![“In the Native American culture, the wolf is a sacred animal and part of our clan system also,” Sandy Lake Band of Mississippi Chippewa Chairwoman Sandy Skinaway told Martha Fast Horse on her radio show in November, when the hunt was still active. “I believe the wolf is our relative … [it] is a clan animal.”](https://protectthewolves.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/baywolfpups.jpeg)
Its Very Exciting to See A Wolf Park that is doing well!
KINGSPORT — The new wolf pups at Bays Mountain Park are growing up fast. In fact, to the average visitor, the 10-month-old wolves probably look just like any other wolf in the habitat.
Last year, the park added four gray wolf pups to its habitat — two males and two females, bringing the total number of wolves at Bays Mountain Park to seven. This week, all of the wolf pups will be 10 months old with the largest weighing in at about 100 pounds.
Park naturalist Rhonda Goins said to the average person, the pups look fully grown.
“Unalii is the biggest one and he’s humongous. The tunnels they run through are three foot tall and he has to duck. His back just about touches it and he’s probably six foot long,” Goins said. “(The pups) will add muscle mass, and they might not get any taller, but they’ll get bigger.”
Age-wise, the pups would be considered “tweens” by human standards, Goins said.
Bays Mountain Park’s wolf program first began in 1992 with the arrival of three 6-month-old pups and additional wolves were added in 1995, 2004 and 2007. Ideally, the park likes to keep somewhere around 10 wolves in its habitat at any given time, a good mix of older and younger pups in order to maintain a good, pack dynamic.
via Bays Mountain reports newest wolf pups are healthiest yet | Kingsport Times-News.