Montana wolf
“It’s just a fascinating story, the history of these animals,” said Diane Gallegos, executive director of Wolf Haven International, a Tenino, Washington-based wolf rescue group.
By Kurtis Rattay, animal care assistant, Wolf Haven
During this year’s holiday season, the animals at Wolf Haven International have been gifted with three large-scale donations. They all came from organizations looking for a waste-free way to dispose of high-quality meat that, despite being in good condition, could not be repurposed for human consumption. These donations not only kept the products from going to the landfill but saved Wolf Haven thousands of dollars on feeding costs and provided ethical nutrition for the sanctuary’s residents.
A small portion of the Crowd-Cow meat donation stored in our freezer.
The first donation came from Crowd Cow, a company that connects consumers with independent ranches. The donated meat was either unsold or did not meet the standards set by the company. According to one Crowd Cow employee, their East Coast counterpart regularly donates unsellable meat to animal sanctuaries, and the Seattle-based company contacted Wolf Haven with the same intention. Animal Care staff happily drove down to Forest Grove, OR, to pick up 1,500 pounds of craft beef and chicken.
Raw Cat Food donation of venison, chicken, beef and lamb.
Only a week later, Animal Care staff drove back to Oregon and picked up a huge donation from an out-of-business pet food company specializing in raw cat food. The company had tried for a while to liquidate its products and had contacted several animal centers. The Wild Cat Sanctuary kindly redirected them to us. We drove back to Wolf Haven with 2,500 pounds of frozen venison, beef, chicken and turkey.
Animal care staff Kurtis, Erik and Pam sorting confiscated elk.
The most recent donation came from Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Wendy Lowe, a law enforcement officer with WDFW, generously thought about benefiting the wolves when hundreds of pounds of elk meat needed to be disposed-off, following a now-settled poaching case.
Wolf Haven staff unloading the gift of meat.
Donations are the lifeblood of nonprofit organizations. Although a precise total amount of savings cannot be calculated, it is safe to put the number in the thousands of dollars. With substantial sanctuary projects on the horizon, these saved costs can then be allocated to improve sanctuary habitat and infrastructure, which in turn increases the quality of life for the animals.
Lakota enjoying his frozen loaf, made from the donated meat.
Wolf Haven is deeply grateful to have been chosen by these organizations—and the wolves and coyotes who call the sanctuary home seem to appreciate the gift as well!
The newest resident at the Wolf Haven International sanctuary in Tenino used to only roam as far as the backyard cable connected to her collar would let her go. Layla, a first-generation wolfdog — her mother was a wolf and her father a Malamute — recently arrived at Wolf Haven by way of an animal shelter in Thurston County. 
Want to watch? Wolf Haven International mention begin at 5:53 mark. Wolf Haven included in the “Winning Winter Tours” section of the book.
Dan carves strips of beef for wolves.
At Wolf Haven International, the staff is tasked with taking care of dozens of wolves and other wild canines. Although much of the job is about stayingout of the animal’s way.
“We are simply guests in the animal’s home, and it’s better for wolves to be left alone so that they can live as a wolf,” said Kim Young, the haven’s communications director.
At Wolf Haven International, a wolf sanctuary in Tenino, Thurston County, staff members have already modified the wolves’ schedule this summer, mainly because of hot weather. Staff members feed them late at night,…
Now that we are deep into “the dog days of summer”, I thought it would be nice to take a look at some of the ways that the wolves at Wolf Haven get a little relief from the high temps. Our residents all have shelters where they can retreat, plus their enclosures have shady trees, shrubs or other vegetation in them. Of course they all get daily pails of fresh water to drink and big metal splash tubs in which to take a dip. Here is a family of Mexican gray wolves sharing a tub.
Our animal care team also provide weekly enrichment of various kinds to the wolves. Enrichment items may or may not be edible – their primary purpose is to introduce something unusual and novel for the wolves to investigate and explore with their intellect and senses. Even something as seemingly simple as a stick with essential oil on it can be used successfully as enrichment.
During the hot days that we are currently experiencing, it’s nice to combine the enrichment item with something that is cool and refreshing, as well as unique. Bloodsicles anyone? Male gray wolf Lonnie with his bloodsicle treat.
Or how about a tasty chicken footsicle, which combines smooth, slippery ice with crunchy, well, feet.
So the next time you feel like complaining about the heat, take a tip from our creative animal care team and the wolves!
Kim Young, Director of Communications
Child-focused sanctuary visit
Wolf Haven will begin offering child-focused sanctuary visits at 11:30 a.m. on the second and fourth Saturdays of the month in July and August.
Montana wolf
Tenino-based Wolf Haven International completed paperwork this week to absorb the McCleery Buffalo Wolf Foundation located in Bridger, Montana — along with its more than two-dozen wolves and 378 acres of land.