C&T Publications Eye on Fine Art Photography - July 2014 | Page 20

Furever Wild
by Amanda Stadther, photos © Amanda Stadther

In a quiet corner of Eureka, Minnesota there is a small farm, not unusual for these parts, but its occupants are not what you would
expect.
Furever Wild owner Terri Petter runs a non-profit farm for "fur bearing animals" and hopes to educate the public by opening up the
farm to visitors during the summer months.
Residents include Arctic Foxes, Prairie Dogs, a Bobcat, a Canadian Lynx, Fisher Martens, Porcupines, Raccoons, Red Foxes,
Opossums, Skunks, Goats, Pigs, Rabbits and some 20 Grey Wolves.
In order to keep the farm solvent, Ms Petter puts aside a few weekends a year for photographers to come to the farm to get close to
some of the wolf pups and raccoon kits. It's not the cheapest two and a half hours you'll spend, but for photographers it is often a
once in a lifetime opportunity to get close to some elusive Minnesota wildlife.
Our group of nine photographers are taken to a clearing in a nearby forest a short hike where we are met by a team of volunteers and
four energetic three-month-old wolf pups. It is a swamp..with a good four inches of water for pups to splash around in. There is no
fence or enclosure, just a ring of volunteers ready to tackle any escapees, be they wolves or photographers.
The pups are let loose and instantly want to make friends with the humans. Those of us squatting in the swamp, trying to get photos
of the pups at eye level, are knocked over by an enthusiastic puppy jumping into our lap and trying to drown us in dog-food-flavored
wolf kisses. (There is a sentence I never thought I'd say!)
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