Rachane

sex: male
born: 01 April 2000
birth place: Texas

given sanctuary: 10 February 2007

 

Rachane's Story

During the first few weeks of 2007, we were evaluating potential companions for Arkte. We were limited, as we were at our county-mandated maximum number of animals at the Sanctuary. We began the search anyway, knowing that we would have to wait for space to open up. It would have to be a male who was not suited for life anywhere other than a sanctuary.

Finally, an email from Texarkana, Arkansas was received about a male wolf-dog in danger of being euthanized. It seems the original owner had moved and could not take either of his animals. They ended up being left in a small kennel in his father's backyard. He and his black lab companion found a way out of the enclosure and started exploring the town. Although they caused no problems, they were picked up by Animal Control and brought to the local shelter. The father was unable, or unwilling, to pay the $130 per animal in fines, plus daily fees, to get the animals back. The black lab would be put up for adoption, but the wolf-dog would have to be euthanized, as shelters consider wolf-dogs too much of a liability for them to adopt out. Fortunately, a concerned individual named Mimi was not about to let that happen. She contacted Wolf, eager to keep this gentle animal, Rachane, from an unjustified fate. We quickly began making plans to bring him home.

Mimi was a wonderful champion for Rachane. She arranged and scheduled him to have a veterinary exam and neuter, at our request and found transportation halfway to Colorado! On the morning of February 10, Brandy and Kiley left for the 7 hour trip to Salina, Kansas.

They were met by Susan and Gail, who had generously driven the 8 hours from Texarkana. The first look at Rachane revealed a deep gash under his left eye, and fresh wounds around his mouth. What happened? The ladies explained the shelter had used a catch pole to get him out of the kennel, and were obviously not very kind about it. Brandy and Kiley were shocked, and quickly loaded him in the Wolf vehicle to get him home ASAP. He gave them no problems, but would not allow Kiley to remove his collar. Rachane was very well behaved in the truck, but had no balance! Every corner would send him flying around until he finally laid down and went to sleep. The return trip took much longer than the trip there, and included some very bizarre incidents. Brandy and Kiley experienced heavy fog, ice, a person driving eastbound in the westbound lane, and rush hour-like traffic, in Denver, at 10 pm. They thought they would never make it home!

Finally, a little after midnight, Rachane arrived at Wolf. He walked very politely to his new large enclosure on a leash with no problems. Once there, Kiley was again unable to remove the collar. Frank tried, but was also unsuccessful. Then Steve tried, but to no avail. The collar had been on him for so long, it was completely stuck! Finally, all 3 humans held Rachane and cut the collar off with a knife. Through all of this, he never snapped at anyone. It became very apparent just how unnecessary using a catch pole was.

His new home was the front side of Arkte’s enclosure. The two were kept separated for 3 weeks so Rachane could adjust to his new life and surroundings. It also gave us an opportunity to evaluate how Arkte would interact with him at the fence line. Early in the afternoon, on March 1st, an opening was made in the fence between them. For the first few minutes, neither of them seemed to know what to do. But after exploring each others territories, it was time to play! They began running full speed -- chasing each other, jumping around, and having a great time. This continued until both completely wore themselves out. To watch these animals bond, especially knowing the situations they came from, has been extremely rewarding. Arkte has never even had a companion before and Rachane seemed to be totally taken with her. They belong together at Wolf, and will live the remainder of their lives together, with plenty of space, food, and love.

Like Arkte, Rachane was also given a name change from Neeko. 

 

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