New Mexico wolf sanctuary raising money to buy Colorado sanctuary

CANDY KITCHEN — Howling broke the silence of a winter day outside the Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary in Candy Kitchen. Within the western New Mexico sanctuary, 5-year-old wolf dog Balto howled again at unfamiliar visitors and set off the other animals.

Balto calmed, then was pet on his side through the fence of his enclosure by the sanctuary’s executive director, Brittany McDonald. Balto’s roommate, 2-year-old Artemis, also wanted attention. The two have lived at the animal sanctuary, where they have room to play and regular medical care, since 2022. Balto is about 67% wolf, with a dog-like snout and gray and brown fur in an unmistakably wolf-like pattern. He is also big — the third tallest wolf dog in the sanctuary — and a piece of one of his bottom canine teeth is missing.

“And that’s because his original owner kicked him in the face and broke his jaw in two, and then naturally, Balto responded by attacking him, and the guy took him to a shelter to be euthanized,” said McDonald.

Instead of euthanizing the wolf dog, the shelter staff contacted the sanctuary and found him a new home. Balto has grown more comfortable with men, but still occasionally “yells” at male visitors.

Founded more than 30 years ago by artist Jackie Evans, Wild Spirit is one of the oldest U.S. wolf sanctuaries and houses 72 animals, including wolves, wolf dogs, singing dogs, foxes and coyotes. And the nonprofit is raising money to expand. Approximately 500 miles north, the Indigo Mountain Nature Center in Lake George, Colorado, houses 25 wolf dogs. After one of the founders died, it is at risk of closing.

Wild Spirit has raised $230,000 of its $715,000 goal to purchase the land the sanctuary is on, so it can take over operations and keep Indigo Mountain running. Indigo Mountain would also need funding to secure U.S. Department of Agriculture licensing and new barrier fences, which would allow the sanctuary to accept visitors. Purchasing the property, making the upgrades and getting licensing is expected to cost $1.5 million.

Life at Wild Spirit

Some of Wild Spirit’s animals came from abusive owners, hoarding situations or owners who weren’t prepared for the challenges of a wolf dog. Others came from homes where the owners did understand wolf dog behavior, but for legal or logistical reasons could no longer care for their pet.

Animals coming to the sanctuary are often aggressive, reactive, fearful or anxious and have no place to go. Having been raised in captivity, none are animals that could live in the wild.

“I think a lot of people that get into the work of animal care also feel like black sheep and misfit toys, and so it makes us really uniquely equipped to offer them a safe space of understanding. This mutual ‘I see you, you see me,’ and they reward us tenfold by showing their trust, their mutual respect,” McDonald said.

The most recent addition, Cody the coyote, showed up at the sanctuary’s doorstep a few weeks ago in a dog kennel with a note detailing her diet, her former living situation in a 4-by-6-foot cage and her favorite toy — a mallard duck. Abandoning animals at the sanctuary’s door is ill-advised, as it might take a while for staff to find the creature or there may not be an enclosure available for it.

“We’re really grateful, because her owners could have just shot her, let her go. They could have done worse. But if everybody just dropped off animals with us, we could not possibly say yes to all of them,” McDonald said.

The majority of animals are not on the tour path, because many are scared of people or get stressed out by visitors, McDonald said. But some of the animals enjoy the attention of visitors or are more desensitized to tour groups. Visitors, donations and a small gift shop filled with toy wolves, wolf mugs and T-shirts are how Wild Spirit pays to keep its doors open and the sanctuary fully staffed.

“As much as it is important for us to let people see them for making money and things like that, we don’t want to compromise their quality of life to accomplish it,” McDonald said.

Staff arrive at the sanctuary by 7:30 a.m. and begin with an all-staff meeting, before distributing medication.

Many of the medications are pain management related to aging. Some of the animals have mobility issues, joint pain, arthritis or hip dysplasia. Sometimes animals need antibiotics for something like a tooth extraction, or treatment for long-term conditions like lupus or thyroid issues.

Medication is followed by enrichment, which usually includes animal pelts.

The bond between staff and animals is tight, even though not every animal welcomes attention from every staff member.

“We always say they choose us, not the other way around,” McDonald said. “You can pick your favorites all day, but really they’re going to tell you, ‘You’re my human.’ Our choice is to accept it or not, and I don’t know how you could not.”

McDonald was close with 10-year-old Irwin, one of the sanctuary’s more dangerous and larger animals and her first rescue at the sanctuary in 2020.

“Usually, what makes our animals the most dangerous ones we have is that they are not afraid of people, and therefore, that natural line of defense that keeps them safe in the wild and would keep us safe in captivity is not present,” McDonald said.

Although he lived on the tour path, Irwin was usually aloof. But on a cool day in mid-December, he came up to the enclosure’s fence to get attention from McDonald. A few days later, Irwin died, euthanized due to severe seizures, according to the sanctuary’s website.

Irwin’s paw print is tattooed on McDonald’s leg “so that he can always walk with me,” she said.

Cathy Cook is a news reporter for the Albuquerque Journal. Reach her via email at ccook@abqjournal.com.