Finding myself with a spare couple of weeks on my hands I decided to do the obvious and retreat to the Portuguese countryside to look after wolves. What better way to spend a fortnight?
I only really gave my decision a second thought as
I climbed off a 
tiny
bus in the middle of nowhere, somewhere in the countryside
of northern Portugal.These doubts were soon to vanish
however when I arrived at the Grupo Lobo's wolf rehabilitation
centre. The centre is set in a tranquil valley 20 kilometres
to the north of Lisbon and covers some 42 acres. More
importantly it provides a home for 11 wolves and the
volunteers that are mad enough to want to help them.
'Home' for the volunteers is a comfortable mountain lodge with stunning views from which the haunting sounds of the wolves' howls can be heard at night. Each morning myself and the other volunteers would take water around the centre, to be left at various points for the wolves. Whilst doing the rounds we would normally be observed by the alpha male and a female from a mere few feet away. Contrary to popular believe the wolves themselves are shy and unaggressive animals wary of humans. Each day, as I spent more time observing them, I continued to be struck by their noble beauty.
Volunteers are expected to dedicate a part of each
day to observing the wolves. This can be done from either
of the two watch towers that overlook the centre. Another
daily task is to give the wolves their medication. This
is more for the wolves that arrived at the centre after
suffering abuse at the hands of humans. One of the females
was abandoned by Lisbon zoo after she lost her sight.
Another was recovered from neighboring Spain after he
was discovered chained to a wall and kept as a pet.
Concealing pills in hunks of cow meat is perhaps not
for the squeamish but it is as important as feeding
the wolves.
A huge task undertaken ever other day where whole chickens
and hunks of other meat has to be distributed round
the centre. The smell of the meat encourages the bolder
wolves to emerge and you can watch them quickly devour
it right in front of you.
Apart from these activities directly concerned with
the wolves themselves, volunteers also participate in
activities concerned with the general upkeep of the
centre. We helped to plant chestnut trees and cleared
bones from the land.
A typical day:
8.15am leave lodge to do water round.
9am Feeding - weigh out and cut up meat and take to
each wolf
12pm wash up buckets and knives.
12.30pm return to lodge for lunch
13.30 wolf observation
14.30 set up hidden cameras to try and record images
of the more reclusive wolves.
15.30 tree planting
17.00 return to lodge
I am neither a biologist nor an animal expert yet my time at grupo lobo was an amazing opportunity to work with animals that I might otherwisehave never had the opportunity to work with. I would strongly recommend the experience to anyone else with a bit of spare time on their hands. The two biologists who run the centre speak excellent English and welcome anyone keen enough to volunteer. Unlike a lot of volunteer work, there is no real cost to volunteering. The only thing you are expected to pay is 16 euros a night for your accommodation in the lodge, half the cost of a night in a hostel - and I challenge you to find a more beautifully set hostel where you eat your dinner to the sound of wolves.
Email the Grupo Lobo on: globo[@]fc.ul.pt
And find out more on www.lobo.fc.ul.pt
By Sarah Benson
The University of Leeds, UK
