Shasta II joined the Big Pack in the Sky on December 30th, 2016.
She was assisted at ~11 years old due to quality of life concerns.
Shasta II’s exact date of birth is unknown, but was estimated to be in 2005. She arrived in February of 2015, back when Wild Spirit had a policy of keeping names assigned to rescues by their original owners (with some exceptions). We now rename most animals that come through our doors to avoid any negative associations they may have with their old name, and to prevent confusion with the public/Caretakers.
Shasta II had a fairly common backstory. She was found running loose in California for a few weeks, and was eventually picked up by Calaveras County Animal Services. When the caring folks at animal services tried to interact with her, Shasta II would bear her teeth and make a growling sound that understandably made them too nervous to touch her. This, combined with some of her wolfy traits, resulted in her being scheduled for euthanasia.
Thankfully, a concerned employee, Gina, began working to find Shasta II a new place to live before it was too late. During her search, she discovered Wild Spirit online, and reached out to see if we had room for placement. Given the delicate timeline, we desperately started a fundraiser to cover the initial expenses of her rescue, and with the help of countless caring supporters, we set off to California to rescue Shasta II!
The day we picked Shasta II up, we were able to see how fearful she was first hand. With some patience and a gentle approach, Shasta II was willing to reach out for some pets. For the first time on Shasta II’s last day, Gina rubbed her, leashed her, and hopped right into the WSWS van like a pro!
Personality
Shasta II was a goofy gal with a propensity for wacky antics! Sometimes it was difficult to tell if she was Rayne‘s “side kick” to his schemes, or vice versa! Regardless, when these two were together, there was never a dull moment. Shasta II was quite affectionate during her time at Wild Spirit, and due to both her and Rayne’s joyful nature, they were some of the first wolfdogs newer Caretakers trained on.
Relationships
From the moment Shasta II arrived, she lived with her fellow low-content wolfdog, Rayne. Even before we brought her home, we knew these two would be a perfect match, and we were very pleased to see how right we were.
Fun Facts
Shasta II had a frequent habit of . . . well . . . mounting Rayne. Despite common “misconception” (pun intended), mounting in canines is rarely sexual, and moreover, is not a dominance display. This is a displacement behavior many canines use when they are stressed or over-excited; alternatively, it can also be used by canines to incite play!
In Shasta II’s case, if ever Rayne’s energy became too much for her to bear, or something particularly exciting happened (such as her favorite Caretaker entering the enclosure), the mounting began! Thankfully, Rayne was a good sport about it, and took it in stride.
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