Kawani was a very young mother and had only two pups.  One of those pups, Nokomis, did not survive more than 7 weeks and died from a leukemia like disease in which he had essentially no red blood cells and a lot of white blood cells. 

Lobo stayed close to Kawani & the pups while Waya kept the perimeter secure and barked at anyone strange walking past.  When the pups got their legs under them at about four weeks of age, Waya and Kawani reverted back to their usual standoffish personalities.  Four Socks, however, is just as social as his father Lobo and willingly walks up to new volunteers who enter their enclosure. 

It is this experience with minimally social animals welcoming us as their extended pack that leads us to believe all the information being put out there by researchers and breeders is inaccurate when it comes to having to "pull pups" from their moms.  Most will tell you that bottle feeding is necessary for the pup to bond with humans.  We have seen the repercussions of this practice in rescue.  Adult females are traumatized to have their pups removed.  Babies cannot possibly get the necessary nutrients and behavioral lessons from substitute milk and substitute packs of domestic dogs.  Why have research facilities not attempted raising pups with the socialized adults they maintain?  When asked, one stated that they weren't willing to "risk" unsocialized animals.  Isn't that what research is truly about?   Shouldn't a theory be tested before it is accepted as fact?  As a sanctuary and rescue facility we will not intentionally breed a litter to test our hypothesis but would challenge a true research facility to do so with their next litter.   Biologists can enter dens in the wild to assess and weigh litters so why can't it be done with wolves in captivity?  Raising a puppy is a 24/7 job and in some places people pay a lot of money to be puppy "nannies" for the privilege of doing so…