At the Oregon Zoo the wolves live right next to and in view of the elk...normally a recipe for trouble. Thanks to a fence, though, predators and prey live together peacefully.
Because all of the wolves were hand-raised, they interact with visitors who overlook their huge and naturally furnished exhibit.
The Zoo has had wolves on exhibit since June 1995, when it acquired their first three wolf pups. All three since died of old age. The Zoo has "brought back the
howl" in 2008 when they acquired two grey wolves from the Minnesota Zoo. One year later Kenai, the black male joined them and the pack is now complete:
Photo by Michael Durham, © Oregon Zoo |
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Cheyenne
- Female — 9 years old
- Color: grayish-white
- Very calm and relaxed
- Likes hiding her food
- Is very methodical when searching for hidden treats
- Lived in a pack for most of her life which shows in her behavior: She likes to roll in different scents in order to communicate to the rest of the pack
where she has found
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Photo by Michael Durham, © Oregon Zoo |
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Yazhi (Navajo for "little one")
- Female — 2 years old
- Color: black and brown marked
- She has a lot of energy and loves playing with Kenai
- Yazhi is very dominant
- Every morning she practices her howling
- Gets frenzy when treats are hidden but it keeps her busy for quite a long time
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Photo by Michael Durham, © Oregon Zoo |
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Kenai
- Male — 10 months old
- Color: black
- Youngest but tallest wolf in the pack
- Due to his age he still plays a lot and animates Yazhi to join him
- Kenai is very gentle and charming
- He is very attached to his keepers and still a little scared of people he doesn't know
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