Also did this quest and had same result as above. But I noticed something, since I tried the quest 3 or 4 times to see if I could find another way to trigger the wolf. As soon as you click the crate next to the spilled cart, it dings and a wisp appears that leads you back to the npc Aelis on the docks. So one of the times I tried to follow the wisp exactly back to her and talk to her, but she just redirects me to Tavyn. I also searched thoroughly on all the hills and areas behind all the buildings just in case. Alas the wolf never spawns.
Not sure if the additional info is helpful. It is odd that the wisp appears. Almost as if the mechanics of two different quests got transposed or mixed up.