Months after losing leg, wolf roaming fringes of Algonquin Park
Parry Sound North Star
When it was discovered, caught in a snare, each attempt to escape pushing the dull wire further and further into the soft flesh of his leg, and saved by a caring passerby, Aspen Valley Wildlife Sanctuary weren’t sure if the wolf ensnared in a trap line would survive.
The snare had cut right through to the bone, so it was pretty severely injured and in shock. Local residents were out cross-country skiing and found the wolf in the Almaguin region in January.
A veterinarian determined the wolf had likely been caught in the snare for between 48 and 72 hours.
The examining veterinarian determined the leg could not be saved, and amputated.
The wolf spent the rest of the winter indoors, to avoid the risk of frostbite on the recently shaved and sutured stump. Once the weather warmed, the wolf moved to an outdoor enclosure, regaining strength in preparation for a release back to the wild.
There are examples of three-legged animals spotted in the wild, but the results of the release of a three-legged rehabbed wild animal would prove the value of reintroducing them into the wild. To gauge the success of this wolf’s release, Aspen received assistance on the cost of an expensive electronic collar that would send regular GPS coordinates to a computer miles away.
The release was an exciting event. The wolf was briefly tranquilized to take blood samples and fit the collar. As the wolf awoke, staff drove it to a northern release point, not too far away from its original territory, but away from the trap line that caused so much damage.
It’s been about two weeks since the wolf’s release. With just two weeks of data, we know the wolf has been capable of moving as far and as quickly as any wild four-legged wolf, at times travelling as much as 17 kilometers a day – moving north along Algonquin Park’s boundaries. A staff member is also regularly going out, by foot, paddle and even by air, studying the territory the wolf passes through and spends time in as indicated by the satellite information.
We hope to determine the survival rate of a wild wolf that has not only been rehabilitated, but released after a leg amputation. The data collected could help decide the fate wolves and other wild animals brought into wildlife rehabilitation centres in Ontario and beyond.