6 Wolfdogs Rescued from Illegal Situation Embrace Their Wild Side at New Sanctuary Home (Exclusive)

Six wolves spend their holidays enjoying a winter wonderland after being kept as pets.

A pack of wolfdogs — canids that share genetic ancestry with wolves and domestic dogs — arrived at Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary after living in private enclosures in Pennslyvania, where it is illegal to keep wolfdogs as pets.

“Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary is a 501-C3 nonprofit organization located in Rama, New Mexico,” Katie Forbis, director of marketing and animal caretaker at Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary, tells PEOPLE. “We are the largest dog shelter in all of North America, and we also help facilitate more rescues than most other organizations in the United States.”

Currently, the sanctuary, which is in a “super remote” location, is home to wolves, wolfdogs, New Guinea singing dogs, Australian dingoes, coyotes and red foxes.

“We rescue captive, born and adult canids that cannot be released and provide them with lifelong shelter and care. So basically, we are not an adoption agency. Once we take an animal into our care, they are here for the rest of their lives,” says Forbis, adding that “none of the animals we take in are eligible to be released into the wild. They have completely and utterly adapted to humans and have no survival skills. It would be like letting your Pomeranian survive in the wild.”

Like the other inhabitants of the sanctuary, the six wolves moved there after their previous position became unsustainable.

Two Maas Mass wolves in their previous home in Pennsylvania.

Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary

“Pennsylvania is an illegal state for wolf dogs, basically 1% more, they’re all banned illegally. But there was an owner there who had six of them, and he was basically on his deathbed asking for help with his animals. He had mostly wolfhounds with a high content, meaning they are predominantly gray wolves in their genetic makeup compared to the domestic dog,” Forbis explains the origins of the six wolfdogs.

“And so we knew that there were six animals on site that needed a place to go, otherwise the state would take them and euthanize them because they are not legal in the state and cannot be adopted,” she adds.

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Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary learned about the endangered wolfdogs in Pennslyvania from the Wolf Dog Rescue Network, an email list among rescues, sanctuaries and organizations that highlight wolfdogs in need of rescue homes. Initially, Wild Spirit only planned to transport six wolves from Pennslyvania to a new home, but when no other organization stepped in to help the animals, Wild Spirit decided to take the wolves in.

“We wanted to see these animals’ lives saved. So we said we’d do it. So we built shelters, drove all the way to Pennsylvania, picked up wolf dogs and brought them home,” says Forbis.

Maas Mass wolf dog in the Wild Spirit wolf reserve.

Katie Forbis at the Wild Spirit Wolf Reserve

The animals arrived in May and each was named after a character from the books written by the fantastic author Sarah J. Maas. Together, the six wolves are known as the Maas Mass.

And the Mass in the Maas has come a long way in six months. When the six wolf cubs, including one mostly blind animal, moved into the sanctuary, “they were all extremely unsociable,” says Forbis.

Today, animals are “social and have friends”. Instead of being confined to small enclosures with little engagement, wolves enjoy a quarter acre or more, natural elements and winter snow.

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Animals do not stay alone in their dwellings. Instead, each wolf cub was paired with a roommate of the opposite sex to prevent same-sex aggression that can occur between wolves once they reach sexual maturity.

Two animals from Maas Massa, Cassian and Nesta, are currently caring for a wolf pup rescued by a Minnesota sanctuary.

Two Maas Mass wolves in their shared enclosure at the Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary.

Katie Forbis at the Wild Spirit Wolf Reserve

“Wolves and wolfdogs with higher levels of content have this innate desire to care for pups and cubs because they survive in the wild through training. So there’s this thing called puppy privilege that most wolfdogs will extend to young wolfdogs,” he shares. Forbes.

This is what happened when Nesta and Cassian met their rescue pups. Both wolves began to take care of the newborn, and now the three animals are the “cutest trio”. The relationship helped each member of the new family to gain trust.

“It turns out that if you give them a really good environment, you’re patient and you respect what they’re telling you, there’s a lot of opportunity and potential with them,” Forbis says of wolfdogs.

The animal guardian does not recommend having a wolfhound as a pet because they require much more resources, time and patience than the average domestic dog.

“I don’t think 99.99% of people should have a wolf dog because of how crazy it is to take care of these animals. Even your less happy animals, which may be 25% gray wolf and the rest dog, that’s really owning a husky is on steroids, and huskies are not made for most people and most lifestyles,” says Forbis.

A wolf at the Wild Spirit Wolf Preserve in New Mexico.

Katie Forbis at the Wild Spirit Wolf Reserve

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“It’s basically like having a toddler who’s part shark all the time,” she adds of caring for wolf dogs, especially those with a higher proportion of wolves.

Those interested in meeting a wolf dog can enjoy the experience without the responsibility of ownership by visiting the Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary.

“We’re open to the public. So you can come out and camp and fall asleep under the stars to the wolves howling, which is pretty fun,” Forbis says.

Those who are unable to make the trip but are still interested in helping rescue wolf dogs like Maas Mass can support the work of Wild Spirts by donating through the nonprofit’s website or by sharing the sanctuary’s work on social media.

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Source: HIS Education