Fenris

Male Wolf-Dog

Born on January 1, 2007 in Michigan
Arrived at Mission: Wolf on June 24, 2007

Passed July 2023

Lived with Raven, Daisy, McKinley, Batman

Fenris’ History

Fenris, and his sister Amulet, came to us in the summer of 2007. Their mother was found to be pregnant after she and seventeen other wolves were confiscated from a private compound in Michigan during a gun and drug raid that resulted in a policeman and the owner being shot.

Many of the animals, including the pregnant wolf, were taken to the Michigan Humane Society. It was here that Fenris and Amulet, along with their other two litter mates, were born. Mother and puppies lived together for four months in a 10’x10’ enclosure with little human interaction, and dogs barking all around them. Since barking is a warning signal to wolves, this caused the mother and all four pups to live in almost constant terror and anxiety.

We agreed to take in two of the puppies in the hopes that their young age would allow us to socialize them. They were the most terrified pups we had ever adopted. Fenris and Amulet spent their first two months at the refuge cowering and fear barking from the back of their enclosure, so we introduced them to Magpie, an outgoing female ambassador wolf. Our hopes were that she would teach them to be more comfortable around humans. Instead, the timid pups rejected Magpie’s efforts to care for them and hid from her as well. She soon became so stressed at having these terrified pups living with her that Magpie also began to avoid human contact. We decided to separate the pups, and each one went to live with a socialized adult wolf. Raven adopted Fenris, and Amulet was introduced to a male wolf named Merlin. Now unable to feed off each other’s fear, Fenris and Amulet slowly began to settle down and look up to their new companions.

Over the years, he grew into a strikingly handsome wolf with a stark black coat and white chest. When he became more outgoing, we paired him with a wolf-dog named Daisy. The two of them hit it off and he quickly earned Daisy’s respect as he stood up to her challenges over food. The two were often found lying close to each other on their hillside. After Daisy passed away in the summer of 2018, Fenris was paired with McKinley, an elderly female wolf-dog who had also recently lost her partner. The two lived together in happy companionship until McKinley passed away in August of 2020. Batman had been paired with Fenris’ sister Amulet until her death in 2019 and was also looking for a partner so we introduced the two. They got along beautifully and quickly became inseparable. In the summer of 2023, at the age of 16, Fenris passed away peacefully in his enclosure by the driveway. He will be forever missed and remembered for his soft, gentle spirit.