THE BALLOON MAN

Animal rescuer brings wolves to Palisades Fair, some saved from illegal fur farms

 

Benna Sandlofer with Cody, a timber wolf, part of the wolf show at the Palisades Fair at the Palisades Center mall in West Nyack on Thursday. Peter Carr/The Journal News
Written by
Kristina Nikolaj
from: lohud.com
Jun 30, 2012
Mike Sandlofer, an animal rescuer with a show at the Palisades Center Fair, has a simple philosophy.
“God created animals, we have to respect them,” he said.
Sandlofer has worked with animals for 42 years. He has brought some of them to the fair in Lot J outside the mall, which runs through July 4. All of the animals on display were rescued.
Some are wolves. Sandlofer said they’re hard to train because it takes years to earn their trust. “Wolves are very special animals,” he said. He has 10 of them. Two were rescued from Hurricane Katrina, five cubs came from West Virginia, and three from Ohio. The wolves from West Virginia and Ohio were rescued from illegal fur farms, where the animals are killed for their coats.
“Wolves are very cautious animals,” he said. “Their natural instinct is not to trust. It took us years to form this bond. We have to let them know that we care for them to build trust.”
One of the wolves is named Cody. Sandlofer calls him the “hero wolf.” Cody was born at an illegal fur farm in Minnesota and was sold to a sanctuary in Ohio, then sold to woman in Seattle, then sold back to the sanctuary. There he was cared for by a handicapped woman, who, while walking Cody, fell into water when a bridge broke. Sandlofer said Cody could have run off but instead jumped in and pushed the woman to shore, saving her life.
This is the first time that the wolves had traveled to Rockland County. The show travels to state fairs around the country with the mission of educating people about animals. Sandlofer also hopes to raise enough money for fencing around sanctuaries in South Carolina and Windhym, N.Y. The wolves will be placed at the sanctuaries after the fairs.
“Its all about caring for them, animals have needs and we’re not the only ones on earth,” said Sandlofer.
The fair opens at 4 p.m. weekdays and at 1 p.m. Saturdays, Sundays and July 4.
“You can come and not ride any rides and still have a good time,” noted Ron Weber, the fair manager.