A Wolf Called Wander by Rosanne Parry, Mónica Armiño

Wolves form packs and the packs are independent.  They share no love for the other packs and they have no desire to share their food.  That means when another pack is coming on your ground they are coming to fight you and kill you to acquire your home.  Wander doesn't understand about that but his father does.  They go home and they get ready for an attack.  It comes and when it's over, he's the only out of his pack that is still alive.  He does find another survivor but they attack again and kill him.  He's on his own and his home isn't his anymore.

Life is tough when you're a wolf.  People shoot you, even an elk can kill you instead of you killing it if you don't do it right.  He's hardly big enough to take one on, but he's got to eat.  He used to be named Swift but now he changes his name to Wander.  Because he'll have to wander to find another safe home.

Green Willow Books and Edelweiss let me read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published May 7th.

He's a young wolf but he knows how to hunt and what to hunt.  He doesn't tangle with skunks or porcupines.  But big game is almost too big and one elk hurts him.  He limps along and keeps looking for a safe place or for friends to hang out with.

The two wolves he find aren't interested in him and they prefer eating tame animals, like sheep or a calf.  He's watching when the rancher shows up and kills them both.  Then he leaves quietly.

He has found one female about his age that he'd like to hook up.  She's not so sure about him.  But when she's in the area he planned to settle in, he makes friends with her.  Maybe he's finally found a new home and companion...