolf like dominance and show it to other canines or people if the opportunity arises. I know there are the exceptions to the rule but my experiences direct me to caution and, moreover, respecting the breed's specific needs.
The Alaskan Malamute in its full splendour seems quite a match for the wolf in size and dignity and if I were to own a Northern breed again this is the breed I would like to train as a companion to my other dogs. Most of you know a bit about sledging but the interesting part of Jill & Monty's arrangement was the variety of dogs available. Jill went out that night with the dogs and had fun. It is a wonderful sight to see dogs bristling with energy ready for the off and the excitement generated all around adds to the occasion and these dogs at least are enjoying the moment as they whizz off into the dark night across the snow covered fields of Indiana.