Texas sanctuary is a happy home for wolves

Awww look at the Big Bad Wolf.. tummy scratch time! :)
If you want to visit this amazing wolf sanctuary read on:

MONTGOMERY, Texas – Wolves are extinct in Texas, but in one area of the Lone Star State, it isn't unusual to hear the chilling chorus of their howls echoing across rolling hills and filtering through towering pines as residents of Saint Francis Wolf Sanctuary communicate with one another.

Wolves are elusive in the wild, and the opportunity to watch and even pet one draws people from near and far.

People interested in judging for themselves can go to the sanctuary's annual open house, Oct. 4 this year. Doors to the nonprofit, federally licensed refuge will be open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Among scheduled activities are human-wolf interaction and therapy demonstrations, educational sessions, face painting, a silent auction and a raffle.

Currently, seven pens house 11 canine residents. Sanctuary founder Dr. Jean LeFevre says more pens are needed. Dr. LeFevre, who has a doctorate in pastoral counseling, has trained some wolves to work as therapy animals, offering an emotional boost to disfigured children, adults in wheelchairs, abused women and traumatized war veterans.
"A quadriplegic woman had tears in her eyes while petting one of our wolves, saying she never thought she'd ever see a wolf, much less get to touch one," Dr. LeFevre says.

The animals also have been instrumental in the recovery of some addicts.
"Everyone had given up, written me off," says Jason Bilski, 27. "Then I came out here. Being out here is very therapeutic. ... People think we take care of them, but really they take care of us."
Patti Pfeiffer is a freelance writer in Flower Mound. Read the whole article here Visit the Sanctuary website here

Click the sleepy wolf pup below for even more beautiful wolf photos from another wonderful sanctuary :)

Frost
Originally uploaded by Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary Wolves.