Lost Wolf Pup Finds Temporary Home

Out of town campers on Friday, May 25, picked up what they thought was a lost domestic puppy outside Ketchum. They took it to a vet clinic in town. A technician at the clinic thought the lost male puppy looked like it might be a wolf and contacted a Defenders of Wildlife representative, who also thought it looked like a wolf. They contacted Idaho Fish and Game, and officials spent parts of Sunday, Monday and Tuesday looking for a wolf pack near where the pup was found, hoping to return the lost pup. But they could find no fresh sign of a pack in the area. A blood sample was drawn for a DNA test. Officials are awaiting test results to determine whether it is a wolf, a wolf-hybrid or something else. Zoo Boise has agreed to take the pup temporarily and to help Fish and Game find it a permanent home. The pup appears starved and needs veterinary care. People are reminded that it is best to leave young animals in the wild alone. In the case of the pup, it is possible that the pack was moving with the pups - perhaps from a den to a rendezvous site - and may have been disturbed by traffic on the road.