State regulations could endanger Wolf Country USA

A roadside attraction and RV park north of Palmer may be in danger of extinction if the state of Alaska enforces regulations that outlaw the selling, trading and breeding of wolves and wolf hybrids.

Wolf Country U.S.A.'s owner Werner Schuster said he doesn't know if the regulations will be enforced and hasn't heard from the state since the January Board of Game meeting.

"The first time they passed a regulation, they came out here and they gave me a copy and that was it," Schuster said.

Possession or sale of wolves or wolf hybrids has long been illegal under state regulations governing the use of live game. But the regulation has lacked enforcement because there is no definitive scientific test to determine the difference between a captured wolf, a hybrid wolf, or a dog, according to state officials. The most recent regulation change allows anyone owning a hybrid to keep the animal as long as it's spayed or neutered before July 1, and as long as its owners don't transfer ownership of the animal outside of their immediate family. The new regulations also require that hybrids have an identifying microchip planted under their skin.

For Schuster, the sticking point is a ban on the transfer or sale of any animal that's "represented" as a wolf or a wolf hybrid -- essentially a ban on marketing a pup's lineage. Marketing lineage has been a big part of Schuster's business since he purchased four wolf hybrids from Outside a decade and a half ago. There are currently 44 animals living at Wolf Country USA. Schuster said all of them were born at his kennel except a couple that were boarding there.

"The only thing they've resolved is you can't advertise pups as wolf hybrids," Schuster said. " . . . From now on, [the animals] are all golden-eyed Alaskan huskies."

Fifteen years ago Schuster acquired a narrow strip of 42 acres between the Glenn Highway and the Matanuska River at Mile 52. He has a sense of humor and a streak of libertarianism.

In short, Schuster is the kind of guy you'd expect to build a roadside attraction from scratch. He's carved his own totem poles and built a log cabin gift shop for the RV park. He calls each dog by name as he leads visitors through the fenced-in viewing area and will hold a dog biscuit in his mouth to feed a large male named Kojak.

"I want you to know how long it took him to train me to do this," Schuster said. Kojak has been trained as well. He once learned to howl on command for a documentary about Alaska. The film was released on IMAX format, nominated for an Academy Award, and of course, is sold in VHS format at Wolf Country USA.

"The deal was 'No howl, no money,'" Schuster said, adding that at the time he was recovering from a biopsy on his throat and that he lost his voice after howling with Kojak for three weeks.

Schuster said he's in the process of selling his business -- he's 71 and wants to go to Belize -- but he might just stick around for a court battle, he said. He doesn't think the courts can decide whether an animal is a wolf, a wolf hybrid, or a dog when biologists can't decide.

"To be perfectly honest with you, I'm not entirely sure what to do about wolves -- I mean, when are they not a dog?" said federal veterinarian Don Reinart of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) office in Palmer. Reinart keeps track of USDA-licensed animal exhibitors and their inventory and performs inspections. He said Schuster's operation isn't licensed with his office. Reinart and officials at the Alaska Department of Fish and Game both said they aren't sure how things will progress as the July 1 deadline approaches.

"I am really not that familiar with [Schuster's] operation yet. But it is something that's going to come up. I'm doing researching on it," he said.

In Alaska, animal exhibitors must carry state and federal permits and subject their operations to inspections. Individual permits are also carried on each species that doesn't appear on the state's "clean list" for domestic animals, according to fish and game spokesman Bruce Bartley.

Fish and Game officials will "try to be as flexible and reasonable as possible while at the same time pursuing the eventual goal of ending the breeding, sale and ownership of hybrid wolves," according to a letter sent to veterinarians last month.

Schuster said he didn't receive a copy of the letter until this newspaper provided him with one. Asked if his small business had enough capital for a court battle, Schuster shrugged off the question.

"I don't need capital," Schuster said, "I've got a lawyer who loves animals."