Black Bear cubs of 2018

Outcome: 
Released April 2019!
Patient Status: 
Patient Archive
Released

In April 2018, the Wildlife Center began admitting this year's bear cubs from locations throughout Virginia. These bears were likely born between early January to mid-February of 2018. In most cases, the cubs were separated from their mothers or were orphaned. 

Bear cubs will be cared for by the Wildlife Center until next spring, at the time when they would begin naturally dispersing from their mothers. The 2018 cubs will be released in the spring of 2019.

To limit human interaction, only a few staff care for the bear cubs. Cubs admitted in the early spring typically need supplemental heat; they live in one of the Center's patient rooms and are bottle- or bowl-fed a special bear formula multiple times a day. When they are old enough to move outside, they continue to live in a contained zinger crate, with access to a larger play space during feeding sessions. After that, the cubs are housed in the Center’s Large Mammal Isolation enclosure [typically moving in May]. Once the bear cubs are weaned from formula, they are moved to the Center’s Black Bear Complex, where they have a half-acre of forest to explore.

When introduced to other bears, each cub has a temporary colored tag placed in its ear. These tags will be removed prior to release and will be replaced with permanent green ear tags from the Virginia Department of Inland Fisheries. The temporary colored tags allow the Center staff to monitor and identify the cubs via Critter Cam. The green "release" tags identify them as rehabilitated bears.

The 2018 bears are divided into two groups:

Black Bear cub #18-0345, [Green Tag], female
Black Bear cub #18-0346 [Orange Tag], female
Black Bear cub #18-0349 [No Tag], male
Black Bear cub #18-0350 [Pink Tag], female
Black Bear cub #18-0383 [Red], male 
Black Bear cub #18-0497 [Yellow Tag], male
Black Bear cub #18-0498 [White Tag], male
Black Bear cub #18-0933 [Double Green Tags], male
Black Bear cub #18-1089 [Double Pink Tags], female
Black Bear cub #18-1315 [Double Yellow Tags], male
Black Bear cub #18-1316 [Double Orange Tags], male

and

Black Bear cub #18-2921 [Green/Orange Tags], male
Black Bear cub #18-2926 [Pink/Orange], female
Black Bear cub #18-2983 [Red/White Tags], female
Black Bear cub #18-3024 [Orange/Yellow Tags], male
Black Bear #19-0057 [Double Green], female
Black Bear #19-0097 [No Tags], female
 

Frequently Asked Questions about Black Bear cub rehabilitation 

Cubs in the News: 

The car crash left a bear dead in the road. Then a state trooper spotted her 2 cubs., The Charlotte Observer

Two black bear cubs rescued after traffic crash, The Franklin News-Post

Troopers rescue black bear cubs in Franklin County, WSLS-TV

Cute Orphaned Cubs Get Some Bear Care at Wildlife Center, Inside Edition 

Trooper, Wildlife Center combine to rescue bears, The News Virginian

Wildlife Center cautions drivers to be on the lookout for bear cubs, WHSV-TV 

Your donation will help provide long-term rehabilitation and care to these special patients. Thanks for your support!

Updates

April 16, 2019

Yesterday’s double bear release went well when Double Orange [larger male] and Double Pink [smaller female] were returned to the wild. Katie the DGIF biologist reported to us that both bears were awake (from their anesthetic drug) when she got to the release site – both bears hopped out on their own but were still a little sleepy from the drugs. Katie said, “[Both bears] went about 50 yards away and the big one decided he was still sleepy. So he conks out ... the little one comes back and curls up on him and they both proceed to snooze in the sun! It was hilarious and adorable!”

After both woke up, they trotted off together.

April 15, 2019

On Friday afternoon, the veterinary team was able to successfully capture and move the two Black Bear yearlings remaining in transition area #3 of the Black Bear Complex. Both bears had evaded their scheduled morning release after they managed to climb over the black protective plastic around one of the trees in the transition area and refused to come down.

The rehabilitation team set a live trap; by late afternoon, Double Orange took the bait and was able to be trapped, while Double Pink remained on the ground to keep Double Orange company. Dr. Peach was able to dart and sedate both bears, and performed the pre-release physical exam and ear tagging; both bears were then moved to the Large Mammal Isolation enclosure to await release this week.

On Monday morning, a DGIF biologist came to pick up the two bears for release; they were successfully loaded in the DGIF transport trap. Bear #18-1089 [Double Pink] had a final weight of 31.7 kg; Bear #18-1315 [Double Orange] weighed in at 42.4 kg.

Here's a video from last Thursday's seven-bear release: 

April 12, 2019

Yesterday’s releases of the seven bears went well; the bears were actually split into three groups and released a few miles apart from one another. Wildlife rehabilitators Brie and Kelsey were able to attend, and got some photos and videos! DGIF outreach people were also in attendance and will be sharing photos and videos at some point.

Double Yellow and Double Green Release: 

Green, Orange, and Red Release: 

Today’s double bear release has been postponed due to uncooperative bears; the last two scheduled for release today were moved into the transition area of yard #1 last night, but Brie came in early today to find that both had managed to climb over the black protective plastic around one of the trees in the transition area. This means the bears are much too high to safely dart; despite coaxing and tempting the bears, neither wanted to come down. The rehab staff will attempt to live trap the bears this weekend and move them to the Large Mammal Isolation enclosure for a release next week.

April 11, 2019

The bear releases continue this week – with seven more bear yearlings out the door!

The Wildlife Center team successfully darted and loaded seven bears this morning; some of the bears had already received their pre-release exam and ear-tagging earlier this week when they were moved to Large Mammal Isolation. All bears are in good condition. A number have shown some hair loss along their flanks; the staff has noted this during the past couple of years on yearling bears in the early spring. This appears to be something that is seen in captive-raised bear cubs but has not been a long-term issue for bears once they have more room in the wild.

Today’s release group includes:

Black Bear cub #18-0345 [Green Tag]: final weight 50.9 kg
Black Bear cub #18-0346 [Orange Tag]: final weight 46.3 kg
Black Bear cub #18-0349 [No Tag]: final weight 43.7 kg
Black Bear cub #18-0350 [Pink Tag]: final weight: 32.4 kg
Black Bear cub #18-0383 [Red]: final weight 45.4 kg
Black Bear cub #18-0933 [Double Green Tags]: final weight 47.4 kg
Black Bear cub #18-1315 [Double Yellow Tags]: final weight 42.4 kg

Wildlife rehabilitators Brie and Kelsey are attending the release with DGIF biologists; hopefully we’ll have photos and/or video to share later!

April 5, 2019

Bear releases continued today with two more bears returning back to the wild! Today’s release group contained:

Bear #18-2921 [Green/Orange Tags/“jaw bear”]. Final weight: 30.30 kg.
Bear #18-3024 [Orange/Yellow Tags]. Final weight: 24.80 kg.

The bears were examined, ear tagged for release, and weighed.

Jaime Sajecki went along on the release with another DGIF biologist and took these release photos: 

 

 

On Thursday, Dr. Ernesto did a full work-up on bear #18-2926, who was admitted in October 2018 with a broken elbow. While the bear’s fractured leg was surgically repaired last fall,  the team knew that this would be a very difficult fracture to overcome, particularly in a young, growing bear. The yearling has been in the Bear Complex since early January, and the rehabilitation team has been monitoring the bear carefully; the bear has had no issues climbing trees, though the team has noted that the bear doesn’t walk completely normally.

Radiographs confirmed that the fracture site is stable; Dr. Ernesto was pleased with how this appeared and decided that the bear could be released without additional concern. However, the yearling bear also had a wound on her face; upon closer examination, Dr. Ernesto realized that the wound was caused by a tooth root abscess. The bear’s tooth will need to be extracted before release; the bear was placed in the Center’s Bear Pen while options are being considered.

April 4, 2019

After two more days of dedicated bear-trapping attempts, Brie was successfully able to lure all of the remaining yearlings into live traps by Wednesday afternoon! The bears were moved to Large Mammal Isolation in preparation for release.

A biologist came this morning to load the two bears; the team weighed and tagged them for release:

Bear #19-0057 [Double Green Tags]. Final weight: 19.9 kg.
Bear #19-0097 [No Tags]. Final weight: 15.5 kg.

Double Green Tags: 

No Tags:

 

In addition, two bears from yard #3, White Tag and Yellow Tag, were able to be trapped in the transition area this morning for today’s scheduled release. White Tag [bear #18-0498] weighed 37.2 kg; Yellow Tag [bear #18-0497] weighed 51.60 kg. Both were picked up by a DGIF biologist in the afternoon.

Three more yearlings from yard #1 are now in the Large Mammal Isolation enclosure for tomorrow's release. 

That means, after this week, we’ll be down to nine bears – seven will be released on Thursday, April 11, and the final two will be released on Friday, April 12.

April 1, 2019

On Monday, April 1, the bear releases started – though not as many bears departed today as the staff had planned. Last week, the rehabilitation team attempted to lure the bears out of the trees and into a live trap, so that they could be moved to the Large Mammal Isolation enclosure for easier darting, ear tagging, and loading for release. Unfortunately, none of the bears showed interest – so the team had to attempt to dart them today in yard #1.

This group of bears in yard #1 has particularly taken to hanging in the treetops, making the darting particularly challenging. In the end, bear yearling #18-2983 [Red and White Tags] was successfully darted – and that was it from yard #1!

Bear #18-2983 was examined and weighed, and green tags [used for released bears] replaced the red and white tags in the bear’s ears. The bear weighed in at 27.0 kg -- a big difference from her October admission weight of 5.4 kg! The bear was in good body condition and had a good hair coat. 

Then ...                                                                     ... and now!

 

Bear #19-0166 from Large Mammal Isolation enclosure was also darted, examined, weighed, and tagged for release. This bear yearling weighed in at 10.0 kg.

The staff is glad two bears were able to return to the wild today – they’ll be attempting more live-trapping this week for yard #1. The next bear release takes place on Thursday, April 4, when two bears from yard #3 will be released.

Release Update from the DGIF Biologist: 

"The little one [former Double Pink Tags] ran off like its tail was on fire.  The last time I saw him, he was still running.  The bigger one [former Red/White Tags]  ran a little ways and then thought about climbing a tree a couple of times and eventually made his way out of sight."

March 26, 2019

Bear releases are quickly approaching! All of the bear yearlings at the Wildlife Center are nearing their release time -- even the bears that were admitted within the past few months as undersized sick, injured yearlings. Not only are the bears old enough to be on their own at this point, but spring is also a good release time, due to the abundance of wild foods.

The six yearlings in yard #1 are all doing well. Each of these bears arrived this past fall or winter; many were underweight, and some tested positive for mange mites. At this point, they are all in good body condition and each has resolved its initial injuries or issues; while these bears aren’t as large as the bears in yard #3 [who have been at the Center since spring 2018], the yard #1 yearlings are healthy and ready to be returned to the wild.

Next week, they’ll all be released! On Monday, April 1, two to four bears will be picked up for release by a DGIF biologist. On Friday, April 5, the remaining bears will be picked up for release. This cohort includes:

Black Bear #18-2921 [Green/Orange Tags], male
Black Bear #18-2926 [Pink/Orange], female
Black Bear #18-2983 [Red/White Tags], female
Black Bear #18-3024 [Orange/Yellow Tags], male
Black Bear #19-0057 [Double Green], female
Black Bear #19-0097 [No Tags], female
Black Bear #19-0166 [Double Pink Tags], female

Since these bears are generally more wary of people, and several enjoy spending their days in trees, the rehabilitation staff will set live traps in yard #1 in hopes of catching some of these bears early in preparation for release. Once trapped, the bears will be moved to the Large Mammal Isolation enclosure, where they can be more easily and safely darted and anesthetized on their release days next week. Trapping will start Wednesday; the Critter Cam for this yard will cease streaming at that time.

Once the yearlings are anesthetized next week for their final examinations, they’ll be weighed and ear tagged for release. Bears that were admitted to the Center as cubs (“young of the year”) will have green release ear tags; bears that were admitted as yearlings (after Jan 1 of the year following their birth) will wear yellow ear tags.

March 18, 2019

Spring is approaching – and it’s almost time to say goodbye to the Black Bears of 2018!

All of the bears in the Center are yearlings – bears are typically born in the winter months, meaning that these bears likely turned one-year-old in January. In the wild, cubs stay with their mothers through the winter, and when they emerge from their winter denning spots as yearlings in the spring, they start to venture off on their own. Similarly, the Center cares for injured and orphaned cubs throughout the fall and winter of the year they were born, and the following spring, it’s time for release!  Not only are the bears old enough to be on their own at this point, but spring is also a good release time due to the abundance of wild foods.

Wildlife rehabilitator Brie is scheduling the release of all 17 Black Bears with the Department of Game & Inland Fisheries. Even the bears that were admitted this winter as undersized yearlings are ready to go – they’ve all put on weight, are in good body condition, have resolved all health issues, and are ready to be in the wild.

During the first two weeks of April, the bears will be released in five or six different groups. So far, release dates are scheduled for:

  • Monday, April 1: two to four bears from yard #1
  • Thursday, April 4: two bears from yard #3
  • Friday, April 5: remaining bears from yard #1
  • Thursday, April 11: seven bears from yard #3
     

The team is excited to return these bears back to the wild!

January 17, 2019

On January 17, the bear cubs celebrated their “Parturition Day”– there was a celebration for their collective birthdays!

In Virginia, Black Bear sows typically give birth in mid- to late January. According to a study by Kim Echols, in Virginia, Black Bear sows have been documented giving birth from December 19 to February 22 – with a median date of January 17. While the Center occasionally admits a very young cub in January or February, typically the cubs begin to arrive in April and May, when they are starting to emerge from dens with their mothers. The 15 bears now at the Center were admitted in 2018 – 11 were admitted in the spring months, the other four came later in the summer or fall. 

To mark this special day, wildlife rehabilitators Brie and Kelsey constructed two piñatas – they constructed them with newspaper and flour paste the day before, then stuffed the dried piñatas with mealworms and nuts before giving them to the bears.

 

 

The bears in yard #3 – the 11 bears that have been here the longest – wasted no time in grabbing and destroying their new toy, and they devoured their special treats. The yearlings in yard #1 are a bit more wary – none of the bears immediately dived in, but Critter Cam viewers may catch them enjoying their treats later!

 

 

Happy birthday, bears!

Black bears celebrate first birthday at Wildlife Center of Virginia, WHSV-TV 

January 3, 2019

The 11 Black Bear cubs in yard #3 of the Center’s Black Bear Complex are all doing well. They’ve put on a good bit of weight this past fall; since we’re now in winter, the rehabilitation staff have cut back on the bears' food and are fasting the bears on Sunday. It’s more likely that the bears still have plenty of food to pick from on that particular day of the week, but by not offering fresh bags and buckets of food, the bears will stay at a healthier weight.

Recently, a number of used Christmas trees were dropped at the Center; the bears received their first enrichment tree in the week following Christmas. It seems safe to say that they enjoyed it very much!

November 19, 2018

On Thursday afternoon, November 15, the Wildlife Center lost power and suffered damage to fences and outbuildings during a severe ice storm. Portions of the Bear Complex were damaged, including a broken water line and several areas of fencing.

In order to make repairs and secure the 11 Black Bear cubs in the complex, the rehabilitation team is planning to shift the cubs to Yard 3 – where adult Black Bear #18-2293 was housed.

Because Black Bear #18-2293 was clinically healthy and had been cleared for release, the veterinary and rehabilitation teams coordinated with DGIF to release the bear as quickly as possible.

On the morning of Monday of November 19, a DGIF biologist trapped and transported the bear to an appropriate release site. The bear was not tagged or collared prior to release, so it’s unlikely that the Center will be able to collect post-release data on this bear.

In the meantime, rehabilitator Brie is working on preparing Yard 3 for the cubs and shifting the bears by November 20.

August 28, 2018

Wildlife rehabilitation intern Shannon reports that all of the cubs are doing well in the Bear Complex – they are exploring, climbing, and utilizing all of their one-acre space. Shannon says that the bears are fairly wary of their next-door neighbor, adult bear #18-1952.

The rehabilitation team delivers food daily to the cubs. For the past few days, the rehab staff has been dumping the food from the tower; they’ll soon switch to delivering the food in brown paper bags that are tossed over the fence. This will allow the staff to scatter the food widely throughout the two yards. Bears aren’t fed at a specific time of day, but the food is usually delivered in the afternoon or early evening. The cubs are also likely enjoying food found naturally in the forest – insects in and under logs, some natural browse growing in the complex, and, this fall, acorns will be available as they fall into the yards.

August 23, 2018

The Black Bear cubs of 2018 were successfully moved to the Bear Complex on Thursday, August 23!

Dr. Peach sedated the bears so that she could draw blood for the final week of her mange medication study. All of the bears are in excellent shape, and are quite large! The bears were weighed before the move:

Pink Tag: 21.8 kg
Double Pink Tag: 14.2 kg
Orange Tag: 25.7 kg
Double Green Tag:  20.8 kg
Double Orange Tag: 25.8 kg
White Tag: 23.4 kg
Red Tag: 25.9 kg
Green Tag: 24.4 kg
Double Yellow Tag: 21.5 kg
Yellow Tag: 27.4 kg
No Tag: 24.3 kg

Dr. Peach split the cubs into two groups for the final blood draw and move. The first group of cubs – Pink Tag, Double Pink Tag, Orange Tag, Double Green Tag, Double Orange Tag, and White Tag – were moved into the transition area of yard #1. Wildlife rehabilitators Brie, Kelsey, and Shannon watched over the cubs as they woke up and started to explore their new area.

 

 

The second group of cubs -- Red Tag, Green Tag, Double Yellow Tag, Yellow Tag, and No Tag – were moved into the transition area of yard #2 to recover.

 

 

The Center made some final fixes to the water tubs and drinkers in the Bear Complex; at about 4:00 p.m., Dr. Ernesto and Kelsey opened the gates to give all 11 cubs access to both yards #1 and #2.  

More photos of the big move! 

August 10, 2018

The 11 Black Bear cubs have been doing well in the Center’s Large Mammal Isolation enclosure; the cubs are eating well and growing quickly! The wildlife rehabilitation team will be happy to move the bears to the Bear Complex in two weeks. At this point, the plan is to allow the cubs to roam in yard #1 and yard #2 in the complex, which will give all 11 cubs access to a one-acre area.

 

 

​​​​​​​

July 26, 2018

The Black Bear cubs are doing well; they are eating, growing, playing, and enjoying their daily enrichment! The wildlife rehabilitation team have been taking short videos of various enrichment items that are introduced to the cubs – including:

Bamboo “wind chimes”:

 

Creative firehose toys, stuffed with goodies:

 

 

Watermelons – on a rope!

 

 

Not only are these enrichment items entertaining for the bears, but they also help develop natural skills that bears will use in the wild to climb, stretch, and forage for food.

Dr. Peach’s weekly blood draws for her study are going well; she reports that Yellow Tag is still the largest cub and currently weighs more than 20 kg!

July 6, 2018

The 11 Black Bear cubs are doing well in the Center’s Large Mammal Isolation enclosure. The bears were fully weaned from their “mush bowls” this week, and are now eating a variety of fruits, vegetables, seeds, insects, and greens. Wildlife rehabilitator Brie said that none of the bears seemed to miss their mush bowls in the past two days, and the cubs are eating a lot more “adult foods” now, which means the Wildlife Center kitchen is going through a good bit of produce!

The weekly Thursday blood draws for Dr. Peach’s study are going well; the added benefit to this is that Dr. Peach gets to successfully weigh and examine each cub every week. All of the cubs are gaining weight – nearly all are more than 10 kg, with three cubs [Green, Orange, and Yellow] weighing in at more than 15 kg! The smallest bear, Double Pink, weighs 6.64 kg. All signs of ringworm are gone, and the bears are in good condition.

June 25, 2018

The Black Bear cubs are doing well at the Center; they are all still receiving one mush bowl each, plus an ever-expanding “adult” diet of fruits, vegetables, seeds, and insects. All cubs have been weaned from their bottle feedings and soon will be weaned from their bear formula mush bowls entirely – wildlife rehabilitator Brie anticipates discontinuing mush for most of the cubs at the start of July, though the smallest cub, #18-1089 [Double Pink] may continue to receive a mush bowl while she’s housed separately.

The rehab staff continues to get creative with the daily enrichment offered to the cubs – some of the recent items have been a tire tower and a Chewy box stuffed with leaves and treats!

 

 

 

 

 

June 18, 2018

Last week, the cubs began Dr. Peach’s study on a new drug for treating mange in Black Bears. The cubs received the medication on Thursday and had blood draws on Friday; everything went smoothly. Dr. Peach had the opportunity to check each cub thoroughly during the blood draw process; she said all 10 cubs appeared to be in good condition. Some of the cubs still have some hair loss due to ringworm, but overall, they look good and no additional hair loss has developed.  The next blood draw for the study will take place on Thursday, June 21.

All 10 cubs are eating well, and the two newest orphaned cubs are settling in with the cohort of bears. The rehab staff adds enrichment to the enclosure daily, which may be freshly cut tree branches to smell and taste, boxes filled with food, or new food items to explore. Some of the cubs enjoy catching the rehabilitators filling their tubs with fresh water each day, like Green Tag in this video:

The bears will remain in the Large Mammal enclosure until the study is complete in August; this also will ensure that the smallest bears can move to the Complex with the larger bears, since they won't be weaned for several more weeks. 

June 12, 2018

The 10 Black Bear cubs are doing well in the Center’s Large Mammal enclosure; they are sampling a variety of different foods that have been introduced to their diet – apples, pomegranates, other fruits, and greens. Each cub is also receiving a mush bowl daily, and Orange, Green, and Red tagged bears are also still bottle-feeding once a day, though as of June 11, Brie noted that they showed less interest.

Soon, all 10 of the healthy cubs will be participating in a study led by Dr. Peach, the Center’s wildlife research fellow. Dr. Peach is conducting a study of a new drug used for treating bear mange. If proven safe and successful, this one-time treatment could be applied in the field, which means fewer afflicted bears would need to go through the stress of capture, transport, and treatment at a wildlife rehabilitation center. Bear mange is a growing problem in many states, including Virginia. By participating in this study, these 10 cubs will be helping countless other wild Black Bears.

The study will begin on Thursday, June 14. Wildlife rehabilitator Brie will administer the oral medication to each cub. The following day, the cubs will be sedated for a blood draw; additional blood draws will happen each Thursday for the next 10 weeks. While none of these cubs has mange, the repeated blood analyses of each cub will offer valuable information on this medication. During this weekly assessment, Dr. Peach will also be able to examine and weigh each bear. After the conclusion of the study on August 23, the bears will be moved to the Bear Complex.

A bear cub enjoying a bath: 

June 4, 2018

The eight black bear cubs in the Large Mammal Isolation enclosure are doing well and gaining weight. On Thursday, May 31, the rehabilitation staff weighed the cubs, most for the last time without sedation; they are now too big and strong to be handled and weighed while awake. The staff will continue to weigh Double Green tag until he reaches 5 kg.

Current weights [5/31] are:

Green Tag: 8.1 kgs
Orange Tag: 8.25 kgs
No Tag: 7.6 kgs
Pink Tag: 7 kgs
Red: 5.9 kgs
Yellow Tag: 8.4 kgs
White Tag: 6.6 kgs
Double Green Tags: 3.4 kgs

On June 1, rehabilitation intern Shannon introduced the bear cubs to whole foods (rather than chopped or soaked foods). Green tag was especially pleased to discover apples.

May 23, 2018

The Black Bear cubs are doing well in the Center’s Large Mammal Isolation enclosure; cub #8 will be joining them soon! Last week, the Center admitted another Black Bear cub, but since he only weighed 2.5 kg at admission, he has some weight to put on first before joining the others in the main enclosures. At today’s weigh-in, he was 2.7 kg – so should be able to come out of his Zinger crate in the next week. 

 

The rest of the cubs are doing well and growing quickly. Most are at the point where they could be reduced to one mush bowl feeding a day, but the smallest of the cubs [Red Tag and now Double Green Tag] still need two feedings a day. Since there’s no way to have two out of eight bear cubs eat mush bowls, all cubs will enjoy the additional food until the smallest are more than 5 kg.

At this point, mush bowls contain a thickened bear formula, along with soft “adult” foods – soaked dog chow, veggies, and fruits. The first feeding of the day typically takes place during the late morning; the second round of mush bowls is delivered in the evening.

May 10, 2018

The Black Bear cubs are doing well since their move to the Large Mammal enclosure earlier this week. The former Green Tag was unhappy to be separated from her siblings as her ear healed, but fortunately on the evening of May 9, wildlife rehabilitator Brie examined it and thought it was healed enough to be introduced to the others. All seven cubs are housed together in one side of the Large Mammal enclosure; the rehab staff will get the other side ready in the next couple of days so that the cubs have more space to play! Watch them on Critter Cam 3.

The cubs are now fed twice a day; Green Tag, Orange Tag, and future Red Tag are still being bottle-fed in addition to eating mush bowls. The other cubs are only interested in their mush bowls. The staff attempt to do the first feeding of the day in the late morning, the second feeding occurs in the evening.

Here are a few videos of the cubs playing before they were moved earlier this week.

 

May 9, 2018

During the past week, the rehabilitation staff have been carefully monitoring the lesions on Pink Tag’s face; No Tag and (future) Red Tag also developed some small patches of hair loss. The staff took several hair samples and the Center’s diagnostic team started a DTM  (dermatophyte test medium) to check for the ringworm fungus. On Monday, May 7, results came back positive for ringworm growth. The technicians were able to “type” the ringworm and concluded that the bears have a highly contagious form of the fungus. It’s likely that one (or two) of the cubs came in with ringworm, and started showing symptoms in the weeks following their admission.

At this point, the veterinary team is going to treat all of the cubs with a medicated spray while the bears are still eating formula. During each feeding, the staff will wipe down the cubs with the medication.

Wildlife rehabilitator Brie noted that the area around Green Tag’s ear appeared to be inflamed and swollen; on May 15, the veterinary team anesthetized the bear cub to remove the ear tag and clean the ear. For now, “Green Tag” will be without a tag.

The cubs that weren’t showing signs of the ringworm – Orange Tag, Yellow Tag, and White Tag – were moved to half of the Center’s Large Mammal Isolation enclosure late in the afternoon on Monday. The three cubs that are showing signs of ringworm were moved on Wednesday, May 9 -- all cubs will need treatment, and wildlife rehabilitator Brie thought it would be easiest to manage all of them together.  Green Tag will temporarily be housed in the connecting chute of the Center’s Large Mammal enclosure, so that she can see and interact with the other cubs, but doesn’t have direct access while her ear heals.

Stop by Critter Cam and catch a glimpse of the cubs!

May 4, 2018

The seven bear cubs are doing well at the Center; the wildlife rehabilitation team looking forward to getting at least half of these rambunctious cubs into the Large Mammal enclosure area as soon as possible! Within the next week, a few door repairs should be complete, and the cubs that weigh more than 3.0 kgs will be able to move.

The newest cubs – Yellow Tag and White Tag – took several days to settle in, but rehabilitator Brie reports that they are becoming less shy and are now eating well. Cubs No Tag and Pink Tag are very active and playful; the rehab team noticed a small wound near Pink Tag’s eye this week that appears to be from a particularly rough wrestling match. The team is monitoring the small wound at each feeding; it doesn’t appear to be getting worse.

 

 

 

Current weights [5/3] are:

White Tag: 3:00 kg
Yellow Tag: 3.66 kg
Future Red Tag: 2.73 kg
Pink Tag: 3.38 kg
No Tag: 3.82 kg
Orange Tag: 4.12 kg
Green Tag: 3.98 kg
 

April 26, 2018

Wildlife rehabilitator Brie reports that the bear cubs are enjoying their new space in the sheltered outdoor Metal Cage Complex. Most of the other small enclosures used for housing raptors have been cleared out of the space so that the bear cubs have plenty of room to run around during their play sessions. The rehabilitation team even constructed a fun jungle gym for the cubs, though Brie notes that the cubs are also happy trying to climb the walls and door!

 

 

Current weights are:

Green Tag: 3.05 kg 
Orange Tag: 3.20 kg
No Tag: 2.82 kg
Pink Tag: 2.83 kg
Future Red Tag: 2.00 kg

Yellow Tag and White Tag joined the gang on Thursday. 

April 23, 2018

The five Black Bear cubs are doing well at the Center; they continue to eat three times a day and are increasingly energetic and playful with one another. Brie reports that cub #18-0383, the newest cub admitted, has been a little more lethargic than the other cubs; he may just be settling in and adjusting to his new siblings, but the cub will have blood drawn later this week for another analysis.

Since nighttime temperatures are forecasted to stay well above freezing, the cubs were moved in their Zinger crates to the outdoor Metal Cage Complex. This building has a variety of small enclosures [some metal, some plastic] and typically is an additional raptor housing area. Since no raptors are currently housed in this space, the cubs were moved so that they can hear and smell the outdoors, while still remaining in a somewhat limited space. They should be large enough to move to the Large Mammal Isolation enclosure in May.

April 17, 2018

Here's a glimpse into the playtime of four growing Black Bear cubs ... 

 

 

Share This Page