Apart from in a zoo, I just wondered: have any SF users ever seen a real life wolf in its natural habitat?

what is a the natural habitat of your average wolf??

bars in town? pubs? white vans?

I was once chased by one in Gran Canaria!

Well, when I say chased, I never actually saw it. About 4 years ago, I wandered off in a very drunken state from a nightclub, took a wrong turning, and ended up rather than back at my compact but luxurious bungalow, but in what I can only describe as a Brazillian-style favela!

V long story cut short, but ended up sat on a high wall frightened to death that wolves were going to eat me. (I could hear them but did not encounter one.) Cut to me arriving back at my lodgings still drunk, ankle sprained, hand and legs grazed and missing my wallet. :(

I wasn't allowed to be the custodian of the 'shared purse' after that night.... :(

K x

Yeah at Rivelin in a garden and no I aint joking.

Near the fire station, genuine wolves with about 8ft wire fencing all around and you could see the holes in the ground for dens.

Yes, in Alaska, a couple of hours north of Fairbanks.

I was camping at the edge of a forest and one evening a beautiful grey 'dog' came and sat at the edge of the woods, wtaching me for several minutes before disappearing in to the forest. He or she did this on a couple of occasions, and it was hard to tell who was more interested in the other.

A chap who was camping nearby started watching and he was more 'with it' than me and confirmed it was indeed a wolf.

Beautiful animals.

Had I known at the start it was a wolf rather than a 'nice doggie' I would have probably done more to resist the temptation to go stroke it.... :)

Fortunately I still have all arms and legs!

Joe

Yep, a pack of them in Ladakh India trotted across the top of a mountain ridge about 500m away from where I was standing.

Originally posted by Kristian
I was once chased by one in Gran Canaria!

AFAIK there are no wolves in the Canaries at all....

Sadly they'll be extinct soon, both in Europe and the US

I saw some outside a zoo, but not exactly in their natural habitat... It was in Plashet Park, East Ham. Somebody who breeds wolves had brought a load along for some sort of family fun day, they were just pacing about behind a flimsy little fence, absolutely beautiful creatures.

There are wolves in London Zoo, but although I've been there loads of times I've never seen them, bloody things are always hiding during the daytime. You'd have more chance of seeing a wolf running wild in Gran Canaria.

There was something on Countryfile this morning about wolves.

Originally posted by Phanerothyme
AFAIK there are no wolves in the Canaries at all....

Sadly they'll be extinct soon, both in Europe and the US

Okay, Okay, it was probably dogs or something, but they were still very scary! :blush:

K x

Originally posted by Kristian
Okay, Okay, it was probably dogs or something, but they were still very scary! :blush:

I was in Udaipur, India, on New Year's Eve once. I'd been feeling very ill, so didn't go out partying, but come about 11pm I was feeling very hot & bothered so I went for a stroll around the streets. Streets were deserted, everyone was inside partying. I got halfway around town before I became aware of packs of feral dogs roaming the alleys all around me. I rushed back to my hotel absolutely peeing myself.

Another time when I lived in Bristol, I went out for a walk in Leigh Woods at about 3am. Came back past the traveller encampment at the bottom of the gorge. I was strolling along quietly when an alsatian and a smaller dog burst out of a bush next to me, slavering and barking. I'm certain this alsatian wanted to bite me, the only reason it didn't is because I played the dominant dog and made to attack it, so it backed off a couple of steps. As soon as I turned to walk (sharpish) away again, it made another lunge for me, so in the end I had to walk backwards for about 200m, stamping on the floor in front of the alsatian all of the way, until I got out of its territory and it lost interest.

They really do look like alsation dogs, don't they?

Originally posted by micksheff
Yeah at Rivelin in a garden and no I aint joking.

Near the fire station, genuine wolves with about 8ft wire fencing all around and you could see the holes in the ground for dens.

There was only one. I lived 8 doors up throughout my childhood (my parents still do), and it was a common game to take friends who hadn't visited to see it.

I lived in America for 6 years and one morning a woman from our street came round with this little puppy that had been found wandering round. She asked if it was ours or if we knew who's it was. We didn't and neither did anyone else, so she tried to find a home for it. After begging and begging my mum and dad for what seemed like weeks they said we could have a look at it. We went round and it came running up to my dad, licking his face. We took the little guy home that night. It looked really weird and my dad couldn't make out what breed it was so we took her to the vets for a check up and the vet told us she was a cross between a German Shephard and a Gray Wolf. She was the most gentle dog ive ever had. She was scared of frogs and ducks and she would lick your face all day if she could.

I've never seen a real life wolf and I'm not sure if I would want to... eeek!

Unless they were trained, fed and had an owner :)

I'd LOVE to meet a wolf - they're the most beautiful, proud, dignified animals - absolutely gorgeous.

Recently I've fallen in love with a couple of beautiful wolf-like dogs I've seen around Walkley - I think they're Akitas(?). They have the most fabulous blue eyes. I really want to cuddle them, but I think I might have to count my fingers afterwards! :)

They're probably the closest I'm ever likely to get to a wolf!

StarSparkle

Originally posted by Kristian
I was once chased by one in Gran Canaria!

Well, when I say chased, I never actually saw it. About 4 years ago, I wandered off in a very drunken state from a nightclub, took a wrong turning, and ended up rather than back at my compact but luxurious bungalow, but in what I can only describe as a Brazillian-style favela!

V long story cut short, but ended up sat on a high wall frightened to death that wolves were going to eat me. (I could hear them but did not encounter one.) Cut to me arriving back at my lodgings still drunk, ankle sprained, hand and legs grazed and missing my wallet. :(

I wasn't allowed to be the custodian of the 'shared purse' after that night.... :(

K x

You realy should write a book, it would be like a gay Bridget Jones Diary.

Originally posted by nick2
You realy should write a book, it would be like a gay Bridget Jones Diary.

If I do, can I borrow some of your stories from this (http://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/showthread.php?s=&threadid=30782&perpage=15&pagenumber=1) thread? :D

K x

Aren't there plans to reintroduce them into the Scottish wilds? The poor Scots. First the Poll Tax was 'tried out' on them, and now wretched wolves. "What fresh hell is this?", our Caledonian friends might cry. Life for them is a vale of tears. What useful purpose can possibly be achieved by reintroducing such a large predator into the Scots countryside?

If the plan comes to fruition, it will all be terribly exciting for the natural history types. That is, of course, until tragedy occurs. Imagine the scene, a group of anorak -clad ramblers, perhaps sauntering solicitors from Edinburgh on a weekend hike, brought down and eaten by a wolfpack. No, the Scots do not deserve this. Let's reintroduce them to Barnsley instead, where they will take a marvellous toll of the 'chavs'.

Originally posted by timo
Imagine the scene, a group of anorak -clad ramblers, perhaps sauntering solicitors from Edinburgh on a weekend hike, brought down and eaten by a wolfpack.

Sounds like fun.

Originally posted by timo
What useful purpose can possibly be achieved by reintroducing such a large predator into the Scots countryside?

Erm, predating, perhaps?

Originally posted by timo
Imagine the scene, a group of anorak -clad ramblers, perhaps sauntering solicitors from Edinburgh on a weekend hike, brought down and eaten by a wolfpack.

There's a great passage in M John Harrison's novel Climbers (http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0753819554/sumptionorg-21) where he talks about feral boy scouts & girl guides in the Peak District: every time a group goes for a hike, the fattest or unfittest one is unwittingly left behind. When the group returns a year later, the same child is still there, now a scrawny bag of bones and muscles, staying alive by stealing the odd packed lunch off passing ramblers.

Thanks Dan, I'll check that one out. Sounds rather amusing...