Last Day of Training Week

Today was the last day of training week which means tomorrow we will begin to conduct educational programs on our own. A good example of what the future can best be explained by what occurred yesterday.

All five of us interns were on yesterday and were assigned a program each. One intern had to present twice but he has had previous wolf and educational experience so he made it look like cake. There were three programs total and two interns per program. I presented the first half of the "Meet the Pack" program and after much thought, I would grade my presentation skills a 4 out of 10. Had I given the later portion of this program, I probably would have gave myself a better score but the first half just so happened to be the part I did not know. Thankfully, due to giving the first half, I now have an idea of how to better present it later. That was the whole idea of this trial, in my opinion, to test ourselves and see how well we presented.

During the time we were not giving programs, we were supposed to rove or start a movie in our theater. Every hour, or half hour, is a new movie so someone always has to start the next one. A few examples of the movies that are presented include: 'Radioactive Wolves' and 'American Coyote: Still Wild at Heart'. Starting a movie only takes a minute in all honesty, so once we had started one we would then proceed to "rove", or in other words "wander throughout the building". Although this action seems like it's aimless, the purpose of roving is to be present and available for anyone if they ever have any questions, comments, or concerns. Sometimes we are capable of stepping forward and clearing up any questions the public may have before they even ask. A question commonly asked is "Where are the wolves?" and its a good one indeed.

Lesson of the Day
Wolves are typically active in the winter due to a thick, double layered coat that allows them to tolerate extremely cold temperatures (such as -30F). The two layers of this coat are refereed to as the guard hairs and undercoat. The purpose of the guard hair is to repel dirt and water while the undercoat works as an insulation to keep the wolf warm in colder weather. For an example, think of insulation and roofing of a house. The roof keeps the house protected from outdoor elements while the insulation traps in heat during winter.

During the summer, when temperatures climb up to a range between 60ºF and 90ºF, in Ely, the wolves are still trying to shed out the thick hair in the undercoat and therefore the warmer temperatures make them hot. Imagine wearing a heavy winter coat in the middle of the summer heart, you would probably become very hot rather quickly and eventually tired due to having to walk around with this coat on all day. The wolves feel the same way. Due to becoming hot and tired, they usually sleep during the daytime hours unless something stimulates them instead. Things that could stimulate the wolves include: hunger, thirst, excretion, sounds, smells, and you could probably easily think of more. So, instead of being active all day, the wolves adopt a "crepuscular" nature. This means they usually come out during the twilight hours (dawn and dusk). Of course, if the weather is cooler out, the wolves may come out during the day and at night as well. All depends on the personality of the wolf, how they are feeling, environmental factors, and so on. Which is why you could see Denali, one of the three male wolves in the Ambassador pack, came out during the day.

Denali

 Which is why colder days are my favorite days. Partially because we do not have an AC in our apartment but also because the wolves are more active as well.

 

Other things we did yesterday, besides programs and roving, was discuss customer service and help in opening/closing the building. I also read more information on Wolf Mythology in the Human Wolf Exhibit we have. I keep forgetting to take pictures of this exhibit so instead I am recycling one I found online.

There is more to this exhibit then what is included in this picture. You see a few taxidermy wolves but what you do not see is the vast amount of knowledge and information this exhibit has to offer. There's a section on how wolves Communicate, a section of mythology that dates back to the legend of Fenrir, Skoll, and Hati (my favorite wolf myth) and includes werewolves, information on Indians and Wolf relationship, and so much more. Honestly I do not wish to include everything you will find in this exhibit because you truly need to find the money to come up and see it for what it's worth. Whether you travel up here this summer or years in the future; trust me you will not regret doing so. Especially if you are highly interested in wolves. I have have slowly been working my way around this room, when I have time, but there is so MUCH more to read. I cannot express that enough.

Now, despite what we did yesterday and what we will do tomorrow, today was a bit different. CPR/First Aid Certification is required for this position and if you do not possess these skills, the center pays your way to gaining this experience. We performed CPR on dummy adults and infants but also covered the procedure for toddlers as well. Hopefully I will never have to use these skills but if an issue comes about, I am officially certified to help by the American Heart Association. 

For anyone that has not taken a course in CPR/First Aid, we covered a variety of topics in the First Aid section of the certification. Such topics included: Stroke, Heart Attack, Heat Exhaustion, Allergic Reactions, Insect Bites, Venomous Snake Bites (Poisonous is WRONG terminology), Ticks, Animal Bites, Hypothermia, Shock, Choking, Broken Limbs, Diabetes, Amputation, and much much more. 

We learned how to put on splints, proper way to put on and take off gloves, and even how to utilize an Epinephrine autoinjector. Otherwise known as the "Eppy Pen". I even know how to utilize an Automatic External Defibrillator (A.E.D) is necessary. You know, that thing medics use that shock you. 

No one purposely break a limb, I may not have a choice on duty but I can choose to save you or not in public. Chances are I will try to out of good nature but I also do not want to get sued if something DID go wrong! 

That's about it for today and yesterday. Not many pictures to share this moment in time but of course this is only the beginning of summer. Stay safe people and hope I have more to offer next post!