The Wolves of Medicine Wheel Lodge

To visit and commune with wolves is a memorable experience! I’ve been fortunate to be able to visit an amazing place called Medicine Wheel Ranch.

I was able to go into a large habitat with Tundra wolves and receiving many sweet kisses and feel their powerful energy. The wolves stole my hat and they played with it like puppies until dog biscuits convinced them that they should return in unharmed.  

Healingwolf, the ranch’s owner, has a mystical calling to help us all understand these creatures. She was given her name by her father when she was found healing a wolf. Another wolf, knowing she was dying brought her young one for her. She has raised Gray wolves, Arctic wolves, Timber wolves, and now Tundra wolves. She has kept each one until they naturally crossed over to spirit.

Two grandfathers adopted her over 10 years ago, one 100 year old Oglala Sioux Shaman, and his 110 year old friend, a Shoshone Shaman. They have made her gifts, items that have been with their tribes for generations, and passed on the old wisdom that she shares with others. Healingwolf gives respect to the Ancient Ones, and honors all tribes, all traditions, and all relations.

Healing Wolf believes that the wolves are teachers and says the get particularly excited when children visit. “The children learn respect for all animals and creations, respect for themselves, one another, their siblings, their parents, their teachers, their classmates, Mother Earth and all elements. The wolves are leaders, teachers, and protectors.”

The Medicine Wheel Lodge invites you to go back in time listening to the stories passed down from the Shamans while reconnecting with the Earth Mother and experiencing Harmony and Balance amidst a private ancient oasis. The Peace you will experience is the presence of those who have gone before, and those who are still present. It is their connection and reverence to the land that gifts all who visit, such tranquility. If you are very perceptive, you may see them or watch them dance or feel their energy.

The site and building are also the site of a stagecoach stop when Arizona was young.

Learn more about Medicine Wheel Ranch

Marishka - Character Interview

Marishka Petrova

Head of Security - Shapeshifters Academy

Acquisitions Librarian (Borzoi)

Sybilla is such a bitch. I hate it when readers compare us. She’s just a city wolf who wears expensive shoes while I’m trained in special techniques to combat werewolf attacks. I’m certified in commando assault rifle, field and survival skills. My hobbies include orienteering, scuba, explosives and camouflage. I’ve climbed Everest, twice.

I’m proud to be an instructor of Krav Maga, a form known for its focus on real-world situations and extremely efficient and brutal counter-attacks. I worked for ten years with the Mossad in Research, Collections, and Special Operations to gain experience to intensify our international covert operations. I achieved the rank of – can’t talk about that – but they all remember me. 

I came to Shipsfeather to train the Academy staff in self-defense and then the curse came down. I became Head of Academy Security, responsible for keeping one hundred plus locked-up dog-shifters secure. Non-violence is a dog-shifter credo but with wolves howling at our doors, get real.

I’m also the Academy Acquisitions Librarian and Slavic Languages Specialist. In my spare time I jog and course. When I can find a sparring partner I box and wrestle. And I practice yoga to slow down my super-achiever mind and to keep me focused.

Before this curse thing Dr. Thaddeus Perrot and I were engaged. But all that’s on hold. 

It’s confining locked inside, but in a way I like the discipline. I eat, I exercise, and I work. I’m a born leader and it really torques my tail when Headmaster Chronus ignores my advice. But I’m his second in command in case of breach of perimeter and I follow orders. 

I definitely should be the heroine of my own book. If Amber wants a kick-ass librarian heroine, I am ready.

Favorite Reading: Chekhov, Tolstoy, and anything by Tom Clancy.

Complete List of Characters 
in 

The Shapeshifters' Library Series

  Read 

Released (The Shapeshifters' Library Book 1)

to learn more about Marishka's library, the dog-shifters, and the werewolf book-burners.

Wolf Rescue

 Bill Chamberlain, Director of the United States Wolf Refuge

 Bill Chamberlain has over twenty-seven years of experience dealing with wolves and wolf hybrids on a daily basis. He is certified in assessing and evaluating animal behavior and has done extensive studies and research into wolf and wolf-hybrid behavior.

  

I met Bill at a presentation in Arizona. Not only did he talk about the work he's doing with wolves and wolf-dogs but he explained the history and evolution of wolves, wolf behavior, recovery programs, and the reintroduction of the Mexican gray wolf into the wilds of the Southwest. The U.S. Wolf Refuge  facility in Nevada presently has 16 wolves and hybrids, some for possible adoption and others are there in their forever home.

United States Wolf Refuge

The U.S. Wolf Refuge is in existence to promote and protect the welfare of all wolves and wolf dogs throughout North America. Their overall goals are to return the wolf to its rightful place within our ecology and to promote healthy and harmonious relations between man and wolf dogs.

They believe virtually all recent tragic incidents involving wolves and wolf dogs have been a direct result of humans dealing ineffectively with the wolves. If wolf and wolf dog behavior is understood and properly dealt with, man's relationship with them will be happy and harmonious. The U.S. Wolf Refuge is dedicated to this belief.

It is the belief of the U.S. Wolf Refuge that wolves are wildlife and belong in the wild as is naturally intended. Those who oppose the mere existence of the wolf must understand that the wolf is an absolute necessity to the natural balance of any ecosystem. Those who revere the wolf and make it out to be something greater than it is must understand the same thing. The wolf is simply a piece in Mother Nature's delicate and complicated puzzle.
                                                                                                          

Kasa  

Bill was accompanied by Kasa (Hopi Indian for "dressed in furs"), a 3 year old Wolf-Dog that was rescued from a California animal shelter after her owners lost their home to foreclosure. In most California cities any dog that is suspected of being a wolf mix is not eligible for adoption and either must be pulled out by an authorized rescue organization or is automatically euthanized. When her owners surrendered her they classified her as a Wolf-Dog. A volunteer from the U.S. Wolf Refuge was fortunate to have received a call from the animal shelter and was able to "rescue" her before she was euthanized.

Kasa has a wonderfully friendly disposition due to being raised with children and other animals. She has become an Ambassador Animal and goes to many public events. 

Wolf & Wolf-Hybrids

Besides the plight of wolves, Bill is an expert on wolf-dogs. He says, "wolves and wolf-hybrids are magnificent animals that many see as a status symbol."

Bill's organization takes in and finds homes for wolves and wolf dogs that are socialized enough to adjust to a new pack/family without significant trauma. This is a complicated and delicate process in that it requires an in-depth assessment of the animal as well as the people who are willing to bring such an animal into their home and into their lives. Bill has written a Placement Guide. He told me the his Adoption Questionnaire is exceptionally thorough. When I asked him about the success rate of wolf-hybrid adoptions from the U.S. Wolf Refuge he said only one had been removed from a home. He felt this was because the placement process was tough.  

I also asked Bill about DNA testing to determine if an animal was pure wolf or wolf hybrid. He said that at this time that is not possible.

Learn more & gain more insight by reading "Find Your Wolf a New Home" by Bill Chamberlain. And Download the Adoption Questionnaire and / or the the Adoption Agreement.

Amber Polo and Kasa

Learn more about the U.S. Wolf Refuge 

and wolves and wolf-hybrids

and assist their work.

Choose a wolf or wolf-dog to
sponsor for one year 
in their "Adopt-A-Wolf" Program.

Love Blog Tours? Prizes?

To Celebrate the print release of "Released"

(Book 1 of The Shapeshifters' Library) 

I'm setting out on my first ever

back-to-back blog tours.
Join me and take a chance on winning
great prizes (including genuine Arctic wolf fur)

Print and Kindle  and Nook now available

Follow along with me for 

Reviews, Excerpts, Guest Posts, & Interviews! 

14 stops in 9 Days!

Big Blog Tour Sept 10-17th

Sept 10 Hezzi D's Books & Cooks Review 

Sept 11 Bound To Astound Guest Post 

Sept 12 Aria's Dark Muse  Review
Sept 13 Nette's Bookshelf Excerpt

Sept 14 Nezzi D's Books & Cooks  Guest Post 

Sept 15 Books, Etc. Review
            The Wormhole Review/Author Interview
Sept 16 Hanging with Bells

Sept 17 A Simple Love of Reading  Guest Post 

Big Blog Tour Prize

Large canvas Shipsfeather Library book bag,4 signed books by Amber Polo including The Shapeshifters’ Library Book 1: Released, Amber's relaxation CD, 2 collectible dogs, a tuft of Arctic wolf fur,

And more…

One Day Excerpt Blitz - Sept 18th

Sept 18  A Simple Love of Reading 

Sept 18 The Peasants Revolt 

Sept 18 Crossroads 

Sept 18 Sherri's FIK*TISH*UHS Reviews 

Sept 18 Herding Cats & Burning Soup 

One Day Excerpt Blitz Prize

3 signed books by Amber Polo including The Shapeshifters’ Library Book 1: Released, a tuft of Arctic wolf fur, and more...

Lots of chances to win

Thanks, Collette, from

 ABG Reads Book Tours 

for setting me up with these wonderful bloggers!

a Rafflecopter giveaway a Rafflecopter giveaway

Doris McFadden - Dog Lover and Trainer for 70 years

I wish you could all get to know my friend Doris McFadden. 

Her connection with dogs began at the age of 12 when she handled Dalmatians at a kennel in San Francisco area in the 1940s and trained puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind. She attended obedience classes and showed her own dogs in obedience and conformation. That means Doris has spent 70 years in the world of dogs.

Doris graduated from San Francisco State and bred German Shepherds. After her marriage to Don McFadden, a California State Humane Officer who shared her passion for animals, they trained, bred and showed Appaloosa horses and trained German Shepherds. Doris showed in obedience and worked for a small animal vet.

After moving to Arizona, Doris taught obedience classes in Camp Verde, organized a Doggie Drill Team, judged at Chino Valley Kennel Club shows, presents programs at her local library, and continues to train dogs of all breeds and ages, offering private classes and classes through the OLLI (Yavapai College - Osher Life Long Learning Institute). 

Doris was also a Charter member of the Richmond Dog Fanciers Club and an AKC Evaluator of “Canine Good Citizen” program. Guide Dogs for the Blind Legacy Society, Board of Directors U.S. Wolf Refuge)

Doris presently owns Lucky, an Australian Shepherd, and Sirius her rescue Greyhound. She's busy private training class for two Mastiffs, planning her next Wolf Workshop Dancing with Wolves, and taking in a few yoga classes every week. Doris recently traveled to Egypt and to my favorite place in the Southwest – Chaco Canyon.

Doris is especially dear to me for her support during my writing of dogs and wolves in fantasy. She continues to be invaluable for her enthusiasm and spirit.

Learn more about Doris and her work with wolves on Oct 17th post.