One year after Fort Meade wolf was rescued in Queen Anne's County, Anubis 'is living his best life' in Pennsylvania

Jan. 2—By Rebecca Ritzel — rritzel@baltsun.com

PUBLISHED:January 2, 2024 at 12:30 p.m.| UPDATED:January 2, 2024 at 2:57 p.m.

One year after a Maryland-based soldier surrendered his illegal pet to a rescue group, Anubis the Fort Meade wolf is "living his best life," in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.

The Wolf Sanctuary of Pennsylvania celebrates "rescue anniversaries" for each of its 55 resident canines each year. Michelle Mancini, education director at the center, said Anubis's 12-month transformation from terrified rescue "dog" to happy-go-lucky wolf is a success to herald.

"He's doing so well," Mancini said.

Anubis arrived trembling in a crate in December 2022 when he was delivered to the sanctuary in Lititz, Pennsylvania. While he will never be one of the sanctuary's "more social" wolves, Mancini says he's come a long way since Chesapeake Cats & Dogs convinced his owner to surrender the wolf.

His transfer remains the most bizarre animal welfare case that Kim Ewing, a volunteer with the Queen Anne's County-based rescue group, said she is ever likely to see, and one that captured considerable attention on social media.

At the request of his owner, Chesapeake Cats & Dogs posted a photo of 8-month-old Anubis, asking if anyone wanted to adopt a "shy and skittish" Alaskan malamute/German Shepherd mix.

To which several astute Facebook commenters responded, "That is not a dog, that's a wolf."

Ewing called the owner with more questions, and the man recounted driving out of state to buy a nearly white mixed-breed puppy, which he then named after an Egyptian god with the head of a jackal.

"That's when I realized he was lying," Ewing said last year. "He even named him Anubis. You don't drive for hours to pay $800 for a mixed-breed puppy. We have plenty of those here. He knew what he was getting."

Owning both wolves and wolf hybrids is illegal in Maryland. They also are forbidden, among other canine breeds, on United States military bases. Yet somehow, Anubis' owner was attempting to raise a wolf on Fort Meade. (The rescue group did not disclose the owner's identity.)

Ewing set to work researching sanctuaries for wolves and wolf-dogs, as the hybrids are known, and was grateful when the Wolf Sanctuary of Pennsylvania, the closest option, agreed to take him, at least for an initial stay.

Shyness around humans is pretty standard wolf behavior, Mancini said, but Anubis was an extreme case.

"I mean, we would blink when we were sitting with him and he would jump away," she said.

Surrendered wolves are quarantined indoors while awaiting veterinary test results. Volunteers and staff members took turns sitting next to Anubis and even read the frightened animal bedtime stories.

"Over time, he started to realize, 'OK, people being around doesn't mean something's happening to me,'" Mancini said. "One staff member was even able to stroke his nose."

That was huge progress. Because wolves are pack animals, and the sanctuary operates near capacity, Anubis would need a packmate to remain in Lititz. Thankfully, he bonded with the first non-human he met in Lititz: His name was Vulcan, a 5-year-old wolf-dog from Texas, and he tolerated an 8-month-old puppy who wanted to play.

"That's what really broke him out of his shell," Mancini said. "They met right in our quarantine area, and Anubis was smitten. They hit it off right away."

After receiving clean bills of health, Vulcan and Anubis got their own outdoor enclosure, complete with a shelter, water trough and pond for staying cool in the summer.

"They have been living it up ever since," Mancini said.

Although all the sanctuary wolves are spayed or neutered, some still have a "burrowing" instinct. Anubis and Vulcan have dug themselves an elaborate den that staff and volunteers have dubbed "the spaceship," because it looks as if the wolves carved out a Starship Enterprise on the side of a hill. Anubis also chewed a hole through the roof of his shelter.

"He wanted a skylight," Mancini quipped. "He's pretty funny."

Pennsylvania's zoo permitting statutes require waterproof shelters, so the "skylight" had to be repaired, as will any future damage Anubis does to his shelter. His propensity for chewing, combined with his fear of humans, make Anubis a stellar example of why wolves tend to make terrible house pets.

"If we wouldn't have had space, who knows what would have happened to Anubis?" she said.

The Wolf Sanctuary of Pennsylvania was founded as a nonprofit in 1980, but ever since the Stark family's dire wolves debuted on the TV series "Game of Thrones," there's been an uptick in black market wolf puppy sales, followed by more calls to sanctuaries when owners realize that what looks like fun on HBO can be a nightmare in reality.

"They are super intelligent, super active and super high energy," Mancini said.

The Wolf Sanctuary of Pennsylvania is open for public and private tours, and admission fees help pay for the wolves' upkeep. Anubis and Vulcan are on the tour path, Mancini said. Visitors are welcome to come see the playmates "living their best lives," she said.

As for the wolf's owner, Fort Meade officials made no effort to find and punish him since he surrendered his illegal pet, base spokesman Chad Jones said.

"It's good to know that the wolf is thriving in his new environment," Jones added.

Six weeks after the incident, however, the Department of the Army issued and circulated an updated memorandum on "Domestic and Stray Animals." In accordance with previous restrictions, the memo forbids owning everything from Rottweilers to piranhas.

And, of course, wolves (or wolf-dog hybrids) like Anubis.

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