History
Originally called the Candy Kitchen Rescue Ranch, WSWS was founded in 1991 by Jacque Evans. Evans, a wolfdog owner herself, realized that few people could handle such high-maintenance pets. She decided to create a refuge for unwanted wolves and wolfdogs on her property in Candy Kitchen. She supported animal rescues and the ranch by selling her artwork. [1]
In 1993, Barbara Berge, who was rescuing wolfdogs in Albuquerque, moved to Candy Kitchen and helped Jacque transform the rescue ranch into a non-profit organization. [1]
In 2003, Candy Kitchen Rescue Ranch was reorganized into the Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary, and Leyton Cougar became executive director. [1]
In August, 2020, Brittany McDonald became Executive Director of Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary, replacing out-going Director of Operations, Crystal Castellanos. [4]
Impact
Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary operates with an “Animals Come First” attitude.
Wild Spirit teaches the public about the humane treatment of wild animals, about the relationships between people and other life through respectful, compassionate co-existence, and about humanity’s important role as having the choice to be a part of the change needed to see ecosystems heal and thrive.
Care is customized to each animal’s needs, desires, personality, and health. Wild Spirit understands that some animals will never want human attention, and we respect that wish by ensuring socialization is never forced.
Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary does not breed, sell, or exploit their rescues. All educational programs are offered on-site and are hands-off to reduce stress on the animals. [4]
The Endangered Wolf Center is a non-profit wildlife facility in Eureka, Missouri, United States, near St. Louis that is dedicated to preserving and reintroducing to the wild critically endangered species of wolves. It is certified by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). Visitors can tour the facility by making a reservation.
The maned wolf is a large canine of South America. It is found in Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, and Paraguay, and is almost extinct in Uruguay. Its markings resemble those of foxes, but it is neither a fox nor a wolf. It is the only species in the genus Chrysocyon.
A wolfdog is a canine produced by the mating of a domestic dog with a gray wolf, eastern wolf, red wolf, or Ethiopian wolf to produce a hybrid.
Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo, located in Bridgeport, Connecticut, is the only Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA)-accredited zoo in the state of Connecticut. The zoo includes one of the few carousels in the state. The zoo has around 500 animals, from over 100 species, and welcomes about 280,000 visitors a year.
A coydog is a canid hybrid resulting from a mating between a male coyote and a female dog. Hybrids of both sexes are fertile and can be successfully bred through four generations. Similarly, a dogote is a hybrid with a dog father and a coyote mother.
The Navajo Nation Zoological and Botanical Park is located in Window Rock, Arizona, the capital of the Navajo Nation. It is the only tribally owned zoological park in the United States and is notable among zoological facilities in that it labels its exhibits in the Native American Indian language of Navajo. Having been operated by the Navajo Nation Parks & Recreation Department since its inception in the early 1960s, it became part of the Navajo Nation Department of Fish and Wildlife in September 2006.
Mission: Wolf is a remote wolf sanctuary near Westcliffe, Colorado in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. It houses up to 40 wolves and wolfdog crosses, and works to promote a better understanding of wolves in order to further reintroduction efforts and discourage attempts to keep wolves as pets.
Wolf Haven International, previously known as Wolf Country and Wolf Haven America, is a wolf sanctuary and 501(c)(3) non-profit organization headquartered in Tenino, Washington. Founded in 1982 by Steve and Linda Kuntz, the organization provides educational programs on wolves, engages in wolf-related activism, and operates as a sanctuary for displaced, captive-born wolves. It also fosters and participates in captive-breeding programs for two highly endangered types of wolves: the red wolf and the Mexican wolf. Wolf Haven is one of three facilities in the United States that provides pre-release housing for Mexican gray wolves bred for Southwest restoration programs.
The Mexican wolf, also known as the lobo, is a subspecies of gray wolf native to southeastern Arizona and southern New Mexico in the United States, and northern Mexico. It once also ranged into western Texas. It is the smallest of North America's gray wolves, and is similar to the Great Plains wolf, though it is distinguished by its smaller, narrower skull and its darker pelt, which is yellowish-gray and heavily clouded with black over the back and tail. Its ancestors were likely the first gray wolves to enter North America after the extinction of the Beringian wolf, as indicated by its southern range and basal physical and genetic characteristics.
Canid hybrids are the result of interbreeding between the species of the subfamily Caninae.
The CzechoslovakianWolfdog is a breed of wolfdog that began as an experiment conducted in Czechoslovakia in 1955. The breed was known as Czech Wolfdog until 1982.
The Japanese wolf, also known as the Honshū wolf, is an extinct subspecies of the gray wolf that was once endemic to the islands of Honshū, Shikoku and Kyūshū in the Japanese archipelago.
Candy Kitchen is an unincorporated community in Cibola County, New Mexico, United States, in the northwestern part of the state. It is located at 34°54′51″N108°29′9″W, at an altitude of 7,388 feet (2,252 m).
Austin Zoo is a non-profit rescue zoo and located in southwestern unincorporated Travis County, Texas, United States, west of Austin. The zoo is accredited by the Zoological Association of America.
Wolves are sometimes kept as exotic pets, and in some rarer occasions, as working animals. Although closely related to domesticated dogs, wolves do not show the same tractability as dogs in living alongside humans, and generally, a greater amount of effort is required in order to obtain the same amount of reliability. Wolves also need much more space than dogs, about 25 to 40 square kilometres so they can exercise.
The Wild Animal Sanctuary is a 1,214-acre (491 ha) animal sanctuary in Keenesburg, Colorado, United States. The sanctuary specializes in rescuing and caring for large predators which are being ill-treated, for which their owners can no longer care, or which might otherwise be euthanized. It is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and a state and federally licensed zoological facility.
The Folsom City Zoo Sanctuary is a zoo and animal sanctuary located in the city of Folsom, California, in the United States, which has been open since 1963. The facility differs from traditional zoos and is more like a sanctuary in the way the animals are acquired and the care they receive. Though the facility allows visitors like a traditional zoo, the animals are not bred, sold, or traded.
A jackal–dog hybrid is a canid hybrid resulting from a mating between a domestic dog and a golden jackal. Such crossbreeding has occurred numerous times in captivity and was first confirmed to occasionally happen in the wild in Croatia in 2015.
This is a list of the species of Canidae ordered by average weights of adult individuals in the wild. It does not include canid hybrids or any domesticated animals. Only wild species of canids are included, all of which are described as species by authentic sources.
