education
A Weekend at Wolf Park Breanna Norris attended a seminar at Wolf Park, Indiana last summer;
here, she reviews her experience interacting with and learning
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alongside the wolves, coyotes, bison and guinea pigs
Photo © Monty Sloan/Wolf Park
Animals at Wolf Park are trained to have no flight distance from humans
Photo © Monty Sloan/Wolf Park
Staff monitor body language carefully to ensure stress is kept to a minimum
Photo © Monty Sloan/Wolf Park
At the time of author Breanna Norris’s visit, Wolf Park was raising a litter of wolf pups
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f trainers were to have a mecca, I think it would be Wolf Park. For decades, trainers and scientists alike have been traveling from around the world to Wolf Park to learn about wolves, care of captive animals, socialization, management, ethology and behavior. Wolf Park is located in Battle Ground, Indiana, a 20-minute drive from Purdue University in West Lafayette. In 1972, founder Dr. Erich Klinghammer brought the first two wolves from the Brookfield Zoo in Illinois and began what soon became known as Wolf Park. Over the years. the staff have written and lectured extensively on the topics of behavior, ethology, wolves and animal care. Dr. Klinghammer passed away in 2011 but his legacy is kept alive through his work and staff. Each year, Wolf Park hosts one- and three-day seminars from spring to fall. Popular guest speakers include Beth Duman and Nicole Wilde, while past speakers include Ray Coppinger, Roger Abrantes and Suzanne Clothier. Topics cover a range of issues related to behavior, animal care, wolves, training and, yes, even dogs. My first visit to Wolf Park was in 2015 when I attended the Wolf Intensive Weekend, which included talks by staff, primarily Pat Goodmann, as well as time spent with the wolves and foxes. Last summer, I returned for a three-day Canine Behavior and Neurology seminar with popular PPG summit speaker and renowned animal trainer, Ken McCort. The seminar comprised a good mix of talks by McCort and Wolf Park staff, as well as a lot of time spent with the animals. Wolf Park is currently raising a litter of wolf pups, so getting there was a must for me while the pups were still young. At the time of my visit, one of the three pups born at the facility was 16 weeks old and the other two, from a litter born in New York, were 14 weeks of age. McCort’s seminar is like a backstage pass to the park. While we got to meet and greet with staff, wolves, wolf pups, red and grey foxes, I was beyond excited to get to do some target training with the bison and one of the coyotes (from behind a fence). We even worked with some guinea pigs. McCort always had time for questions and discussion within the workshop. While it was a busy three days, it did not feel rushed. McCort does a fantastic job of incorporating neurobiology discussion into work with the animals and making the science of training come alive. Just talking to him you will quickly learn about his enthusiasm for the science – it is infectious, and he is quick to share and engage with fellow trainers and students. Over the course of the seminar we had over seven hours of animal time. On the Saturday and Sunday mornings of both seminars I attended, there was the option to attend a wolf observation with Goodmann. I would highly recommend this. Goodmann is a wealth of knowledge, funny, and far too humble. Indeed, reading some of her written work is what first made me interested in Wolf Park. She has a keen eye for observation, something any animal professional can learn from. Meanwhile, several nights a week Wolf Park opens to the public for Howl Night. Guests sit on bleachers in front of a 7-acre wolf enclosure to hear a staff member discuss wolves and answer questions. Hopefully the wolves will also
BARKS from the Guild/January 2018