Contessa joined the Big Pack in the Sky on February 5th, 2016.
She was assisted at 15 years old following a stroke.
Contessa was born in May of 2000, and arrived at Wild Spirit in August of 2008. Her owner originally purchased her from “Wolf Country U.S.A.” in Alaska when she was only 5 weeks old. Wolf Country U.S.A has since shut down, due to Alaska having a zero tolerance policy on owning and selling wolfdogs.
Contessa lived in Boston for the first 8 years of her life, receiving excellent care and socialization. While her owner still loved Contessa very much, his new lifestyle involved spending half the year in Asia, leaving Contessa to be boarded in a small kennel much of the time.
In hopes of giving Contessa a better life, he reached out to Wild Spirit in hopes she could find a new, equally loving home. When we responded, excited to welcome her to the sanctuary, her owner was so appreciative that he offered a large donation to help with the purchase of the sanctuary’s land. Immediately, we set off to pick Contessa up at her home in Boston.
After a 42 hour drive back, Contessa was introduced to Axel, who had recently lost his previous companion, Princess. We quickly discovered that Contessa had a rambuctious side that required a more tolerant companion, so she moved in with an older male named Doc. The two made for a happy pair, until Doc’s tragic passing.
Contessa moved in with a third companion in her short stay at Wild Spirit, this time with a fellow named Zoerro. Unfortunately, he was less forgiving of her shenanigans than Doc; one spat later, the two were separated, and Contessa was solo again. It was only when a gentle soul named Navar came to the sanctuary that Contessa finally met her match.
Despite Contessa’s troubled history with her fellow canines, her relationships with Caretakers only blossomed! She was an extraordinarily social wolfdog, with a needy and pampered personality that earned her the moniker “The Countess”.
Personality
Contessa was a very social animal who loved everyone that walked by her enclosure. She was very sweet towards Caretakers, and loved to roll over for belly rubs. Contessa also had a naughty streak in her, and if given the opportunity, would claim Caretakers’ items as her own. She could also become sensitive to body posture, and it was not unusual for her to snarl or growl at people that made mistakes with their body language.
Likes & Dislikes
Contessa loved going for walks, howling with Caretakers, and belly rubs.
Contessa disliked any new and intimidating animals, vet visits, and anyone trying to get her to do something she didn’t want to.
Fun Facts
Contessa was one of the very few animals at the sanctuary who would join a howl started by a human! Howling is all about communication, but we . . . Well, we don’t really know the language. For this reason, most wolves and wolfdogs just ignore our gibberish, and more often than not, find it annoying. Contessa however, was more than happy to answer us, despite not knowing what we were trying to say.
0 Comments