An Alberta wolfdog sanctuary is pleading to the public for help after an out-of-province seizure saw 13 animals rescued from an emergency situation.
The Yamnuska Wolfdog Sanctuary in Cochrane, Alta., said 10 wolfdogs and three huskies, through no fault of their own, were at risk of being euthanized and were part of an ongoing cruelty investigation.
“It is still under investigation, so we can’t go into too much detail right now, but essentially, we went out and we were able to rescue some wolfdogs,” operations manager Alix Harris said.
Exact details of the seizure and where the animals are from is still unknown, but Harris said the Yamnuska team travelled more than 3,000 kilometres last month to retrieve them.
“Some of them are really starting to settle in, others are still a little bit unsure and a lot of that comes down to that they probably didn’t have as much socialization, [which] is needed for a lot of these higher-content wolfdogs,” Harris said.
Because the wolfdogs are more wolf than dog, Harris said they will be permanently housed at the sanctuary. This means three new enclosures will need to be built, at a cost of around $50,000 each.
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“The most important thing is providing them with what they should have had all along, so this is enclosures and spaces where they are able to live their lives as they’re meant to live,” fundraising coordinator Jessica Hynes said.
“[This includes] running around, playing with their friends [and)]getting into mischief together but safely.”
The sanctuary recently launched a new campaign to help pay for the new safe havens. The From Alone to Home: Wolfdog Rescue Campaign has a spring 2021 target goal of $160,000 which would help pay for the enclosures, as well as pay for the vet bills and travel costs already incurred.
The three other husky sled dogs rescued will be properly vetted and will be going to Garcia Rescue in Cochrane to be adopted.
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