History
In the Spring of 2006, Wild Spirit began looking for one or two wolf pups to come to the Sanctuary and be socialized in the hopes that they would become ambassadors. Arrangements were made, and in May, the Cougar Family made the trip up to Oregon to pick up a litter of six arctic wolf pups. A week or so after, a friend called to see if we were interested in more ambassadors. We explained that we had our hands full already, but in a few days, a staff member who decided to leave WSWS, called back saying that he would like this litter to start a new facility in Ohio. A litter of 8 timber-arctic crosses had been born in Oregon to a man who did not know what to do with them. He ended up selling three, and one buyer agreed to transport the other 5 to Arizona, where a volunteer at Wild Spirit would go pick them up. The Sanctuary had agreed to house them for the previous staff member while he made arrangements to come get the new arrivals. Unfortunately, placement fell through, and Wild Spirit ended up deciding to keep the litter including Sassy, Savannah, Forest, Dakota, and Brutus. For ease, we typically refer to the group as the "timber pups" even though their father was an Arctic wolf.
How Can I Help Sassy?
It takes fifteen sponsors to provide the basic care for each of our wolves and wolf-dogs for an entire year. This does not include the cost of medication, vet visits, enclosures repairs, or enrichment treats.
Profile
Bio: Sasbarilla's (or Sassy for short) mother was a Timber wolf, and her father was an Arctic wolf. She has four siblings living at the Sanctuary: Brutus, Dakota, Forest, and Savannah.
Living Arrangements: Sassy lives with a wolf-dog, Lakota.
Am I On the Tour Path? "No, I live at the back of the Sanctuary. However, if you are a sponsor of mine and would like to say hello, ask someone in the office if you can come up for a visit!"
Personality: Sassy is an absolute cuddle bug! There is nothing she wants more than love and attention. She's a very submissive girl, and is still one of the few pups that will roll over when around people she knows from her puppyhood. Her affectionate personality has helped her penmate, Lakota, warm up to people too! Still, deep down Sassy has a slight dominant side to her which caused her to be kicked out of Frost and Flurry's enclosure.
Likes: Attention of any sort, when Lakota takes his time eating his breakfast (so she can steal it), and people.
Dislikes: Scary men, volunteers doing chores while she is trying to go on a walk, and neighbors getting attention.
Fun Fact: Sassy used to live with Frost and his brother, Flurry, and was introduced to the brothers when they were only a couple of months old. However, as they grew older, they proved to be too much of a handful. One day, the brothers ganged up on Sassy, and she had to be rushed to the vet. During her time recovering, Frost and Flurry's actions towards each other began to escalate, so we decided to separate the boys and reintroduce Sassy and Frost. Sassy must have remembered Frost's role in her beating, and was relentlessly dominant towards Frost. She growled, bared her teeth, and mounted Frost continuously to prove her dominance. Luckily, it only took her about an hour to calm down and forgive the groveling pup!
My Wishlist: "Currently, my enclosure has no shelter. This isn't too big of a deal since true wolves sleep out in the bad weather, but it sure would be awesome if someone built us a cave house."
