I'm Karen and my husband is Terry. We began volunteering several years ago at Safari's of Broken Arrow, thanks to a wolf named Riggs who was at a community event. I had always loved wolves (in my opinion they are the most majestic of all animals), and was surprised that I could have my picture taken with him. I call him my ‘baby' (one of many now)-he is a sweetheart.
I concentrated on caring and learning about wolves, and my husband expanded his work into big cats. But his first love is the wolves. Eight months after we got involved there, January 16, 2003, a litter of wolf pups was born (the second and last litter to be born there). This was a litter of 12, and they had to be socialized and adopted out because the sanctuary didn't have the means to keep and care for all of them. I kept a close watch those first few weeks, and first got to hold a couple of them when about two weeks old. When I noticed the largest pup trying to climb over an extra fence that been put in for their protection, and one of the siblings was close behind, I notified the sanctuary CEO. She offered to let me take this ringleader home. This was supposed to be a trial for the weekend to see if it would work out. ‘Bear' was 4 weeks old then, and is now 4 years old. He is a very important member of our family, and it's hard to imagine life without him.
Before getting Bear, we did a lot of research on wolves and wolfdogs, and were prepared for the challenges of living with a wolf. However, it was very disheartening to discover the situation of wolfdogs that are not properly cared for because the 'owners' weren't prepared for what they were getting, and for the wolfdogs that ended up abandoned, given up to shelters where they are euthanized, or they passed from one situation to another to another to another.
Right after Bear's first birthday, we got Cheyenne. This is when we really became aware of the problems created by breeders of wolfdogs. Cheyenne is a very sweet, loving girl. But we have had incredible challenges with her because of the wolf-dog mix. We found her through the classified section of the local newspaper. The advertisement was for wolf puppies. I made an appointment and we went to check her out. The parents were on site. The mother looked like she may have been full timber wolf, but dad was not full wolf, although probably high content. Cheyenne (we named her after her mother) was the most skittish of the litter. She was 10 weeks old, and was just then beginning to respond to the man who had bred these wolves. We took her home, and had our vet check her over - everything was fine. But what havoc she caused. My husband is an extremely patient man, and she pushed him to the edge. We could see first hand why there is such a problem with wolfdogs needing rescue. We determined not to be a part of the problem, but a part of the solution.
Terry and I talked about the need for a sanctuary devoted to wolves and wolfdogs here in Oklahoma, and that we wanted to fill that need. Then came the story of Koda. Our good friend Rhonda and I went to visit Koda. This did it.
My husband and I decided it was time to stop talking about the situation and start doing something about it. What happened to Koda is not an isolated incident. This type of cruelty happens all of the time. We want to do what we can to educate the public about wolves and wolfdogs, and that they are not the pet for everyone. Actually, they are not pets at all, but companions. And, we want to rescue other 'Kodas' from these horrific situations and give them a place of peace in which to live.
Rhonda is a critical part of this endeavor. We met her as a result of volunteering at Safari's. She is every bit as passionate about wolves and wolfdogs as we are. In fact, her personal situation has allowed her to rescue several wolfdogs already.