Eating

Speed eaters

Painted wolves devour the entire carcass of their prey in minutes, conscious of the constant threat from larger carnivores. Meat is shared amongst the whole pack, regardless of who made the kill or any individual’s ‘status’ within the pack.

Lunch room bullies

Painted wolves are constantly competing with lion and hyena, who often try to steal kills and, sometimes, to even kill the painted wolves themselves.

Pups eat first

Always conscious of the future of the pack, pups are usually allowed to feed first at the kill. If the greedy hyena then come in, at least the pups have been fed, and the adults can wait until the next meal. Often an adult will keep guard while the pups get their fill.

Food fight

The adults will usually find a shady place to rest after a meal, the pups are often to be found playing with leftover bones and bits of skin from breakfast. While we’ve aways been taught not to play with our food, the painted wolves revel in it. Sometimes it can look quite gruesome to us.