On May 13, a homeowner saw a young bear cub near his home in Botetourt County – with no sign of the Black Bear sow. The cub was headed toward the highway – so the homeowner rescued the bear and called the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. The cub was transported to the Center on the morning of May 14.
Dr. Rich Sim, the Center’s veterinary fellow, examined the cub upon admission. The cub was extremely thin and dehydrated – and radiographs revealed a fracture of the bear cub’s right femur. Dr. Rich suspects that the injury, which is approximately two weeks old, may have prevented the young cub from keeping up with her mother. The fracture is already healing, so no surgery or treatment will be needed; at this point, the bear needs to gain weight. The rehabilitation staff will be feeding the female cub three times a day. The cub currently weighs 2.03 kg.
This Black Bear cub, patient #13-0889, brings the current tally of Black Bear cubs to 12. Once a fecal examination has confirmed that the bear does not have any internal parasites, the cub will be introduced to Bear cubs #13-0874 - #13-0876.