Pack Life

A pack is a tightly knit group of wolves that are related in some way forming a family. A pack usually consists of the male and female parents of the offspring which make up the rest of the pack. These two wolves are known commonly as the Alpha Pair. The Alpha Pair are normally the only wolves to mate or breed within the pack, ensuring that their offspring will be the strongest and best bred wolves that will ensure the health and well being of the pack in the future. Most members stay with in the pack, on rare occasions a wolf might leave the pack hoping to find a mate and establish their own pack on new territory.

Within pack of ten to fifty wolves, s a certain pecking order and hierarchy is established. The pack is constructed of a strict hierarchy ranging from Alpha to Omega. The Omega, lowest in rank, normally gets picked on by the rest of the pack depicting it as the escape goat for tension, anger and fighting. Though they have the lowest in rank, they are usually the most important wolves, they help keep tension down in the pack.

Each pack has its leaders the Alpha pair. The Alpha pair submit to no one and uphold the peace and law within the pack by constantly keeping aware of the social status of each wolf. The Alpha also keep charge of the territory, ensuring no one intrudes. Alpha’s express their feelings through dominate postures such as raising their tail high like a dominate flag, ears always locked ahead, eyes keenly aware of the surroundings. Alpha’s also force other wolves into submission, keeping peace within the pack. Without the Alpha’s there wouldn’t be a pack. There would be no leadership and no one to uphold the rules and enforce them.

Following along side the alpha pair, are wolves known as the Betas, who are second in command as well the caretakers to the pack. In the pack, each wolf has a certain rank to uphold, to which they submit to any wolf in higher ranking then there own. Omegas submit to everyone in the pack, Subordinates submit to the beta and alphas, betas submit to the alphas and alphas submit to no one. Its harsh being under the ‘paw’, but it ensures peace within the pack. “The Alpha Wolf may show friendly dominance by closing its teeth on a subordinate's muzzle in a ritual bite. The bite does not draw blood and is, indeed as much a sign of affection as of being discipline that status of each of the participants.” (wolf country page 2). A lone wolf is unlikely to survive outside the protection of the clearing and pack boundaries. A pack is vital and important to a wolfs safety and health. Without the pack, there is no wolf, and without the wolf there can be no pack.