Wolf Is My Soul   Odds and ends ~ My Life

Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park is one of Alberta’s newest provincial parks. Located along the north shore of the Bow River between Calgary and Cochrane, it consists of more than 1,300 hectares of foothills parkland. The park is managed through a formal partnership with the Glenbow Ranch Park Foundation. It:

• preserves and protects significant natural features, including endangered ecosystems and rare species; and
• provides a unique opportunity to showcase the rich history of ranching and historic Glenbow townsite.

To protect natural landscapes and historical features, some areas of the park are closed to the public. Closed areas are clearly marked by signs and/or fences. Visitors are asked to obey all posted signs and notices.

The Yamnuska Wolfdog Sanctuary Mission

Yamnuska Wolfdog Sanctuary is a non-profit organization located east of the Rocky Mountains near Cochrane, Alberta. We are situated on 160 acres of land with a current pack of 5 resident wolfdogs plus various adoptable wolfdogs.

We are dedicated to providing educational programs regarding wolves and wolfdogs in order to foster a greater understanding of the importance of preserving wild wolves in the natural environment, as well as promoting responsible wolfdog ownership. We are also dedicated to providing rescue and safe sanctuary to wolfdogs that have been neglected, abandoned, or otherwise displaced.

The Pack

At Yamnuska Wolfdog Sanctuary we believe that all animals should be part of “the family” and as a result, all our wolfdogs and rescues are treated as such. They are welcome to come inside the house, sleep on the furniture, and enjoy all the luxuries of being a family pet. We strongly believe that no domestic animal, whether part wolf or not, should have to live out their lives in an enclosure. We encourage all our wolfdogs and rescue animals to be active members of the family, and thus enjoy the benefits that come with being part of a human pack. We strive to give all members of our pack as much freedom as possible and as a result, our animals enjoy off-leash hikes every day.

NOVA

Nova was born April 21, 2012 at a breeding facility in the Unites States. He came to YWS to be the organization’s ambassador wolfdog to help us further our educational programs. Nova’s primary role will be to help us educate the public about wolves and wolfdogs so that these wonderful animals will no longer be misunderstood. Nova is a very sweet boy with a lot of personality. Some of his favourite things to do is chew on his toy sheep and get some belly rubs from both the human and canine pack members. We look forward to watching Nova grow into the amazing wolfdog we know he will be.

KUNA

Kuna was born May 15, 2009 at a private wolf facility in Saskatchewan. She came to be part of the family as an 11-week-old puppy when her previous owners felt she was too difficult to handle. Kuna is a very smart, independent, but very stubborn wolfdog. She has an amazing ability to communicate to us exactly what she wants, whether it is another raw meat patty or some extra love and attention. When she isn’t outside playing with the other dogs or getting herself into trouble, she loves to come inside and cuddle with a human pack member on the couch.

ZEUS

Zeus was born April 23, 2010 and is a half sibling to Kuna. He came to Yamnuska Wolfdog Sanctuary in June 2011 at a year old after his owner was no longer able to provide the proper care and containment for him to be happy and safe. Zeus is a very sweet and loving boy and is learning to be more comfortable in the house every week. He loves nothing more than going for walks to the Bow River so that he can have his daily swim or sleeping in the sunshine with Kuna.

SKOOKUM

Skookum is our resident malamute who helps us teach visitors the differences between a wolfdog and a regular dog like a malamute. He was born May 3, 2010 and has been a part of our pack since he was just 7 weeks old. He is always a fan favourite as he always gives everyone a very warm welcome. Skookum is always a happy, goofy guy and along with Kuna, completes the alpha pair.

PIKA

Pika came to YWS in February of 2010 as a rescue. She was found at the Morley dump with a very badly deformed leg, and was obviously suffering from malnutrition. She started out as a foster but because we completely fell in love with her and  had formed quite the friendship with Kuna, we decided to keep this little girl. This girl holds her own around the big dogs, and there have been several times we’ve seen her run down Kuna or Zeus, grab them by the neck, and wrestle them down to the ground and pin them. Pika plays an integral role in our sanctuary as she helps to socialize the rescued wolfdogs to small dogs like her. She is a trooper with an amazing spirit!

RASPBERRY

Raspberry is another rescue that came to YWS from the Morley dump in February 2010. We found Raspberry roaming around the dump with her sister looking for food. It was clear to us that this girl was completely feral after having caught her in a dog trap and bringing her home. For 3 months we worked with her in an outside enclosure hoping she’d let us touch her. Once we were able to slip a collar on her and take her for pack walks with us, she came around very quickly. Because Raspberry went through such a major rehabilitation and we had her for such a long time, we could not bear to part ways with her. Today, she is still a permanent member of the pack and has come such a long way. She inspires us to continually work with animals that are terrified of human contact, because with time and lots of patience, we know these animals can come around.

HOPE

Hope has been a part of our family for over 10 years now! She was Georgina’s very first rescued dog! Hope was found wandering around as a puppy in July 2001. She has been through so much with us and had one of the most difficult jobs a dog could ever have: raising Kuna! It seems no matter what we throw at her, she takes it all in stride. She is stuck to us like glue, and is probably one of the most loyal and appreciative dogs we’ve ever had. She is definitely starting to slow down, but we are hoping she will stick around for as long as she possibly can.

---

From Numinous Experience on July 22, 2015 by J Skaarup

Yukon – Low-content wolfdog

Arrow – German Shepherd

Nova – male, high-content wolfdog

Nova and Zeus – male, high-content wolfdogs

Zeus – Alpha male, high-content wolfdog

Rue – 4 month high-content wolfdog puppy

Rue wouldn’t drop her eye to eye gaze when taking a treat

Kaida – female high-content wolfdog

Nova and Kaida playing at the tree line

3/5 of the pack

Kuna – female high-content wolfdog

Shadow – Male low-content wolfdog. One of 201 dogs rescued from Milk River.

Loki – Male low-content wolfdog