A forester discovered a female wolf that was on the verge of exhaustion on a chilly winter day. The sad animal, who was already in a precarious situation due to the difficulty of finding food in the wilderness during the winter, decided there was nothing to lose and approached the cabin.
The wolf was given some meat to eat by the forester Styopa after initially being afraid of her. More than anybody else, he was aware of how challenging it is to find sustenance in the forest in the dead of winter.
The wolf visited a few more times, and when the townspeople discovered that Stepan had chosen to feed the animal, they were frightened. They were worried that she might take their livestock, but a knowledgeable forester issued a warning that if the animal persisted in going hungry, it would become dangerous for not only the livestock but also the citizens of nearby settlements.
With the approach of spring, the wolf stopped showing up, but the forester was used to her by then. With the start of the warm season, there was already an abundance of food. The villagers’ tension subsided, but the forester was upset since he had already become attached to his companion.
But by the end of April, the wolf had returned to see him. This time, she had brought her cubs with her instead of just showing up by herself. The forester learned that in addition to feeding her wolf offspring, she also consumed flesh. He never saw his forest wolf comrade again, but the predators’ thanks could be seen in their eyes.
