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In southern New Mexico, where the sky stretches wide and endless, is Ladder Reserve.
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Owned by media mogul Ted Turner, it's both a working ranch and a wildlife preserve focused on restoring its 156,000 acres of rolling grasslands and rugged hills.
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Ladder is abundant with wildlife.
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You're going to find elk, You're going to find sheep, You're going to find antelope.
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You're going to find bison, predators like mountain lions and black bears.
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And the Mexican Gray wolf.
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The endangered Mexican Gray wolf is one of North America's rarest animals.
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And to reach them, we'll need a ride.
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So this is all good wolf habitat, eh?
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Lots of quail out there.
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We're going to go through the the Creek right here.
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At last count, there were only 257 wild Mexican Gray wolves.
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Ladder Reserve supports one step of the groundbreaking collaborative Mexican wolf recovery program.
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Here on the ladder we have a facility that's a little like a halfway house.
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Wolves come here and they spend time being acclimated and getting ready to go into the wild.
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So we could have anywhere from 1 wolf to 12 wolves on our property at anyone given period of time.
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The wolves here were born in specialized breeding facilities across the US and Mexico.
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Once they're 5 to 10 months old, they come to live in pre release enclosures where they learn to avoid humans and prepare for life in the wild.
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After about a year, they're released into nearby national forests to join wild wolf packs, roam freely and help rebuild the population.
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Oh, there it is.
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OK, that was quite a drive, right?
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We're here at 10 two.
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Yeah.
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So we need to keep voices down.
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Yeah, let's try and keep it down.
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Of course, while the wolves are here, they've got to eat.
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So I have two wolves in this pin or a companion pair.
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I see one, I see one.
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Look.
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Oh, look right down here.
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Running away.
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Oh, my gosh.
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Oh, I didn't know that we were going to see them straight away.
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I didn't either.
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I thought when we showed up with the food, they were going to come up here.
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So it's OK to enter.
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Yep.
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Come on in.
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We'll just make sure we close the gate behind us.
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OK, Look, there it is again.
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Just right down there.
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Running, running.
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Just come right along.
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Right along.
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Right along here.
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Wow.
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Oh, look at that.
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Oh my gosh.
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So while we're in here, we'll want to do a head check, make sure that they're alive, that they're moving around nice and easy, They're not limping or have any injuries.
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So the answer is yes, they're moving around.
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Yes, they're alive.
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They look beautiful.
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They look so healthy just racing around in here.
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The wolves are fed just twice a week to mimic the feast or famine they'll experience in the wild.
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They each get two 5 LB zoo formulated carnivore logs.
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Yum.
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So just right here, Melissa.
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That'll be fine.
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Yeah, they're going to.
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They're going to pick those logs up and take them wherever they want to take them, right?
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We're always told about the big bad wolf, right?
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That they are vicious and they're out to get us in.
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We are here with wolves that if they wanted to get us, they could do it in a moment.
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And they are staying as far away as possible.
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We have food right there, yet they're still afraid to come close to us.
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This fear is just what program biologists want.
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Learning to keep away from people is crucial for their survival.
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It's so beautiful just to see them racing around through the rocks and the cacti and around all this beautiful habitat.
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We're going to also change the water out.
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OK.
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When you want to give them fresh water, just dump it out.
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Waterfall smells.
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Smells.
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Yeah.
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Fragrant.
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Yeah.
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They love to mark on the side of these tubs.
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So that's the smell you're getting.
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Yeah.
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Yeah.
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Another of the ranches, 5 carefully designed enclosures is nearby.
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This is pen, too.
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OK.
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We have a single female in here.
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Female in 19 O 7.
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Oh, I see.
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Oh, I see.
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Nineteen O 7 there.
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She's running fast.
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And that means that she's frightened.
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She's frightened.
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OK, so we'll just throw these in, get it in as quickly as we can and then get back out.
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Yep, right here.
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Looks good.
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There's a good spot.
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All right, I can toss mine.
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OK, let's do another quick look.
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A little little look at her, just to make sure she's moving around.
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OK, well, she's moving.
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I mean, that's she's running quickly.
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She's so beautiful.
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Really.
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Well, yeah, look at that.
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This species has been through a lot.
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Mexican Gray wolves were haunted nearly to extinction in the 1970's.
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The last 7 remaining wolves were captured to begin a breeding program, launching the efforts to return them to the wild.
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Today, their numbers are finally rising.
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Wow what a thanks for helping me out today guys.
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This has been just tremendous for us.
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What a pleasure.
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Feeding and caring for these wolves is just one step towards not only saving a species, but also restoring balance to the wild.
