Career Guidance for Children who want to work with Animals
Wolf Body Structure
Wolf Body
At first glance, the wolf might look scrawny, but its body is perfectly built and full of thick muscles.
The chest region is very slender with a heavily muscled neck, the back is sloped down towards the hind legs and the tail is long, all which allow the wolf to have a full range of movement in running, hunting and taking down large Prey. Females tend to have thinner necks, slightly shorter legs, less massive shoulders and weigh about 20% less than males.
Wolves vary greatly in size and weight depending on species and where they live. Grey Wolves can weigh around 110 pounds (50 kg), while Red Wolves weigh around 85 pounds (39 kg). Wolves in Canada, Alaska, and Russia can weigh up to 115 pounds (52 kg), where the Arabian Wolf in the Middle East weighs around 80 pounds (36 kg).
Torso
Wolves are the largest of the canids, a family of mammals that includes dogs, foxes, coyotes and jackals. It is slender and powerfully built with a large, deeply descending rib cage, a sloping back, and a heavily muscled neck.
Coat
Wolves can have thick fur in a variety of colors. They can include white, tan, brown, black, and gray. The fur consists of two types of hair. The undercoat is very close to the skin. It acts as an insulator so that the body can stay warm and the overall temperature regulated. The guards are the outer layers, or the hair that we can see. The thickness of both of these coats depends on the climate as well as the time of year. Scent glands are found in the fur, along with the tail that allows them to mark their territory.
The longest hairs occur on the back, particularly on the chest and neck. Especially long hairs are on the shoulders, and almost form a crest or mane on the upper part of the neck. The hairs on the face, ears, and legs are short. Wolves shed their coats just like other canines. Generally, this will occur in the springtime when the temperatures are warmer and they don’t need it to be as thick. The thick winter fur is highly resistant to cold, allowing wolves in northern climates to rest comfortably in open areas at −40° by placing their muzzles between the rear legs and covering their faces with their tail.
Legs
The wolf’s legs are moderately longer than those of other canids, which enables the animal to move swiftly. A wolf’s legs are built for long-distance travel and strength, and not so much for speed. It can reach a top speed of about 28 mph (45km/h) and only for short distances. In fact, wolves actually run on their toes which help them to stop and turn quickly and to prevent their paw pads from wearing down. The wolf’s broad feet and long, flexible toes conform to uneven terrain, thus allowing the animal to maintain speed over difficult terrains, such as deep snow.
The feet of wolves are extremely large. The average is nine inches by ten inches. This allows them to walk on top of the snow. The warmth of the footpads is regulated independently of the rest of the body and is maintained at just above the tissue-freezing point where the pads come in contact with ice and snow.
The bottom pads are very thick and there are five toes on a wolf’s front paws and only four on the rear paws. The fifth on the front is called a dew claw. The dew claw is not for hunting or protection, however, it does aid the wolf in digging dens as well as going after small prey animals that live in burrows.
The size of a wolf’s track or paw print depends on the age and size of the wolf. The average Gray Wolf’s track size is 4 inches (10 cm) wide by 5 inches (12.5 cm) long. In comparison, a coyote’s track will be closer to 2 inches by 2.5 inches (5 by 6 cm). Only a few breeds of dogs are large enough to leave tracks longer than that of a wolf.
Tails
The tail measures 29–50 cm (11–20 in) in length.
While walking, wolves’ tails will not curl up or over their backs like a dogs tail will and generally stays straight. Their tails are bushy and, along with the rest of the body, are covered in a thick coat of soft fur.
Wolves use tail positions to communicate. Threatening wolves hold their tails high, almost perpendicular, while submissive wolves lower themselves before dominant pack members, tails tucked between their legs.
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