Excerpt:<p><i>As I set off for the stream, the young male suddenly knocked me down. I lay there, winded, as he stood over me snarling, eyes blazing and teeth bared. Looking as if he might rip my throat out, he then backed me into the hollow of a tree. Every time I tried to move he snapped the air with his jaws. I had never seen him like this and feared for my life.<p>As dusk fell, his mood changed. He started to walk towards the valley. After a few steps he stopped and looked back, which meant he wanted me to follow. On the way he stopped and sniffed scratches on the ground. There were bear droppings, and deep gouges in the bark of the trees where a huge grizzly had scraped his claws: the signs of a bear intent on killing.<p>Suddenly it became clear. This wolf hadn't wanted to hurt me but to save me from the rampaging grizzly. I owed him my life.</i><p>Fascinating piece. And if you own a dog (or want to) there is a column of behavioral tips.