A wolf pup with deformed paws was found in a forest near Dzyarzhynsk. It turned out to be completely tame
A post about a wolf pup with severely deformed paws appeared on the social media pages of the "Sirin" Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, writes "Onliner". The animal was found in the forest — and surprisingly, the beast was not afraid of people at all; on the contrary, it rejoiced at them. Moreover, such a developmental anomaly simply would not have occurred in the wild, specialists note.
"This little wolf pup resembles a mutant from a horror film! This can happen due to improper keeping and feeding. And it doesn't appear on its own," notes the publication, which gathered many comments.
People sympathize with the wolf pup and wonder: what caused such a condition in the animal?
"What's wrong with its paws? Fractures? Or did it develop incorrectly?"
"Is this caused by some disease?"
"How could someone bring a living creature to such a state and abandon it?"
"Onliner" contacted Irina Troyanovskaya, the founder of "Sirin", to learn the details of this story.
"The wolf was found in the forest on the border of Dzyarzhynsk and Stankava. I understood that hunters saw it. First, the animal was handed over to the Center for Ecological Tourism in Stankava, but there were no conditions for its keeping and treatment there. So, the wolf pup was sent to us. It's about six months old. It's tame, kind, 100% lived with people. It loves people very much, is happy with everyone," Irina recounts.
She believes that the deformities primarily arose due to improper nutrition. Perhaps the wolf was also kept in a cramped space or on a slippery floor when it lived in a home.
"We have already taken X-rays and analyses. They show that it lacks calcium and phosphorus, and alkaline phosphatase is very highly elevated. The bones in the X-rays are all transparent. These are signs of rickets or recent fractures."
According to Irina, the problems might not necessarily have arisen because the previous owners skimped on the animal. Perhaps they simply didn't know what to feed a predator.
"A wolf cannot be fed only meat. Even if it's premium marbled beef. It needs bones, skins, tendons, vitamins, dairy products. You can't sustain it on just meat," explains the interviewee.
We also contacted zoologist Dmitry Shamovich for a comment. He confirmed that improper keeping and feeding could lead to such developmental abnormalities in a wild animal. Specifically, a lack of necessary nutrients and vitamins, as well as a lack of ultraviolet light. The latter is important for the production of vitamin D, which helps the body absorb calcium and phosphorus. If an animal does not receive these substances during its active growth period, its bones can form incorrectly and become deformed.
Irina does not rule out that the wolf pup might have been abandoned when its condition became noticeable. But finding the previous owners, according to her, is theoretically possible.
"Wild animals kept at home must be registered. To keep a wild animal in a domestic environment, a permit from the Ministry of Natural Resources is required. If environmental protection agencies take up this issue, it might be possible to find out who took it from the wild," Irina suggests.
Indeed, Belarus has rules for keeping wild animals in captivity. Specifically, for animals caught in nature with a permit, registration is mandatory. The owner must confirm the legality of the animal's origin and compliance with the requirements for its keeping. Therefore, if the wolf pup was taken from the forest officially, information about it might be preserved in documents. However, it is currently unknown who exactly kept the animal and under what circumstances it ended up in the forest.
It will no longer be possible to fully correct the wolf pup's deformities. The center decided not to perform surgery: to straighten the limbs, it would be necessary to re-break the bones in all four paws and adjust their position. But even such intervention would not solve all problems — the wolf's pelvis is also deformed, and it cannot be restored.
"But doctors say that something might straighten out," Irina explains.
However, "Sirin" intends to do everything possible for the wolf to support its health and prevent its condition from worsening. It will be provided with full nutrition, continued examinations, and a spacious enclosure will be prepared. The center is currently working on its arrangement and needs help. More details on how to help the wolf pup can be found on "Sirin"'s social media pages.
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