Spirit Guide of the day is Wolf! Now is a time when the parts of your personality that are no longer useful will be weeded out. Maintain your self-esteem and confidence even when you feel misunderstood. Make sure to make cooperation important in this time. Wolf guides are seen as a sign of loyalty and guardianship. They are one of the strongest signs for that of a wild spirit, being seen as the spirit of the unspoiled wilderness. These animals are very ritualistic and show that both in their social structure and as a spirit guide meaning. This need for ritual and structure shows us how to maintain freedom with discipline. Because of their interest in avoid confrontation except when necessary, wolves have become a sign for showing you how to develop strength and confidence as well as how to know when to use them. This can also be seen in their behavior of never hunting healthy animals, but, rather, hunting only the old or injured prey. They show us never to waste. People who are connected with Wolf would rather avoid confrontations, but will do what they must to defend them self and their family. Family and community is important to these souls and they have an innate sense of social order. These individuals are affection with their family, natural-born teachers, and have amazing vocalization skills as well as nonverbal communication skills.

Wolves, Canis Lupus, are carnivorous mammals that can live up to 13 years in the wild, however, only reach approximately 8 years of age. There are three species of wolf: Gray, Red and Ethiopian wolf with several subspecies named on their region including: species of wolf: Himalayan, Eastern, Indian, and Arctic. The Gray Wolf can be found throughout the United States, Canada, and Alaska and sport a range of colors. They can also be found in certain areas of Europe, Africa, and Asia. Red wolves, named for their reddish tinted fur, are often confused with foxes. They are mainly found in areas of North and South Carolina in the United States. The Ethiopian wolf can be found in Africa and are closely related to the Gray wolf. These animals are smaller types of wolves often mistaken as coyotes. The Ethiopian wolf has a loser social structure than other wolves and can be seen sometimes hunting on their own for smaller prey. Wolves have a thick coat of fur that makes them appear bigger than they actually are. This pelt is made up of two types of hair: an undercoat close to the skin that helps to build a waterproof barrier to regulate temperature and an outer layer of guard hairs. The fur contains scent glands that allow them to mark territory. Although the body of a wolf seems small, they are very muscular and possess a slender chest region that enables them to have a full range of movement. Their jaws are powerful and interlock so that they can bite and hold prey with no problem. A wolf's mouth contains up to 42 teeth such as the pointed front teeth for puncturing, pointed molars to shred, and flat back molars used to crush bone. They also possess very large paws reaching an average 9 inch by 10 inch that work as snowshoes to allow them to walk on top of snow without sinking in. The pads of their feet are very thick. Interestingly, a wolf has five toes on its front feet while only having four toes on their back feet. These canines are adaptable to many types of habitats including forests, cold Arctic lands, mountain ranges, savanna deserts. Many wolves alive today live in the frozen tundras of Alaska and Canada. They are able to live in any land where their base needs of food, shelter, and water can be found. Wolves will spend approximately 10 hours a day throughout their territory looking for food and using urine scent marks to mark the boundaries of their range. The habitat of wolf packs can, at times, overlap and is kept peaceful by general avoidance by the separate packs. Wolf packs have a complex, strict social structure with emphasis on the hierarchy of each individual. The leaders of the pack are the alpha male and beta female while the lowest member of the pack is called the omega. Each member of the pack must adhere to the social structure or be reprimanded. Although strict, this social structure is important in keeping the entire pack alive and actually helps to promote unity. There are two separate hierarchies within the pack; the males and the females. This difference in the roles only occurs during the mating season. Any other time of the year, the pack duties are split based solely on hierarchy and not by gender. During the mating season, it is mainly only the alpha male and beta female that will breed. This helps to promote a stronger, healthier bloodline. These young pups are often given much more freedom due to being offspring of the highest ranking members of the pack. Wolves have a strong emphasis on communication and affection. They spend a large portion of time communicating verbally and non verbally. The iconic howling of a wolf can be heard for miles around and is used for a variety of reasons. These include being able to identify the location of the pack, to warn others away from territory, and as a way to get the members of a pack riled up for a hunt. This last option is often when multiple wolves will howl together. In order to create this amazing sound, a wolf must bend its neck upwards in order to achieve the high pitched volume. Each wolf has a distinct voice which enables the pack to know which wolf is howling. Barking is used within the pack in order to get others in motion such as a signal of danger to run, to move on from a certain area, or sometimes by the alpha male to get the attention of a female. Low growls are used by the alpha male and beta female as signs to keep the members of the pack in order. Growling is not often used and shows aggression between others. Adults may hiss at the pups to warn them not to do something or when their behavior is becoming to playful for the security of the pack. A range of calls is used to keep tabs on the pups, to check in when separated to search for food, or a wide range of other uses. Body language is another important communication for wolves including the way they walk and the way they stand in comparison to the alpha male. Rolling on the ground enables them to spread their scent and show invitation to share space. Signs of aggression include rearing up on two legs momentarily or as dominance. Pups will rub against older wolves as sign of affection and will nudge the corner of an adults mouth as a sign for hunger. Wolves will hunt food dependent on their location such as moose, elk, and deer. They will hunt as a pack, choosing prey that are slower such as the injured or old. They can even eat up to 20 pounds of meat in a single feeding. However, they will not always find food each day. When necessary, they will eat smaller food such as birds, lizards, frogs, snakes, and small mammals. In extreme conditions, they will even eat types of fruits and plants in order to survive.