History
Brutus came to Wild Spirit on April 30, 2008, with his brother, Navar, and sister, Akela. The trio had originally belonged to Fejervary Children's Zoo in Davenport, Iowa. The zoo had purchased six pups from Wilderness Kingdom Zoo, and four remained at the time Wild Spirit agreed to take them. Fejervary Zoo had been around for a century, though was having a difficult time with funding and community support. In addition, the eight year-old wolves had very high stress levels, and prior to her passing, Callie and her sister, Akela, had been getting into substantially more severe fights. Originally, we were scheduled to take all of four wolves, though because of their age, during spaying, Callie passed away. Leyton and Angel drove to Davenport, assisted with the wolves' capture, and brought them to Wild Spirit. Within only a few weeks, all three began coming up to the fence for tours and accepting food from caretakers' hands without issue.
Big Pack in the Sky
April 25, 2000 - October 4, 2011
It's unfortunate when an animal passes away unexpectedly, but it is always preferable to a death involving a lot of pain or discomfort. Brutus was an older man, but he still showed spunk and energy. However, one morning during feeding, Brutus abruptly passed away. It happened so suddenly and unexpectedly that we brought him to the medical clinic to have a necropsy performed. The veterinarian who performed the procedure could find nothing abnormal and believes it was just Brutus' time to go. It broke our heart to have Brutus taken from us without any warning, but we take solace in that it was most likely pain-free.
Lynnebeth B.
Melodie O.
Barbara B.
Cheryl M.
Bob B.
Mary Jane M.
Profile
Bio: Brutus was a mix between a Timber wolf and a Tundra wolf. He has two siblings living at the Sanctuary: Akela and Navar.
Personality: Brutus was the "alpha" of the trio, and was the bravest and most curious about the happenings in his enclosure. He was a very sweet man that liked attention from his caretaker - he also approached the fence when visitors walked by. Brutus would occasionally pick on his brother Navar to retain his alpha status, but the two were also seen frolicking around the enclosure. He loved his sister Akela dearly, and with him, she could do no wrong.
Likes: Butt scratches, getting his food thrown first, and his sister Akela.
Dislikes: Ravens stealing his food and/or ravens picking on him, never-before-seen enrichment activities (he's afraid of them), and when Cove and Lucian are showing off.
Fun Fact: Brutus never seems to like new enrichment activities in his enclosure - he is extremely cautious and takes a long time to build up the courage to explore it. He has been seen many times pawing the dirt around the item, briefly nosing it before leaping away, and just staring at it intently from several yards away. Luckily, with enough time, he realizes that the enrichment is only good and will sit down to enjoy it.
